What I Did On My Summer Vacation

It's been a while! School started yesterday and with the beginning of school I think it appropriate to write the traditional "What did you do on you summer vacation" essay. It was an interesting summer for sure. Unlike other summers of pool sitting, washing beach towels constantly, and applying sunscreen. I worked hard. I stupidly enough volunteered to help with our kitchen and dining room where we spend our summers. I knew it would be a bit challenging but I was naive. The first cook we hired was so perfect on paper I figured this was going to be so easy. I wouldn't have to do a thing! Silly me. She was nuts. She couldn't cook. Everything came out raw. 'Cause everybody loves themselves some raw chicken! That lasted a week. On to the next chef. This guy was great. He is an ex-navy cook and was willing to do anything or learn anything. We enforced some rules, tightened up the ship, buckled down, and brought down that budget. What I didn't expect was to be actually working in the kitchen. I baked my ass off. I prepped meats and veggies. And although I complained about it, I rather enjoyed myself. My family, on the other hand, did not think all of this was swell. "You're going back down there? How long this time???" But the summer ended on a good note.

School started for the children so crazy early that I have had several weeks to get really bored. I have been baking like crazy. I've made some meals that came near to making me weep. (The wine never helps the weeping.) I murdered some lobsters on my own because I had a craving for a really good lobster roll. I watched a lot of CSI reruns. I have grown fat and lazy. And just when I thought I might melt into my couch I started back to school. Thank God.

This fall brings us Protein Fabrication and Artisan Breads. I started yesterday with the proteins. This class teaches the student how to cut up meat, fish, pork, chicken, and other tasty morsels. We started class off with a bang. After a rather long lecture--you know the one, it begins every class since the beginning of time--the syllubus, policy and proceedures, dealing with students on the waitlist, what to expect this year, etc. I spent my time looking around at my fellow students and sizing up the group. There are a lot of men in this class. It figures though. They are all a bit bloodthirsty deep down. The singing pastry student from last quarter joins me. I can't wait to hear what will inspire her singing for this quarter. Probably heavy metal. Or something from Sweeney Todd. Most of the group looked rather overwhelmed. I know I was. We started lab by butchering a whole pig. The blood didn't bother me. Seeing his poor little head with his eyes closed as if sleeping didn't bother me. The smell did get to me a bit. What really bothered me is that I was hoping to eat some of this really fresh pork. I hadn't had a snack in anticipation of our feast. But no. Other classes get to eat it. Other, less deserving classes. We'd done the work, damnit. We prepped pork tenderloin and ground fat and meat for sausage. We frenched bones for beautiful pork chops. Then we sopped up the blood and went home.

Tomorrow is my bread class. It should provide some interesting things to write about. It might just be worth staying in the baking classes so that I have something funny to say. It is always a most interesting group. I'll keep you posted.