Blisters and cobblers and Chefs....oh my!

Happy Friday everyone!

Christina (who will be referred to as Dijon from this point forward) and I were talking this morning about how everyone keeps saying TGIF...and how that phrase has very little meaning anymore. When I decided to move into this field, I knew that my weekends would now entail odd days of the week but to actually realize that I'll be working when everyone else is going to happy hour and looking forward to a couple days of relaxation...it's a little strange. I haven't had a strange schedule like this in years, so I'm sure it will take a little getting used to. Dijon doesn't even know what day it is about 90 percent of the time. It's fairly amusing to confuse her intentionally.

Alyssa, one of my other roommates and a girl who was in our class the last six weeks of school, starts her first real day today of OJT (that's on the job training) today so we are rooting for her and hope that when she gets home tonight she'll have some fun stories for us. So far, most all of us have had great first days so I'll be sending her Pink and Blue thoughts all day.

Last night was the first time that I realized what a pain it can be to have different people training you every day. I think I was told different ways to do at least five different things, which is okay in most cases. My biggest problem lies within people that are too scared to tell you what to do. A word of advice. If you are training someone, don't be afraid to be kind of assertive. There is a definite line between assertive and bossy and you have to be able to find that line or things will just fall apart for you and the person you are training will start to just go off and do whatever they think they should do and ask other people for help, even if they aren't in your department.

Case and point...what I had to do last night.

The guy was perfectly nice, but it was like pulling teeth to get him to really tell me anything because he, and I quote, 'doesn't like bossing people around'. Not to sound haughty...but welcome to being a line cook for the rest of your life. I hope you enjoyed that culinary degree.

Anywho, I don't want to come off as negative and I sure don't want anyone to think that I didn't have a blast regardless. I got to meet a lot of new people that work in my kitchen and they were all just as wonderful and welcoming as the first bunch. I especially enjoyed the server that was a food runner last night who stood there and chatted with me once things slowed down and offered to take me around to some local places so I can get more familiar with the things around my apartment.

I'm amazed that cast members at Disney are just as nice to fellow cast members as they are to guests. One of the Chef trainers last night made a comment about one of our basics and how it talks about being courteous to all guests, but since we're back of the house...we are each others' guests. It really holds true and as a new person, it makes the transition into this new career that much easier and enjoyable. I don't think I would have gotten this anywhere else.

Okay, enough rambling about my job...I want to tell you about a recipe. I thought about doing something a little more involved, but this is something we made for a practical in school one time and I've made it a lot since. It's become one of my favorite ways to make fish, so I hope that you enjoy it too. I won't tell you what side dishes to make with it, but my favorites to go with it are roasted red potatoes (with garlic and olive oil) and sauteed asparagus. I haven't had lunch yet and that just made my stomach growl...it's so delicious. Especially if you serve the fish on top of the asparagus and the sauce kind of runs over the veggies. Yum!!!

No really...yum yum yum.

Moving on, here is what you'll need:

-white fish (I like to use trout or talapia, but any non-fatty fish would work.)
-flour (enough just to coat the fish, however many you use. Make sure you season your flour. I use salt, pepper and cayenne for a tiny kick.)
-kosher salt
-ground pepper (I like to use white pepper, but black pepper will work too)
-fresh lemon (do not...I repeat. Do not use the bottled lemon juice. The fish gods will come after you.)
-a stick of unsalted butter (unless you're making a lot of fish, you won't use it all but it's good to be prepared.)
-chopped fresh parsley (enough to sprinkle some liberally on each piece of fish you're making.)
-olive oil (just enough to coat the pan, again, you will need more if you're doing more pieces of fish then can fit in your pan at one time because it will absorb a little.)

The rest is very simple. Heat your pan with the oil in it until the oil is hot, but not smoking. Season both sides of your fish with the salt and pepper, then dredge it in the flour. Make sure both sides are lightly coated with flour. Drop the fish into the pan and hear the delightful sizzle of fish on hot oil. If it is a thinner piece of fish, it won't take but a couple minutes to cook (total) so don't go anywhere. Flip the fish once it is golden brown on the bottom and make both sides nice and golden. Take the fish off and place it on a paper towel for just a moment to get off excess grease then put it on the serving plate. Place a few slabs of butter in the still hot pan (this is why you don't want a lot of oil, if you have too much after you cook your fish, pour it off but don't wipe the delicious bits from the pan). While your butter is browning, sprinkle parsley liberally on each piece of fish (already on the plate) and then squeeze a lemon half on top of the fish (cup under the lemon with your free hand to catch any seeds and pulp). Once your butter is slightly brown (you'll notice that it foams slightly and has the smell of buttered popcorn. YUM!) pour it directly over the lightly fried-parsley'd-lemoned fish. It should sizzle a bit when it hits the parsley.

Then, voila! You have a very yummy and pretty healthy fish and veggie dish to serve to the people that love you. I bet they'll love you even more after they bust into this deliciousness. If they don't, I'll give you a dollar. And if they don't like fish....shame on them.

On that note, I am going to make myself some lunch. It will probably not be quite a scrumptious, but I've succeeded in making my stomach growl for the last ten minutes while I typed. Dijon thinks I'm writing a paper. I bid you all good day and hope that you enjoy your TGIF. I imagine with Sunday off...tomorrow I'll be screaming TGIS!

“Cookery is not chemistry. It is an art. It requires instinct and taste rather than exact measurements.”- Marcel Boulestin

Happy eating,
Lauren