Seared In The Dragon's Breath

I survived the Dragon once! Part of me thought I'd never want to be sweating in front of it again, but the School of Culinary Arts at Santa Barbara City College has started taking sign ups for fall classes and a yearning arises in the other part of me to face the Dragon again. When I took the Modern Food: Design, Style, Theory class under Chef Vincent van Hecke last year, in the center of the largest commercial kitchen was what I call the Dragon: three stoves side by side, each with six burners, flanked by four ovens and topped with an open salamander. The cumulative heat emitted was like a dragon’s breath and somehow, though we changed teams each week, I always ended up at the counter opposite the Dragon, sweating under my crisp white chef’s coat. Unlike the tight, blue flames of my Viking, the Dragon has long, licking flames and when one is shoulder to shoulder trying to stir pots on the back burner, it is a world away from cooking leisurely in one’s own home.

I need Culinary Fundamentals and Pastry to complete my Personal Chef certificate, but may not get either class since I'm relegated to second place priority in registration. Priority goes to the young people in their last year, working towards the full culinary degree and just about ready to go out in the world to wow diners with their creations. Many are already working in kitchens and for caterers, armed with knife skills and naïveté. I hate to think that, especially in this economy, many will end up in the thankless jobs of fry and prep cooks--but let's hope they find their dreams. It can be done! The son of my awesome acupuncturist at Shiatsu Rincon started his own restaurant in the little burg of McArthur. John's son serves up fine cuisine like Spicy Tuna Tartare with pickled veggies and wasabi cream or 8 Piece Cali roll stacked and layered with spicy tuna and chipotle-baked shrimp, with spicy Chinese mustard, black sesame seeds, and sriracha (I had to look that last item up: sriracha is a Thai hot sauce made from chili, garlic, sugar, salt and vinegar). The restaurant is successful because the small town of just 399 persons is at the crossroads between Mt. Shasta, Mt. Lassen and Fall River Mills (travel guide here) and--well--just look at the food! But, for most culinary graduates, their own restaurant is going to be hard to achieve, though the myth of 90% of restaurants failing has pretty much been debunked. After a study by Ohio State University, the rate is thought to be more like 26%, comparable to any small business. In any event, Crumb's is thriving and the next time we're in Redding, I'm definitely taking a trip to see the lava tubes and to try their sushi rolls on the way. I 'borrowed' the images to the right from their Facebook page.

Unfortunately, the Culinary Arts program attrition rate is fairly high, I was told by students that last year's graduating class only comprised about a fourth of the students that began the course together. Some students need to work in addition to attending school, so have to extend their school time to meet their requirements, but many drop out. I asked one of the students why and she replied, “Because they think it’s all Top Chef”.  It's exciting to be in the seemingly chaotic kitchen with a dozen cooks scurrying from stove to cold storage to sink to deep fryer to station, making a snap decision on how to put a “spin” on your dish to make it stand out, the adrenaline-pumping last minutes of plating before time runs out, and the thrill of winning a medal. The part students don't see on "Top Chef" is what they don't like about classes--the massive cleanup of an unbelievable mound of pots, pans and utensils from the sautéing, braising, mincing and baking, greasy floors that need to be cleaned and sanitized, quite a bit of written homework and the many hazards: wickedly sharp knives, the slippery floor, and scalding pots. One learns to listen for “Hot pot! Behind!” or “Knife!” and give way or you get burned or cut, sometimes badly.

Anyway, I need the Pastry class to learn how to make cakes--the one thing besides candymaking that I've never done well. Part of the problem is that I don't eat cake and candy now,  but even when I did my cake making was abysmal. I made a layer cake in college for my dad in an ancient oven in my little student rental. The racks were listing to one side, but I figured since the batter was not spilling over the side of the pan, it would be ok (remember the prefrontal cortex is not fully developed until about age 26). Not surprisingly, the cake sections were wedge shaped, but hey, they fit together to make a rectangle, so I iced and decorated the cake and no one could tell from the outside that they weren't perfect. Until I went back into the kitchen to bring out dessert and the top layer had slid off onto the floor. At least we could eat the bottom layer--my daughter's first birthday cake was worse. I was so intent on feeding her organic, healthy food that I made a sugarless carrot cake with fruit juice sweetened icing. I tried to make the cake in a pan shaped as a "1", but the cake stuck to the pan and ended up as an elongated lump. The icing didn't set up and was a runny mess. I swear the thing looked just like biscuits and gravy. When my one-year-old daughter saw it, she refused to eat any. We gamely to swallow our servings, but cake and icing without sugar is like an omelet without eggs--not good!

Try this refreshing dessert from Greenwood Ridge,  perfect after a fish course or a dessert in itself. Follow it with a glass of Greenwood Ridge Vineyards Pinot Noir.

Pinot Noir Pomegranate Sorbet:
Serves 6
Equipment: Measuring cup and spoons, strainer, stainless steel bowl, whisk, saucepan, shallow pan and food processor (or ice cream maker), one 2 quart plastic container with a lid.

1 cup Greenwood Ridge Vineyards Pinot Noir
1 cup pomegranate juice (strained)
2 cups water
3 Tbs. granulated sugar
1/2 cup grapefruit juice (strained)
Combine 1/2 cup of water and sugar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and cool to room temperature. Mix together the Pinot Noir, pomegranate juice, grapefruit juice and remaining water. Add the sugar syrup and mix well. Freeze in a shallow pan until solid. Empty the frozen mixture into the food processor. Process on pulse just until the texture is consistent, then freeze again in a covered plastic container. If you have an ice cream maker, follow the manufacturer's directions for sorbet then transfer to a plastic container. If kept airtight and frozen, the sorbet will last for 3 to 4 days.