Get in Mah Belly

Quick Friday recap: Veggie Day III.













Braised Swiss Chard (top left); Braised Red Cabbage with Bacon and Brunoise Apple (top right); Carrots Vichey (center); Ratatoullie (bottom left); Sautéed Spinach with Pine Nuts (bottom right). Not a bad day. A couple 18s, a couple 19s, and a 20. I never thought I'd like swiss chard, cooked carrots, or braised cabbage. Once again, I was proven wrong. Tasty stuff.

Saturday we hit up Abby & David's wedding, which was lovely. I nice short, sweet ceremony followed by Rudy's BBQ, tasty cake, and lots of "only 12 weeks till football starts" talk. Congrats you two! On the way home we stopped by Vespaio to see Nat & Elliott & Keri. I enjoyed a nice paté with crostini and créme fraîche - molto bene! That was followed with ONE OF EVERY GELATO THEY HAVE!!! BOOM! Why? Cause that's how we roll, that's why!

June 6th will henceforth be referred to as "National Pork Belly Day".













Heirloom Tomato and Cucumber Salad (top left) - Central Market tomatoes with pear balsamic and good Italian, cold-pressed, Extra Virgin Olive Oil; Elliott's Jicama Salad (top right) - fresh jicama, lime juice, S&P; Pooooorrrrk Beeeelllllllyyyyyyyy (bottom left) - stay tuned; and Ratatoullie (bottom right) - zucchini, squash, onion, bell pepper, eggplant, tomato, garlic, each sautéed individually tossed in a pot with fresh herbs and simmered in the oven for 45 minutes;

And now for what you really care about - the pork belly. This belly came from a pig that was allowed to roam free in a pasture (whatever) and was slaughtered last week (awesome). It sat in my fridge for 2 days covered in salt and sugar. Then, I roasted it in a 225º oven for 3 hours and let it rest. Then I cut the belly into some delicious 3/4" hunks. Then I fired up the ol' chimney starter, placed a grate over it, and seared the pork belly for 10 seconds on each side. Then we ate it with a (not pictured) fried apple purée. *droooooool* Man was it good!!!

Today, class was all demo, no production. We watched our chefs (with a little volunteer help - yes, I helped) make fresh pasta and sauces to accompany. Tomorrow, we do all production, no demo. So, I get to make pasta FROM SCRATCH!!! Also, we'll get to go to a Hudson Valley Foie Gras demo. SO EXCITED!!!! (what's with all the caps today?)

And to finish, more Cheff Waggoner jokes, quotes, and anecdotes:
-This one's not really a joke, but did you know that there's a pasta called Strozzapreti? It means "priest-choker". Interesting.
-After chatting about buxom blondes: "Twiggy ruined that. Twiggy and Scrappy Doo were the beginning of the end for our society."
-"What does Snoop Dogg wash his chef coat with? Bleotch."
-"Why does Snoop Dogg wear a rubber apron when he does ice sculptures? For the chizzle drizzle."