The Lion, the Witch and some breakfast.

Happy Monday everyone!

I enjoyed my day off yesterday, even though I spent most of it sleeping. I couldn't figure out why I was having trouble falling asleep at night and then realized that a food runner at work has been making me these wonderful coffee drinks the last few nights and I think there are two or three shots of espresso in each one. Duh, Lauren. No wonder I've been up until six a.m. with no problem.

The sad part of that is, I still really want the drinks. They are so delicious! I suppose I'll just have to ask him to tone down the amount of espresso that is in them.

As you know, Christina and I went to that wonderful grocery store last week. I do have to say, all this fresh fruit is really a blessing. This morning I made fruit salad with blueberries, strawberries, grapes and some local honey. I made enough so I could have some for a snack later and ended up eating it all...so there goes that idea. I suppose there are worse things I could have had for breakfast, and I still have plenty so I can make some to go with lunch as well.

For now, I'm sitting on the couch while Christina and I enjoy the second installment of the Chronicles of Narnia on our projector. Nothing like being able to watch movies on a seven foot screen on our wall.

Last night I couldn't decide what I wanted to make, but I had a bunch of tomatoes that needed to be cooked before they went bad. So, in the spirit of sharing, I'd like to tell you about the wonderful tomato soup that I made. Some might call it a tomato bisque, but just to clue you in on a little secret. If you ever see something that isn't made with shellfish called a bisque, they're lying to you. The definition of a bisque is something that was made with shellfish shells. So...there's no way that you could have a tomato bisque.

Little fun food fact from my brain to your eyes.

Anywho, if you like tomato soup, making it at home is always fun because you can put whatever you want in there. Here's how I make mine.

What you'll need:
-3 cans diced tomatoes (I used fresh and if you'd like to know how to concasse tomatoes, I'd be happy to tell you. For the spirit of making this easy on you, just used canned. They're still delicious.)
-4 cloves fresh garlic
-1 yellow onion, diced
-1/2 red bell pepper (You can roast this in the oven with a little olive oil if you'd like, but sometimes I like to just cook it with the onion instead, which is what we're doing with this recipe.)
-2 cups chicken or vegetable stock (Give or take a little. It's really just about consistency.)
-1/2 cup heavy cream or milk
-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (This is optional, but I like just a little kick in my soup.)
-1/2 teaspoon crushed rosemary
-1/2 teaspoon thyme
-3/4 teaspoon dill
-1 Tbsp fresh chopped basil
-1 tsp garlic powder
-salt and pepper to taste

Take some liberties with your seasoning. I added some cumin to this as well, really just put whatever you like it in. I think you have a nice base with these flavors. If you're not super familiar with seasonings, stick with what I've said the first time you make this and then if you want to go back and change it later...you have a better idea of how you want it to taste. I love tomato soup with dill in it though, so I really suggest trying that if nothing else.

Once you have your onion, garlic and red pepper chopped, get that cooking in a large sauce pot with a small amount of oil. Cook for about ten minutes until the vegetables start to get tender, then add your tomatoes, juice and all. Once it starts really cooking, the tomatoes will basically start to disintegrate. This is a good thing. Let this keep cooking for about ten to fifteen minutes and then add in your stock and seasonings. Stir it well and cover, letting it simmer for a little bit. You can keep checking it to see the consistency and if it's too thick, add some more stock. You can even taste it now and see where you're at.

With any soup, you want it to cook for a little bit once you add the seasoning to really let the flavors develop. All these are fairly simple, so I say let it cook for five to ten minutes longer. Your veggies should all be nice and tender and the flavors nice and married. They'll be going on their honeymoon in a minute, so put on your dancing shoes.

Pour in your heavy cream and stir it up. The soup will take on a lovely color and the heavy cream will start swirling around, making out with all the other wonderfulness you've got going on in the pot. This is when it gets fun. If you have an immersion blender....you're a weirdo. But if you do, now is the time to use it. If you don't, get your blender out. Spoon the soup into the blender a little at a time and puree all the delicious steamy goodness so it thickens and is smooth. Pour it back into the pot and taste it again to make sure your seasoning is spot on. Adjust as you see fit and turn the burner down.

