This week in Food Prep 2, we learned all about breakfast foods. Like most people, breakfast foods are some of my favorite foods. We made eggs, pancakes, and bacon. For the eggs, we had to make a sunny-side-up egg, an over-easy egg, an omelet, and for extra credit, a poached egg. I spent a year working on my poached egg technique and a few months working on my friend egg technique. So, I have those two down. Eggs are weirdly hard. It's such a simple food, but you have to get it just right. I had to practice a few times on my sunny-side-up and over-easy, but I was able to get them. I think the key to eggs is low-heat or residual heat. I don't always remember that you can turn off the heat if your pan gets too warm.
In Baking, we're making a peach galette with crème anglaise. I am actually in the middle of making my peach galette because I'm going to bring it to my parent's house for the Fourth of July. The crust is a pate brisee, which is the French version of pie dough. The filling is peaches, sugar, and butter. I made the crème anglaise today. I'm going to churn it, and turn it into vanilla ice cream. I think it's going to be great. I love galettes. They are so much less fussy than pies.
In Garde Manger, we made Reubens, which is one of my favorite sandwiches. We had an entire lecture about sandwiches. How great is that?! One trick I learned is to make the sandwich open-faced. It's easier to flip. We made the French dressing, which was really good. I'm not too fond of bottled salad dressing from the grocery store. It's so simple to make. We made it with mayonnaise, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce, and horseradish. I will add a little pickle relish the next time I make it. I will never buy French dressing again. My Reuben turned out great.
In other news, I found out this I need to have my gallbladder removed. I have been having some stomach pain for years, on and off, but more severely in the last nine months. The doctors discovered a golf ball-sized gallstone in my gallbladder, a few others, and one lodged in my duct. Ugh. Needless to say, I need to have my gallbladder removed. I am scheduled for surgery on July 13. I'm a little nervous about having surgery, especially during a pandemic. However, I'm sure it's the right choice for me, and I look forward to feeling much better.
Next week, we'll be back in the classroom, and I can't wait! ICI is taking a lot of precautions to ensure the safety and health of the students and teachers. I'm thankful for all my teachers and classmates, and I can't wait to see everyone again this week!