On our last day there, I was pretty sad to be leaving Lyon. The hospitality of its people, the richness of the food, and the charm of the city had fully pulled me into its embrace. After the visit to the vineyard, and the antique bookstore, I really felt like the place had everything a girl could hope for, though the as yet un-materialized promise of Parisian glamor beckoned me to depart.
Wednesday morning, we had our final class at the Bocuse Institute. We were excited to cook, and I think that no one in the group wanted to leave. We started right away, to be ready for an early lunch, because we had a train to catch right after class.
We started by making these elegant quail egg and artichoke filled raviolis. This was a really great process, as the dish utilized the artichokes in several ways.
The pasta dough got its elegant color from a spinach puree that we incorporated into the dough. For the artichokes, we trimmed them down to the tender hearts, then cooked cooked them suer, a method where you basically slowly sweat and steam vegetables or meat in their own released juices. We then pureed the hearts until they became silky smooth, with a little chicken stock.
We saved the artichoke leaves, and sauteed them with garlic, and olive oil, then added water to the pan to make a "stock". Usually the inedible leaves get thrown away, so it was really cool to use them for another purpose. The finished liquid was reduced, and then mixed with some veal demi-glace to make the pasta sauce. We also thinly sliced some baby artichokes and tossed them with olive oil and salt for the garnish.
When we rolled out the pasta, we made a well in the center of the spooned on puree, then placed the quail egg yolks in the center of the well. When the ravioli was sealed and cooked, the yolks remained runny, and added to the luxuriousness of the sauce.
I got to fabricate the fish; John Dory! This type of fish is rare to see in the U.S., and it's pretty expensive in Europe as well, so it was something I had never gotten the chance to work with before. The chef complimented my fish fabrication skills, which was really nice, (I've done many fish, but never one shaped like this) and I was glad to impress someone. The filets were sauteed in brown butter, and topped with bits of sun-dried tomato and Jamon.
We made a macaroni with mushrooms, potatoes, and carrots to go with the fish, but we cooked the noodles with the risotto method, using chicken stock in place of water. The result was super flavorful and creamy, and I'm definitely going to be making this recipe again for weeknight dinners.
Dessert was a citrus parfait, which I decided not to eat because of my allergy to oranges. It's not a terrible allergy, (the juice gives me hives, and eating oranges makes my lips swell a little) but I had had a couple dishes with orange the day before, and my stomach was still recovering with the aid of some Benadryl. I try not to eat them unless I feel like I must try the dish or I will regret it.
After class, we received our certificates, and a book of Paul Bocuse's most famous recipes as a gift from the institute. Our hosts seemed genuinely sorry to see us go, invited us back, and asked for copies of all the pictures we took.
We left, sadly, then went directly to the train station so we could head to Paris.
The train ride was only a couple of hours, which most of us used to nap and relax. When we arrived in Paris, we checked into our respective hotels. My hotel was across the street from the rest of our group, as I had signed up for the trip at the very last moment. It was nice to have my own room, even though I really did love my room mates. (I already miss them.)
But it's okay, behind my hotel, there were the ruins of a Roman amphitheater, now a public park!
And when I stepped out onto my balcony (from which I could see Notre Dame) I noticed that all my friends were out on theirs too!
A few minutes to change clothes, then we went to dinner. We were dining at Au Pied de Cochon, famous for their pig's feet. I really, really loved the opulent, very old-fashioned interior of this place, it looked like it hadn't changed since the beginning of the last century!
And anyplace that serves creamy pork rilette in place of butter for your bread is fine by me.
Our appetizer: a deep bowl of fresh goat cheese. Seemed a little much at first, but I had to stop myself from consuming all of it. The cheese was so fresh and fragrant, with the bits of sun dried tomato and artichoke hearts, it made a really great starter smeared on extra-crusty baguette.
And the piece de resistance: pig trotter! Braised until the fat and skin were silky smooth and gelatinous, and little bits of the tenderest meat barely clung to the knuckle. Excellent pommes frites, and a spicy dijon mustard made this the tastiest (and only-est) foot I've ever had the pleasure of munching on. I was at an Asian market earlier today, and was tempted to buy the pig's feet I saw there for dinner, but I was pretty sure something like this might have freaked out my boyfriend a tad too much...
Dessert was... strong. Like, "straight-shot-of-brandy-with-a-scoop-of-sorbet-plopped-into-it" strong. The foil wrapped biscuit did little to temper the alcohol in this one, and I had to check to make sure I hadn't grown a little chest hair after eating it. Ouch.
After dinner, there was a brief period of sleep. Alas, still no rest for the weary, as tomorrow was another full day. However, I shall have to write about it another time, as I have stock to skim and duck legs to cure for confit tonight. (I like to slow-cook a bunch of stuff on my slow days, so when I come home from class tired, all I have to do is re-heat delicious, love-filled food.)
I have some good news from earlier today, though... I have stages (try-outs, basically) on both Thursday and Saturday, at Robuchon (3 Michelin Stars) and Thomas Keller's Bouchon (1 Michelin Star)! Even if I don't get the jobs (they may not even have positions open) just being in such highly acclaimed kitchens will be amazing. I can't wait, though I'm very, very nervous.
Ciao!
I got to fabricate the fish; John Dory! This type of fish is rare to see in the U.S., and it's pretty expensive in Europe as well, so it was something I had never gotten the chance to work with before. The chef complimented my fish fabrication skills, which was really nice, (I've done many fish, but never one shaped like this) and I was glad to impress someone. The filets were sauteed in brown butter, and topped with bits of sun-dried tomato and Jamon.
We made a macaroni with mushrooms, potatoes, and carrots to go with the fish, but we cooked the noodles with the risotto method, using chicken stock in place of water. The result was super flavorful and creamy, and I'm definitely going to be making this recipe again for weeknight dinners.
Dessert was a citrus parfait, which I decided not to eat because of my allergy to oranges. It's not a terrible allergy, (the juice gives me hives, and eating oranges makes my lips swell a little) but I had had a couple dishes with orange the day before, and my stomach was still recovering with the aid of some Benadryl. I try not to eat them unless I feel like I must try the dish or I will regret it.
But it's okay, behind my hotel, there were the ruins of a Roman amphitheater, now a public park!
And when I stepped out onto my balcony (from which I could see Notre Dame) I noticed that all my friends were out on theirs too!
A few minutes to change clothes, then we went to dinner. We were dining at Au Pied de Cochon, famous for their pig's feet. I really, really loved the opulent, very old-fashioned interior of this place, it looked like it hadn't changed since the beginning of the last century!
And anyplace that serves creamy pork rilette in place of butter for your bread is fine by me.
Our appetizer: a deep bowl of fresh goat cheese. Seemed a little much at first, but I had to stop myself from consuming all of it. The cheese was so fresh and fragrant, with the bits of sun dried tomato and artichoke hearts, it made a really great starter smeared on extra-crusty baguette.
And the piece de resistance: pig trotter! Braised until the fat and skin were silky smooth and gelatinous, and little bits of the tenderest meat barely clung to the knuckle. Excellent pommes frites, and a spicy dijon mustard made this the tastiest (and only-est) foot I've ever had the pleasure of munching on. I was at an Asian market earlier today, and was tempted to buy the pig's feet I saw there for dinner, but I was pretty sure something like this might have freaked out my boyfriend a tad too much...
Dessert was... strong. Like, "straight-shot-of-brandy-with-a-scoop-of-sorbet-plopped-into-it" strong. The foil wrapped biscuit did little to temper the alcohol in this one, and I had to check to make sure I hadn't grown a little chest hair after eating it. Ouch.
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