Then make a grilled bacon and cheese sandwich. That's what I like best with my tomato soup. Pour yourself a steaming bowl and if you've got any of that chopped basil left, sprinkle a little on top. Then dip your bacon sandwich into the tomato-y pool and take a giant bite. Melt into the chair and sing yourself a little song and even do a little happy dance.

But don't stop there. Share your tomato heaven with friends and family. Or hoard it and become a crazy tomato soup hoarding weirdo.

My favorite thing to do with this soup is add strange things to it. If you're a fan on fennel, I love nothing more than tomato soup with fennel and dill. I make it as often as possible, and you really don't need much fennel. If you're not familiar, let me know and I'll tell you how to cut it and cook it and get the most out of your delightful fennel bulbs and fronds. If you want to add an odd twist to your tomato soup, throw in some orange zest. It goes together beautifully and will change a very old, familiar dish in a surprising way.

I'm a soup girl. Always have been, always will be. You should be one too. Unless you're a boy....then don't be a soup girl.

I have some fresh black beans from Miami that I need to figure something out to do with today. I have chicken breasts and cheese and some veggies I might steal from Christina....we'll see how creative I can get.

I hope you all enjoy your week!! Keep me posted on any good food buys you have or if there is anything you want a recipe for...I'd love to take some requests!

"There is no love sincerer than the love of food."-George Bernard Shaw

Happy eating,
Lauren

I'm a genius. Just sayin.

Okay, so maybe calling myself a genius is going a little far...but I am pretty smart. The only thing that this apartment is missing to make it a real home is a television. I think we all came down here with the hope that one of our roommates would bring one and therefore, none of us brought one. We've been okay without and have really bonded a lot and spent many nights sitting up talking or crowding around a laptop to watch a movie. We've talked about pitching in and buying one, but they're just expensive and it would be a pain in the butt when it was all said and done to get it out of here.

Then came my stroke of genius.

Long story short, we ordered a projector a few days ago. It should be here tomorrow so we're all staring at the front door in anticipation of the UPS delivery guy. I know it sounds like a silly thing to be so excited about but when you live without a way to watch TV like a normal person (even if it is just going to be mostly DVD's) for almost a month...it's odd how you miss it. I'm not even a big TV person, but it will be nice to have the option.

I really don't have much else going on right now. I got up and went and ran a few errands this morning and Alyssa went with me, so that was nice. Now I'm just waiting as long as possible before I have to get ready for work.

Don't get me wrong, I love my job. But work is still work and I would much rather spend the day with my roommates laying around the house.

Oh! I found a fresh meat and produce place in Orlando that looks amazing. I wanted to go there this morning, but it's about half an hour away so I'm going to wait and either go on my day off or wake up earlier and go before work one day. If I had gone today, I would have been in a rush and nobody likes grocery shopping in a hurry.

Well, I'm sure some people do...but the grocery store is my happy place.

So when I do go, I'll take some photos and let you all know of the wonderful things I discover. I'm very excited. Fresh and local produce, here I come!

"Shipping is a terrible thing to do to vegetables. They probably get jet-lagged, just like people." -Elizabeth Berry

Happy eating,
Lauren

Food stuffs follow up.

This is, in a way, a continuation from yesterday. One thing I wanted to talk about, but didn't, is a documentary that I watched over the weekend. After talking and then posting the recipe though, I felt like I had already taken enough of your time for the day so this one might be short, but I feel like it is important.

If you haven't educated yourself on the dangers of processed food and what exactly goes into our meat and produce, you really should. There are a lot of ways to do this and while some documentaries are meant to just crucify the object of their investigations, there are also some really good and informative ones out there as well. I watched Food, Inc. on Sunday and it was wonderful.

When I say wonderful, I mean it in a totally-eye-opening-yet-heart-wrenching-and-sometimes-gross kind of wonderful.

