Fruit Tartare with Peppermint, Campari Sorbet

Dice mangos, pineapple, bananas, passion fruit, bunch peppermint - nothing perfectly cut

Campari sorbet (orange juice, lime juice, orangel peel, Campari, water, sugar, glucose - honey can be substituted)

Pike Perch with a Crisp Skin, Couscous with Currants

Pike Perch (any white fish would do. Use parchment paper, oil skillet, added paper and flip to coat both sides. Then cook fish skin side down using med-high until the outline of the fish is cooked except for the inside. Then flip the fish flesh down on hot pan removed from heat to finish cooking.)

Couscous with currants (currants, couscous, butter, light fish stock - garnish with zucchini, diced, butter)

Red butter sauce (shallots, red wine vinegar, red wine, fish stock, butter)

Garnish/decorate everything with fresh dill.

Warm foie gras, split pea puree, lightly smoked sauce

Food presentation is half the battle to make French food look magical.
First, spoon lightly smoked sauce (shallots, butter, cultivated mushrooms, white wine, clear veal stock, smoked slab bacon).
Second, spoon un-food processed split pea (split peas, carrot, onion, celery stalk, bouquet garni, chicken stock, cream, butter).
Third, spoon split pea puree.
Forth, place 1 slice foie gras, pan fried in haxelnut oil. Interesting trivia - the duck liver was huge. They force feed the duck cornmeal so that the liver expands to about the size of the main body of the duck and then they kill it.
Fifth, place salad to garnish (lamb's lettuce, lemon juice, hazelnut oil)

Le Cordon Bleu, Demonstration

At 8:30 AM, I arrived by taxi to Le Cordon Bleu. Chef Patrick Caals led a group of Americans and Canadians in the classroom style setting. He prepared a 3 course meal in the front of the classroom while the "students" watched in old wooden riser style chairs. He cooked through noon and served all courses in small portions. He only spoke French, but there was a British English translator that repeated everything the chef said. The chef was very funny and wanted us to keep saying "we chef" whenever he gave an instruction!

1st Course: warm foie gras, split pea puree, lightly smoked sauce

2nd Course: pike perch with a scrisp skin, couscous with currants

3rd Course: fruit tartare with peppermint, Campari sorbet

Le Cordon Bleu, Paris EuroStar Journey

After my business trip to London, I took the EuroStar from London to Paris for a weekend of French food! I pre-booked a "cooking for friends" class at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. The morning consisted of demonstration and the afternoon was discovery. I am separating my posts by dishes.

St Patrick's Day

Instead of going to an Irish pub and paying an arm and a leg for an Irish meal on St Patrick's Day, I decided to make our own meal at home.

I added a bag of baby carrots, 1 small sweet onion cut into 1 inch wedges, halved white potatoes and fresh springs of thyme from my garden to the bottom of the crock pot. Then I added the corned beef brisket, fat side up. I sprinked the meat seasoning pack on top. Then I added 1 can of beef broth and added water until it touched the bottom of the beef. I cooked on low for about 6 hours. Then I added 1.5 inch cabbage wedges of cabbage on top of the beef and continued to cook for about 1.5 hours more.

After dinner, I brewed Irish Breakfast Hot Tea with milk and sugar along with a homemade tea cake. I attempted to create a shamrock cut out with paper and sifted powdered sugar on the top of the cake.

This was the first corned beef I actually liked. I hosted my friend, Amy. It was nice sharing some Irish food, from an Irish household!