Garde Manger- Day 1

I arrived to class wondering who our teacher would be. The chef that is listed as the teacher of record I knew to be in Italy with the tour guide I just left. He is taking restaurant clients on a tour there. I'd inquired before I left who would be teaching but was given a "I am. Who else would?" reply. How stupid of me to ask.

I also arrived to class under the impression that there was no beginning practical. BBZZZ! (insert loud buzzer noise) Wrong! It was an easy practical, but somehow they never are as easy as you think they will be. This was an emulsified vinagrette, a handmade mayonnaise, and four hard boiled eggs. I did manage to get a 97 which I didn't think was even possible. What a great way to start the quarter! Too bad our stand in chef won't be there the full quarter.

The first items we created were roasted chickens for display. We each roasted a chicken and then pulled the breast meat off. This was saved for later to slice and put on a buffet platter with the decorated chicken.

We also prepared numerous colored aspics (AKA jell-o) to use as decor. These were set in sheet pans and then cut out into shapes.

While waiting for the aspic to set we reshaped our chickens with mashed potatoes so it looked like the breast had never been removed. It was very difficult to get the surface super smooth, needed for glazing because that will reveal every imperfection.

Next we glazed these with chaud froid. Literally translated this means "hot cold" in French. The glaze is named this because it is used hot but then served cold. I've included a picture of what I'm describing. This however is not my chicken (I have no idea who's chicken this is.) but it shows well a display similar to what we created. Of course, my flowers were much better and more retro than this. (Again, because we can't take photos in class, I've found something similar that an unknown person produced.) And my chaud froid went all the way down covering the neck. Who wants to see that sticking out? We also cut our wings from the bird. Otherwise, this is very similar to how our chickens looked.

I really enjoyed this class. It's crafty, but with food. Too bad the other instructor is returning shortly.