This week I made Waldorf Salad, Panna Cotta, Chocolate Pudding, and Mashed Potatoes. Does it sound like the most random list ever? I know, but it's truly not.
I made Waldorf Salad, which, if you're not familiar, is a cold salad with apples, celery, walnuts, and a sweet, creamy dressing. The dressing is made of whipped cream, mayo, and a little lemon juice. It's quite good. The apples and celery are cut uniformly, so it's a great salad to make to practice knife skills.
Next, we wrapped up gelatins. We made Panna Cotta and used gelatin sheets instead of the gelatin powder. The difference was amazing. The Panna Cotta was so smooth and silky. It's simple to make if you're comfortable working with gelatin and have plenty of time to let it set. The gelatin sheets we used aren't sold in grocery stores, but you can find them online. They are more expensive than powdered gelatin.
The next unit we're studying is starch. We started by making Chocolate Pudding. Have you ever had homemade Chocolate pudding? I swear it might be my new favorite food. It's so good, and honestly, it's not that hard. You heat milk, cream, cornstarch, and sugar; melt in chocolate; cook slowly until nice and thick, and finally chill. I'm hungry just thinking about it. It's delicious.
Now we have used eggs, gelatin, and cornstarch to thicken desserts. See! All those random things we made are fitting together so nicely. They are similar, puddings, and custards, but all have slightly different textures.
Finally, we made mashed potatoes. They are straight forward and the most practical thing to make while learning about starches. There are SO many ways to prepare potatoes, and they are all good. That was my week!
Next week is our midterm in the lab. I can't believe I'm halfway through the semester already. It's flying by. We are making four dishes we've previously made; Blueberry Muffins, Chocolate Pudding, Chinese Chicken Salad, and Waldorf Salad. We have two hours to make these four dishes and then present them all at once to our Chef. It will be a test of time as much as skills to get all four recipes made in two hours, but I am feeling pretty confident. I need a plan so I can stay organized and focused during the exam. Wish me luck!