I'm reminded of a documentary my Val and I saw last year (if you don't know who Valerie is, then you really should find out. She's only the funniest, smartest, most wonderful person that I know) called The Cove. It was such an important movie and I really tried to get other people to watch it, but the minute I would tell them what it was about they'd be all 'no way, that sounds horrible'. And it was, but so good and, as I said, very important.

This was kind of the same way, without the murder of hundreds of thousands of precious dolphins. This movie will make you rethink the way you buy food. Did you know that in about 70 percent of all ground beef there is a 'meat filler' that has been treated with ammonia to help kill e-coli bacteria? They couldn't even call it meat and kept referring to it as 'our product'.

This documentary covers some pretty upsetting facts and there were times I had to look away and just listen, but again, as a consumer it is information that you must educate yourself on. You wouldn't drive a car without knowing that it would protect you and your family. Why would you put something into your body that you know nothing about where it came from?

I suppose in all this, I have been re-inspired to search out local retailers. To buy fruits and vegetables that are in season. I want to visit my local farmer's market and support those that are in the area and who are treating their plants and animals with the respect that they should be shown. If the farmer doesn't respect the product they are putting out and the animal that it is coming from, the bottom line is they don't respect you. They don't care what happens to you after they get your money, and that is so important.

There are so many growers that do care and they are everywhere. If we demand better products, the market will respond and deliver. As they said in the documentary, you get to vote.

Three times a day.

My cousin has recommended a handful of documentaries I need to check out, so I'm going to get on that this week. I'm sure it will just further push me to do what I'm setting out to do. I'm just happy I live with girls that will enjoy getting up with me to head to the farmer's market this coming weekend. It will no doubt be an adventure.

"At home I serve the kind of food I know the story behind."-Michael Pollan

Happy eating,
Lauren

Lazy Monday.

I should actually say lazy weekend because that's exactly what I've had. Three days off in a row is nice, but at the same time, when you're a little financially strapped, it can eventually turn into a mind numbing mash of watching movies on Netflix and unnecessary naps. I've been making the most of it though and catching up on some sleep while letting my muscles repair themselves from the work I did over the week. I'm definitely looking forward to a full week of work though.

This morning Christina and I had the pleasure of introducing our Minnesotian (is that even a word?) roommate to Waffle House. I suppose I never realized that place was a Southern thing...and even more so, a Texas thing. It's nice to see things still titled 'Texas style' in Florida. It reminds me of the days when we'd go sit at the Waffle House in Lancaster and drink coffee and feel like grown ups. No matter how seedy one of these joints can be, I will always love it and feel at home there in a weird way.

I had a really nice week at work last week. It was hard, we were busier a couple of days than we've been since I got here and I was left alone the majority of the week on pantry. That took a lot out of me, but because I never had to get help (except during shut down)...it was a bit of an ego boost. One of my Sous Chefs and I were talking on Thursday and I made a comment about how this was my first back of house job (if you ever see me say BoH, that's what it means) and he looked at me all crazy. I just laughed and told him that I thought he knew that and he said he had no idea. He then went on to say that I fooled him because he had would have never guessed that I had never worked in a kitchen before and that he was impressed with how well I was doing. Talk about an ego boost...it really feels better than you can imagine to finally feel like I'm doing what I am meant to do.

Alyssa, Dijon and I were talking about it last night because we've all had a night or two where we just felt like we got beat up all shift. But even though every day we walk in and we know we're going to get our butts handed to us, we are still excited to go to work. This is the first time in a very long time that I actually look forward to work. I know full well that I'm going to be exhausted and sore and sweaty and gross at the end of every shift, but I still smile when I walk in the kitchen. I love it. I love that I'm good at it. I look forward to where this is all taking me.

Now if only I could get some shoes that don't make me want to chop my feet off at the ankles.

Since we went and had breakfast this morning, I thought I'd give you one of my favorite breakfast recipes. I've been debating if I should tell you my trick to making the fluffiest omelets you've ever seen or my mysterious bacon and pecan pancakes...I've decided on the pancakes as the omelet trick is simple enough to tell you in two sentences.

