BACKSTAGE FOR DINNER @ TTHTI

whoever said one thing twice is NEVER nice wasn't quite on the ball. because when chef jason invited us to another TTHTI Internal Internship session, we thought it was great.

this time we went for dinner and we got there early so we could go backstage to see what happens behind the doors.

just to bring you up to speed, the Internal Internship is a series of breakfasts, lunches and dinners prepared and hosted by the TTHTI students. this creates a real-life scenario which allows the students to use their skills in a true environment, inclusive of paying customers with appetites and opinions.

it is intended to help prepare them for what they will face when they step into the commercial kitchens of the real world.

for us, it was exciting to see how a commercial kitchen really operates. it showed us what it takes to get an order off the menu and onto the plate.

the one word we'll use to describe it is: PACE! we struggled to keep up and keep out the way at the same time. imagine our surprise when the chef in command on this dinner, chef david, assured us that a real kitchen is even more tempo with a lot more shouting, brutal honesty and plain ole cussin'.

up close, the students showed a lot of skill on the job.

simple stuff, but they seemed to be making it happen under the pressure.

so down to the tasty stuff. after we collected our footage, we sat with chef jason and chef gregory for dinner. i had the mussels in marinara sauce for my appetizer.

there was also a nice chicken chowder with a split peas base.

the salad got some high praises. fresh garden vegetables, tempura plantains and blue cheese dressing.

the main course featured a pan seared snapper with garlic lemon butter sauce, which i had with the duchess potatoes and sauteed vegetables.

also available was leg of lam with dijon mustard. this was a best seller. sold out pretty early.

and there was also an asian rubbed chicken with a peanut butter and soy sauce reduction. you'll also see the cheesy spaghetti here. another choice the menu offered. the chefs were impressed with the sauce.

did i mention that they baked fresh bread in house to go with the meal? ok. well they did. with a herb butter to spread.

we weren't up for dessert, so we didn't sampled the creme de mint chocolate mousse. but it looked really good when it was setting.

this shoot was fun. and the conversations we had with chef jason, chef david and the inspiring chef gregory (who could be a motivational speaker if he wanted to be) were particularly encouraging that night. this time around the food was good. not blow mind, but well executed with good flavours across the board. and the chefs pointed out just one or two technical improvements that could be made, which honestly, the average customer may not pick up that easily. the internal internship period ends on february 4th, so you still have some time to head down to TTHTI and check out breakfast, lunch or dinner if you're interested. check out the video of our backstage experience:

CRABBY BUSINESS

a good while ago i made tuna patties inspired by something i saw on my favorite tv station. since then i decided to try making crab cakes and just never got around to doing it. until recently that is. i didn't have all the exact stuff i needed, but i decided to give it a try anyway. how far off could it be right?

well i started off with some multigrain crix,

crushed with my newest professional rolling pin made by guinness. (i got rid of the other one)

i used this crab meat in the tin that i had there. not exactly what i wanted, but it would have to do. it was a now or never kinda thing.

so i put the meat into a bowl with the crumbs, chive, shadon beni, onion, garlic, rosemary, thyme, parsley, a lil mayo and yellow mustard.

then seasoned it up with these dudes here.

the mix looked like this. i was thinking about making it a little firmer, but i decide to rock with this.

next, i spooned some patties into some hot oil. some very hot oil.

this skillet heats up reaaaaaally quickly, so the oil was too hot. flipping them was a scene.

EPIC FAIL!! flavour was real good. but... well... look at them.

however, an important commandment in these parts is THOU SHALL EAT THINE MISTAKES. so i put the broken up patties on some whole wheat toast and had a time. none of this animal goes to waste.

meanwhile, i sprayed some foil with cooking spray and made some more patties with the remaining mixture. defeat me?? never!! yuh doh wanna fry? well i'll bake yuh then! shoulda thought about doing it this way first. the healthier option i think.

put them in the oven until they cooked through, then put the fire on top to brown them up for the nice visual.

looked so nice i shot them twice.

and they tasted nice with some sweet chili sauce next to lentils over basmati rice. next time i want to get the chunky crab meat that they sell at pricesmart to mix in there for a different texture. but this did just fine.

