Pasta Pasta

It's Saturday afternoon in the Chef's kitchen preparing for dinner. I was given the duty to make pasta. I've never made pasta before, but eaten many delicious fresh pasta. You really can't beat handmade pasta. As an avid Food Channel watcher, I've seen pasta made on TV before. I'm thinking it shouldn't be too difficult. I was excited.

Here I am cracking the eggs into my small well, the beaten egg starts to spew out from my well making a mess. Clearly, my mount wasn't deep enough so I add more flour trying to stop the egg from running all over the place. What a doughy mess. Finally I was able to get a workable ball of dough. I could have used a stand mixer but where's the fun in that.

I thought it came out pretty good for this being my first time making pasta. If anything, it was probably a bit softer than it should have been.

Things to work on next time:

• start with a bigger mount of flour (3 1/2 cups, then add 1/2 cup increments)
• more flour for a firmer dough
• beat 4 eggs before pouring into the well
• use a bit of semolina flour
  

White & Grape Tomatoes w/Burrata

We had gone to the Farmer's Market that morning and the white and grape tomatoes were so sweet that we needed to get some. When you think of fresh tomatoes, the first thing that comes to mind is a caprese. The white tomatoes were so delicious I wish we got more of it. Unfortunately, the burrata cheese that we purchased had just gone bad. Burrata should never taste bitter. What a bummer. Hopefully the Farmer's Market will have more of those white tomatoes.

Score: 9/10

Lobster Pasta

We made lobster pasta with the pasta that I had made. It wasn't the best dish, nor was it bad, but it was better than average. It had a good lobster bisque flavor. I thought the panchetta added a nice savory component. Also the mushrooms paired well with the lobster bisque. I love how a pretty good dish like this can stir up your creativity to improving it. I'm already thinking in ways to make it a 10.

Things I would do differently next time:

• use spinach instead of peas. I wouldn't even saute the spinach. Just toss it in when combining the sauce. Or maybe leaving out any greens except for the garnish.
  
• use parsley instead of the garlic chives for garnish

Score: 8/10

3 course dinner

Our friends decided to join us for dinner. It was a real treat because it was first time cooking for others in the Chef's kitchen. I always get nervous cooking something for the first time because you never know how it will turn out. You just hope that it'll come out edible.

Beet Salad w/Horseradish dressing - #2

Since the beet salad was such a hit, we thought to serve this easy dish. We possibly couldn't screw this one up. Who knew that good horseradish would make or break the dressing. Unfortunately it broke this one. The horseradish just wasn't coming through on the red beets. It could have been that the dressing was over tossed in the beets. Also, the creme fraiche that we used wasn't the same consistency. We were hoping for something creamy and thicker. Still love the beet marmalade and the beet leaves.

Score: 7/10

Fried Prosciutto, Fig, Ricotta Crostini

This was the second dish for the evening. This is what happens when you don't give a dish the love and attention it needs. It tasted good, but it wasn't perfect. The execution definitely needed help. For starters, it was my first time making ricotta cheese. The first batch was a failed attempt. The milk burnt onto the bottom of the saucepan. It was completely my fault for not keeping my eye on it. I didn't stir it either. My guess with the second batch, it was overcooked. The ricotta was dry and flaky. There was no crumbly creamy moisture. Then there was the fig marmalade. That too was a bit pastey and dry, but good caramelized fig flavor though. Lastly, portion control with presentation. If you can't fit it into your mouth, its too big! :) Best part was the fried prosciutto. I definitely want to give this dish another go at it.

Score: 5/10

Peas and Carrots

My stomach was feeling pretty full at this point. Luckily it was the last dish for the evening. It was like a crab omelet in a bed of carrot soup with pea shoots on top. The dish was very pretty and tasty. The omelet was fluffy like a pillow. The crab mixture was smooth and a bit rich. The carrot soup was a tab bit saltier than I preferred, but I'm not a huge fan of butter so I'd say it's personal preference. The other enjoyed it. The pea shoots was dressed in sherry which added to the richness of the dish.

Being the foodie that I am, here are the things I would change if I were to attempt at making this dish.
-Keep the crab mix more chunkier
-Instead of sherry, use something more acidic like lemon

Score: 8/10

Farmer's Market Sandwich

Chantrelles, Tomato, Arugula sandwich

I've been to the Farmer's Market but never really took the time to appreciate it until after this dish. Our Farmer's Market sandwich. It's Saturday morning with a toothpick in hand, it was a sampling feast at the Santa Monica farmer's market. Dragon fruit, Cucumber Lemons, various melons, pluots, berries, etc.

As we're walking from booth to booth, the subject of "what are we going to eat for lunch?" had come up. The light bulb moment must have been around the booth when I had the organic arugula because I just needed to get a bag of it. I think my first reaction was, "wow, arugula actually has some flavor to it". I find it that bagged arugula from the market lacks the bitter flavor. Anyways, there were some really pretty vibrant colored chantrelles so we grabbed a bunch. Found a cheese booth and sampled a few different kinds of Jack cheese. We went with the most subtle so that the chantrelles wouldn't get lost. Then picked out a couple Japanese tomatoes because they too looked and tasted yummy. Lastly, a freshly baked rustic baguette from the bread booth.

We sauteed the chantrelles and added it to the melted cheese on the bread. Tossed the arugula and tomatoes in Olive oil, Saba, salt, and pepper. Added that to the other half of the bread.

The sandwich was tasty and it went perfect with the Chandon Rose that i picked out. It made a great afternoon before the beer fest festivities. :)

Score: 9/10