First, separate the yolks from the whites. Then, beat the egg whites with a whisk (a wire whip if you want to get technical) until they start to form soft peaks and fold the yolks back in. Tada! When you do this, the whites hold some of the air you've beaten into them and they make the omelet so fluffy and light you'll barely be able to stand the pillowy goodness. Pour the beaten white and yolk mixture into a buttered skillet and distribute whatever omelet filling deliciousness over the top. Flip after a few minutes, cover the cooked side with cheese and fold in half. Yum yum!

Now for pancakes that will make you melt and cry and swear to never have protein-free pancakes ever again. I made these up (not the batter, but the fillings) a couple years ago and then mom and I went to a famous breakfast place in Dallas a month ago or so and they had bacon pancakes. We got them just to check out the competition and I have to say....mine are better.

Just sayin.

Anywho, what you'll need:
-half a cup or so of toasted, chopped pecans. (Any nut will do really, but I prefer pecans. Maybe it's because I'm from Texas or maybe it's fun when people pronounce it pee-cans.)
-half a pound of crispy bacon (I cook my bacon in the oven for this recipe. Lay the slices flat on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 or so. When the bacon is almost finished, I turn on the broiler for a few minutes, just to make sure it's extra crispy. You want to be able to crumble it and have it maintain it's crunchy porky awesomeness once you put it in the batter.)
-3/4 cup of milk
-2 Tbsp white vinegar
-1 cup AP flour (I'm sure you can use whole wheat flour or something healthier if you want...but when you're making bacon pancakes, who is really worried about the type of flour you use?)
-2 Tbsp white sugar
-1 tsp baking powder
-1/2 teaspoon baking soda
-1/2 teaspoon salt
-1 egg
-2 Tbsp butter, melted

Now, the first thing you want to do after you've crumbled your crispy bacon (and had a few bites to sample, of course) and toasted your pecans (in the oven on a cookie sheet just until they start to release a stronger aroma. You don't want them burnt.), is pour the vinegar into the milk and set it aside for about five minutes. This will 'sour' the milk, and I know it sounds weird....but trust me. Next, you want to combine your dry ingredients, then whisk the melted butter and egg into your milk mixture. Once combined, pour the dry ingredients into the milk and whisk until the batter is smooth. You can use an electric mixer, but why not get a little work out before you gorge yourself on pancakes?

Now, here's the key. Do not add in the bacon and pecans. Why? Because letting them sit in the batter will just make them chewy and soggy and you'll loose half the battle right there. Spray a skillet with cooking spray and drop quarter cup fulls of batter into the hot pan. As soon as you start to see bubbles forming on the top, sprinkle each pancake with bacon and pecans. As much as your little heart desires. Then, flip the pancake and continue cooking until the second side is brown.

Move the cooked pancakes to a plate and continue with the rest of the batter. If you're feeding a lot of people, double or triple this recipe because this will only make about eight pancakes.

And there you go! Serve with your favorite syrup and go to town. The salty, sweet, fluffy, crunchy, delightful pancakes will amaze everyone at your table. In fact....I kind of want to make these for dinner now. After my morning breakfast debacle of chopped steak and eggs....I've succeeded in making myself crave breakfast again.

I hope you enjoy making these. They really are my favorite pancakes I've ever made. And the best part is, even if you don't want to add the bacon and pecans, the batter is good enough to stand alone, or mix in some blueberries. Add some chocolate chips and serve it with whipped cream (which you should always make yourself. It's too easy and too delicious to buy that premade crapola).

Have a wonderful Monday. I am going to get some more photos at work of my improved desserts so I can share them. I'm actually not bad at cranking out some pantry items.

"We are indeed much more than what we eat, but what we eat can nevertheless help us to be much more than what we are."-Adelle Davis

Happy eating,
Lauren

Practice makes perfect.

Happy Tuesday!