A FUN FRIDAY @ FANATIC

we've been hearing about fanatic friday for a while now, so when our friends at FKS invited us to our first one, there was no way we were going to say no.

like most of the events in this unique space, this was an interactive affair that featured cocktails and tapas with mixologist hans crosby and chef shelton alexis 'the orgasmic chef'.

so in one corner, hans mixed up some tasty cocktails and refilled drinks all night.

we couldn't decide which was more fun. having the drinks or looking at hans make them.

but he wasn't just making drinks. while he poured his magic, he was giving us a step by step demonstration. an education in mixology.

and of course, he brought some volunteers up to practice what he was just preaching.

as it turned out, the crowd was full of quick learners who got it shaking in no time.

meanwhile, tapas were coming along on chef shelton's side. he had a lot in store for us.

tasty little bites like this fried plantain with spinach and feta cheese that were as delicious...

as they were beautiful to look at.

lots of different little things to dip like fried breadfruit.

and lots of things to dip them in, like this tangy white fish sauce.

and this tangy pommecythere dip.

not to mention these conch fritters with this spicy sauce.

anyway, back on the cocktails side, it became apparent to the crowd why hans was giving all the instructions. there was a cocktail competition and guess who was one of the 3 judges? that's right, this lovely lady in white.

oh yeah, i was also a judge. fun times.

so basically there were 4 contestants who were free to use whatever ingredients they wished to concoct their unique cocktail. the ladies went first.

then the guys stepped up to the plate.

the submissions were actually good. the winning submission (2nd from the right) tasted like something i would order at a bar. grapes and kiwi with vodka for the win. it was a fitting way to bring the evening to a close though. all in all, fanatic friday was a lot of fun. i'm sure this isn't going to be my last.

fanatics come out to take a wine

there really aren't many new things to do on this lil patch of dirt, so when something different comes my way... "i jump in eet!". i was fortunate enough to have such an experience courtesy my friends at fanatic kitchen studio. now for the difficult part. explaining what the hell fanatic kitchen studio is.

basically, it's a kitchen facility, (guess that part wasn't too hard to figure out right?) state-of-the-art, with a lot of high end equipment by innovation kitchen designs. here's the cool part. that island with the granite top there is a chef's station with burners and an extractor, which allows a chef to prepare a meal while interacting with guests seated right in front of them. you're up close and personal with the process... hands on in some cases.

behind that row of front line seats is another table that is still in the mix, but a little away from the station. you still get a good view, but via a monitor positioned up front. for demonstrations, this table will be equipped with removable burners and cutting boards so cooking classes, team building exercises, interactive chef dinners and such can be facilitated. opposite this is another dining table as well. i was too excited to snap it, but trust me, it all looks very slick. we're talking food network glossy here.

it really is a nice set up, with good acoustics that enhances the sound system and promises a good environment should it be rented for some sort of video production to happen between these walls. like my video blog perhaps... just sayin. the facility is designed to offer all that and more.

but why was i excited? well, i was there to experience my first wine tasting event ever. i mean, i sip a regular yellow tail just like the other guy, but that in no way qualifies me to be an authority in the complex realm that is wine. so this event, a vintner's tale brought to us by my friend helga trim, was really the spot for me to be on a friday night.

on the list were 9 wines. 6 South American wines and 3 French wines. they ranged from about two to five years old. the sight alone was enough to get me in a gear. couldn't wait for things to get... well... pouring.

we were fortunate to have sommelier nigel tollerman. he's known as the leading english-speaking sommelier in buenos aires and when he starts talking about wine, you have no doubt believing that. his introduction alone had me wondering where in my tiny kitchen could i fit a small wine chiller. he specializes in wines from argentina's smaller producers, which means he's not talking about that value for money boxed stuff. he really makes you feel to get more into it though. his passion was as entertaining as his presentation was informative.

