Well I've been back from the Big Apple for a little over a week now. As much as I love being home and living in Maine I do miss the city. I have kept busy though. First thing I did was organize the kitchen. I realized that I had been keeping all the spices, oils and vinegars in the cabinet right next to the stove where they are exposed to high heat. Not a good idea. So now they are all together in one cabinet which is cooler and not exposed to light (until I open the cabinet of course). This will really help to preserve and extend the life of the dried herbs, spices, oils and vinegars. Once I got organized I practiced some of the recipes I learned at school. Made quite a few quarts of the carrot, onion and celery stock which I am keeping in the freezer for soups and stews. (By the way I have purged my kitchen of "tupperware", "gladware", etc. Am using only glass - mostly Ball jars in several different sizes. I just don't trust the chemicals leaching out of the plastic into my food.) The stock is fairly easy to make but does take some time to prep the veggies. Here is the basic recipe:
Heat 2 T. extra virgin olive oil in a large stockpot. Add 1 head of garlic (smashed and peeled), 6 onions coarsely chopped, 8 medium/large carrots peeled and coarsely chopped, 1 head celery coarsely chopped and 6 shallots peeled and coarsely chopped (I actually used a leek instead). Sweat the vegetables for about 10 minutes then add 7-8 quarts cold water and a bouquet garni (1 thyme sprig, 1 bay leaf, 1/2 bunch parsley and 8 peppercorns wrapped up in cheesecloth and tied with string). Cover and bring to a boil, skim off foam and simmer (partially covered) for 60 minutes. Strain through a mesh strainer and use as a soup base or freeze for later use. I used my stock to make a Creamy Carrot Soup. I'll share that recipe with you in another blog post.
Haven't done too much cooking this week. Am training for a Triathlon in less then two weeks (August 15th to be exact) and am working a few days this week at the Town Hall to clean up some year end accounting before the new Finance Director starts. As for my career plans I basically have no idea. As much as I love food and cooking I am not optimistic that I can turn this passion into something that can actually make money. Doors are still open though. We'll just have to wait and see....