Oh to live in a land where Tuesdays feel like Mondays and Monday is your Sunday and you're the only person you know that has days off when you do. Magic? Alas, no, it is apparently the life of a culinarian.

At least after two days of lounging on the couch, doing minimal cleaning and a little cooking, my muscles don't scream at me every time I move or try to stand up. It's just long enough to feel back at 100 percent and go back to work to get sore all over again. I have the feeling I'll be on pantry for a little while, which is totally fine with me. I would like to get to the point where I don't have any more questions there. At least not a handful of questions every day. When ever I think I might have learned mostly everything, I have to go and get something in some random cooler or make something that hasn't been done since I started and it's question-City all over again.

I'm always excited to learn and I'm glad that everyone at my job has been so great, I just have to keep reminding myself that I'm not going to learn everything there in a matter of days. While that would be nice, I can't expect it of myself and I know that they don't expect it of me.

I made burgers for the girls the other night and they are still one of my favorite things to cook. I have a recipe that I've been using for years, and even though Hidden Valley advertises it as a way to make burgers now, I'd still like to share it with you. It's one of the easiest, and most delicious, burger recipes I know and it's kind of my go-to when I'm looking for something fast and easy to make at home.

This time, I caramelized onions and sauteed mushrooms for the top and melted Swiss cheese on each patty. It was delightful. Nothing like a good, gooey burger with fresh ingredients to make a Texas girl happy. I'll tell you how to make it with one pound of meat, but just double up if you add more.

What you need:
-1 pound ground beef (I like to use an 80/20% ratio for burgers. Fat is good in some cases, it gives you more flavor and makes the patties juicier.)
-1 packet dry ranch dressing mix
-1 egg
-1/4 cup of panko bread crumbs (If you don't have panko, crunch up four or five saltine crackers and use those instead.)
-1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

Mix all the ingredients in a bowl. Don't over mix, or your meat will be tough and kind of chewy. All meat and eggs are different, so if the mix seems kind of wet add more breadcrumbs. Just really use your best judgement. I usually let my meat sit out on the counter for about fifteen minutes. Putting ice cold meat on a really hot grill or in a hot saute pan just makes the meat seize up and nobody like that. When you form your burger patties, stick your thumb in the center to make a little indention. This way when the patty cooks, it will still be even on both sides (meat plumps when it cooks).

And I know what you're thinking, 'I don't have a grill, Lauren.' Yeah...I don't have one either. There is no shame in cooking burgers in a skillet on the stove. You don't get the smokey flavor that you'd get from the grill, but you would be surprised at how many Chefs recommend you cook burgers on a flat top. You get such a nice char on the outside...it really adds a wonderful texture to the burger.

If your patties are about an inch thick, you'll want to cook them for four to five minutes on each side. That will give you a nice medium well burger. I like mine a little less done, so mine are just three or four minutes on each side. About thirty seconds before they're done I toss a piece of cheese on top so it gets all wonderful and melty.

It's not the best picture....but yum! This was my dinner two nights ago...and last night. I can't resist leftovers.

So there's my super-secret burger recipe. It seems to be a big hit, I know that I sure love them.

I'm starting to feel a little homesick, but it's more missing my bed, my mom, my Willow and my friends. I don't know what I would do here if it weren't for Dijon and Alyssa and the girls. I definitely commend people that come here alone without knowing anyone. Having people from home makes it feel more like home, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to mom coming to visit.

I hope you all enjoy your day! I'll be getting ready for work in a little bit. Hopefully it's a busy day and goes by quickly and I get some more wonderful practice in.

"A Bearnaise sauce is simply an egg yolk, a shallot, a little tarragon vinegar, and butter, but it takes years of practice for the result to be perfect."-Fernand Point

Happy eating,
Lauren

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

Firsts of all kinds.

Good morning!

I had the best intentions to come home last night and write a bit before bed, but after an hour long conversation with Christina about my first day...another of our roommates was on Skype in the living room so I didn't want to just plop down next to her and start typing. I suppose part of having five roommates means getting used to that, but from someone who lived alone for so long it is just taking a little time.