we were also lucky to have owner of cru fine wine merchants jeremy matouk. also very knowledgeable on the subject. he made the one eye man in blind man country analogy as he praised nigel's knowledge, but to this blind man, they were both off the chain. it was like a tag team wine information exchange. information overload!!

from first pour we started learning things like good grapes for wine come from stressed vines. they do well when they have to dig deep and get their nutrients from the fertile soil far below. and the worst thing for a producer is for rain to fall close to harvest time. lots of history as well, talking about the different houses that produced wines from way back when to now. also heard a lot about the processes like the growing popularity of organic methods.

then out came this sick lil gadget. a venturi wine aerator. it filters and opens up the wine so you get better aromas. another way of doing that is decanting the wine, which requires pouring it out through a filter-like device into a decanter. this way seems quicker and more practical for an event like this. plus it helps to reduce mess, which was good news for dudes like me who wore white. i would pour anything from kool-aid come up through that just for the hell of it. it makes the coolest sound.

we learned how to check the age of the wine by holding it against something white and allowing the light to cast colors onto it. basically, you're looking for how light or dark the color is. for red, lighter is older. starts showing a little brownish. for white, the deeper it shows means the older it is. i wasn't doing it too well there trying to take a shot and do it at the same time. but you should get the idea.

a good tip was to smell the wine before swirling it. smelling it still is better to get the aroma intensity. "the first smell will tell you things the second smell won't." said jeremy.

then again after swirling it to unlock the aroma. on this smell you will pick up the notes that define the constituents of the aroma, which helps when considering what the wine pairs well with.

and talking about pairing, chef joe brown provided some delicious pairings for the night. for example, this chicken sate with peanut chilli sauce that went with a colome torrontes '10. the wine's floral aroma and jasmine and lemon flavors worked well here.

a platter of manchego and camembert cheeses was paired with du glana saint julien '05 as the wine played on cedar wood and black currant. very fruity taste. this one i enjoyed a lot.

the earthy, herb tone of the chateauneuf-du-pape la bernardine '06 worked with this vegetable wrap with houmos. it was almost like the wine was additional seasoning that was added directly to the palate. i thought this one was very interesting.

they paired a chacra 55 pinot noir '09 with a jerk styled shrimp with sitrus, cucumber and aioli dip because of the wine's woddy, somewhat smoky taste. i found it to be a lil strange to get a smoke flavor from a wine. strange on the good side though.

beef empanadas and salsa came out with a durigutti malbec reserva '07. the wine's plum notes made it very interesting in that mix. added another dimension by balancing right between the tangy salsa and the spicy beef.

the lurton carmenere alka '05 had some spice to it, so it was paired with a lamb and apricot crostini topped with mint yogurt. i'm a fan of mint and lamb, so this pairing was nice for me. and again, i never had a wine with such an obvious spice flavor like that, so that in itself was a treat.

helga's two loves came together on this one... wine and chocolate. and not just any chocolate, but our pride and joy from tobago estate. the bouza tannat a6 parcela unica '07 was brilliant with it as it had currant and coffee notes similar to the chocolate. this was my favorite pairing.

but my favorite wines were the nuits-saint georges (which was paired with an outstanding smoked salmon served with horseradish cream on crisp bread. unfortunately, i didn't capture it because i was caught up on how epic a device the vinturi was and lost focus.) and the durigutti malbec. so i guess i like the ones with flavors like currant, plum and fig.

in the words of borat "big success!" and just in case you're wondering, no i did not have to spit out any of the wine. a proper drink was had by all. it was a fantastic experience and i will be more than up for doing it again. these things are fun. meanwhile, i plan to stay connected. you can google nigel tollerman (even though wikipedia doesn't acknowledge that he exists because an admin didn't accept the evidence that he was real HA!) and pick up some of his knowledge in many interviews online. you can get a hold of jeremy and his products like the ones from this event at shopcru.com. and of course, keep posted to see what's on next at the kitchen studio at fanatickitchenstudio.com.

thanks for the wine helgies!!