I started at my restaurant last night. I was really nervous going into it, more because I wasn't sure what I'd be doing or where they'd put me. Everyone here so far has had such different experiences, it's hard to have any real idea of what is going to happen when you haven't done it yet. I still had a little bit of e-learning to do, but they left me in there a lot longer than I needed so I spent the first half hour or so emailing with my better half (you know it's true, Val). Afterward, my trainer walked me upstairs and gave me a tour of the kitchens. Yes, I said kitchens. This place is huge and there are four kitchens that basically all link together. Once she'd shown me where the exits were and all that safety jazz, she released me to my Chef.

I've never been more nervous and excited all at once before. Everyone in the kitchen that I met was so nice and welcoming and they all greeted me by name (wearing a nametag comes in real handy). One of the women in the kitchen kind of took me under her wing and showed me around a lot, so I'm really excited to be working with her. After I helped Chef Matt and Suzie peel some tiny heirloom tomatoes he handed me off to my trainer for the night and told me I'd be on pantry. For those that don't know, pantry is generally cold appetizers and salads but here it also includes dessert.

One of my favorite things about the restaurant that I'm in is that they change the menu so frequently, they print it every day for the cast. We do a lot of seasonal items and right now, it's heirloom tomatoes. If you've never had an heirloom tomato, I suggest you go and buy one, slice it up drizzle with some olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper and just dig in. Oh. My. Tomato. It's one of the most delicious things you'll ever taste. In school, there was one day that I think Christina, David and I polished off two or three just while we were cooking.

And if you want to learn about heirloom tomatoes, that's great too. There are so many varieties, and they're just gorgeous when you cut into them. And juicy...and fresh....and tender...okay, sorry. I got carried away and now my mouth is watering. Moving forward...

So, heirloom tomatoes and then these peaches. They are specially picked by this man who has a peach orchard in California. He will only allow his family to pick them so every year during harvest season he flies them out to his farm and they hand pick these peaches. My Chef described it to me like this...imagine the best peach you've ever had. One where you bite into it and the juice is running down your chin and it's tender and sweet and perfect....this is better than that.

Did I mention that I want to eat one of these peaches? Ohhhh my. Just the smell of them got me drooling on myself.

I suppose the fastest way to explain the next seven hours of my day is this....I learned how to work the pantry station. My trainer showed me how to make everything and I took a lot of notes and pictures and after about half an hour, he started letting me make things myself. About an hour later, he would just randomly leave me alone at the station while he went to do other things. It wasn't a terribly busy night, but it was a wonderful way to get my feet wet. I had an absolute blast and my feet hurt at the end of the night and I was so tired I basically came home and went to bed after sharing my day with Christina.

I was given the opportunity to stay for a little extra time so I could help everyone clean up and shut down the kitchen, so of course I took it and I'm actually excited about going back and learning more tonight. Despite my crappy shoes and the fact that I woke up this morning to a note from our complex explaining that they are replacing the carpet in our bedrooms so we had to move everything out (there's a surefire way to get me to finish unpacking).

Here are just a few of the things we offer at my place, if you make it to the Orlando area you should come and say hello and eat some delicious food.

This is one of our signature desserts, it is a blueberry cobbler with fresh berries and raspberry ice cream that is made in house.

This is a no sugar added dessert. It's a raspberry mousse, fresh fruit and no sugar ice cream.

The heirloom tomato salad with thinly sliced sweet onion, seventeen year balsamic, olive oil and buffalo mozzarella foam. Ohhhhhhhhh my sweet baby tomato. So delicious.

So, at the end of the day, I'm a happy girl. I work with really wonderful people, I live with even better, and I'm getting to expand and explore into a world that I've only dreamed about being a part of. I was going to indulge you all with a recipe today, but I think I've rambled on enough and will give you one tomorrow. My mind is already wandering to Vietnam and some of the best caramelized chicken I've ever had (or made, for that matter). I hope you have fish sauce.

"If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world."-J.R.R. Tolkien

Happy eating,
Lauren