Onion.

Ouch!... Yum... It burns!... But I like it... ::reaches for stick of gum::

If there were ever a misunderstood vegetable, it would be the onion. Constantly removed from burgers, banished from first dates and never allowed to play with the cool food in the grocery cart, the onion is often shunned and perceived as an annoying addition to an otherwise perfectly good meal. Poor, poor onion. On rare occasions that its presence is valued, the onion is usually in its sweet caramelized form or a simple flavor sidekick to a more accepted item. The unfortunate, dejected vegetable rarely stands alone in its own glory. ::Insert sad violin music::

But when was the last time you really tasted and onion? I am not talking about the last time you endured and onion based on your preconceived notion of ickiness (technical word), but when was the last time you appreciated all that the onion's robust flavor has to offer? Never. Just as I thought.

 I am not asking you to go eat an onion like an apple or anything, but imagine you are munching on some great Pico de Gallo or thinly sliced red onion in a Mediterranean Salad. The first bite is powerful, then you start to experience sweet, bitter and earthy undertones followed by a spiciness that totally envelopes the inside of your mouth. When you take a latent breath through your nose, you can feel the aroma of the onion tickle your entire olfactory system.

The sensation of eating an onion is uniquely personal and private due to its infamous nature (and partly because of the whole bad breath issue). No one really cares or wants to learn about the cool happenings going on in your mouth after you eat onion. Many a book and an even more extensive number of careers are built on wine and its apparent flavor complexities; however, I would argue that the onion is wine's all natural cousin. Completely a God creation, the onion offers an equally multi-dimensional, albeit not as varied, palatable adventure as a good bottle of merlot.

Leave it the the French to both understand a good wine and a good onion. A constant in French cooking, and seen as an integral flavor enhancement to many dishes, the onion finds a wonderful home in traditional fare, such as French Onion Soup. The onion's decidedly more lenghty cousin, the leek, holds a position of coveted prominence is Potage Parmentier (Potato Leek Soup) and Vichyssoise.

In the hopes of aiding in your budding acceptance of the onion into your cupboard society, try out these onion-based recipes at home. Embrace the flavor... and keep a mint nearby.

Pico de Gallo
1 pc White Onion, coarsely chopped
2 pcs Tomatoes, coarsely chopped, medium sized
1 bunch Cilantro, finely minced
1 pc Jalapeño, removed of seeds and finely minced
1 pc Lemon, juice of
Salt (to taste)
Combine all ingredients in a medium sized bowl. Enjoy!

French Onion Soup
2 pc Yellow Onion, thinly sliced into even slivers
1 1/2 qt Veal Stock, defatted (could use Chicken Stock, or a combination of the two for a lighter flavor)
1/2 c Red Wine 1 Bay Leaf
Cayenne Pepper (to taste)
Salt (to taste)
Water (as needed)
Oil (as needed)
4 oz Gruyère Cheese, grated

1. Add onion slices to a medium saucepot with a small amount of oil 
2. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally. The onions will soften and then they will slowly turn brown as they caramelize. If they begin to cook too quickly, add a very small amount of water to the pot to prevent scorching. Caramelizing onions can take 30-45 minutes. Do not rush the process. This step is critical to the overall flavor of the soup. Onions are carmelized when they are a deep, golden brown and taste very sweet. 
3. Once onions are caramelized, deglaze the pot with Red Wine (add the Red Wine and stir the onions). Let simmer for about a minute. The goal is to retain the flavor of the Red Wine, without having an overpowering alcohol component. 
4. Add Veal Stock, Bay Leaf and Cayenne Pepper. You may also add salt, but I find that salt is not necessary due to the salt in the Stock and the salt from the cheese. 
5. Simmer for 5-10 minutes 
6. Pour soup in oven safe bowls and cover with Gruyère Cheese. 
7. Melt Cheese using broiler, oven or salamander. 
8. Enjoy!

Menu.

Succulent.  Juicy.  Savory.  Luscious.  Tender.  Tantalizing.  Full bodied.  Orgasmic...

Words that evoke physical feelings of pleasure from the tips of your pretty pedicured toes to the top of your finely coiffed tresses make you pause and take notice of the subject in question.  If you sit and contemplate the word, odd things may happen: you lick your lips, you run your fingers through your hair, a flirty smile passes over your face... physical manifestations of whatever private thought that is flickering from your memory to your conscious mind when you ascribe that one little frisky adjective to an unsuspecting noun. In short, you have a blissful response that encompasses your mind, body and soul.

While some of your minds are now in more carnal places (don't deny it, I can tell), my true foodies out there applied at least one of those lovely descriptive words to some type of gastronomic creation (well, at least eventually you did).  A succulent, juicy steak with a tantalizing and savory Marchand de Vin composed butter paired with a full bodied Merlot is so much more enjoyable than just a NY Steak with a sauce and some wine.  Notice the difference?  When you describe the eating experience to the diner before they have fully decided on what they would like to explore with their palate, they begin eating with their eyes and applying all of their five senses to the vision of the food in their minds.  As the chef, you have already set yourself up for culinary success by causing your guests to embark on a road to their own blissful food response before you have even turned on the oven.

That is the art of menu writing.  In my humble, yet royal, Princess opinion, the difference between a list of food options, an index of ingredients and a menu is the experience it provides to the diner.  Assuming you have equally delectable entrees, the one that will cause more enjoyment at the earliest point in the dining experience is the one that sounds so good on the page that the guest waits with fervent expectation from the moment they place their order until their much awaited selection arrives to their table.

A good menu plays hard to get.  It is like a woman whose mother trained her well:  it gives you just enough to get you interested, keeps you wanting more, doesn't give up all the goodies until you make your final purchase and keeps you satisfied for an extended period of time.  While a good menu should employ the tactic of a few carefully selected specialized adjectives to peak your interest, it should also use its wiles to craft a well-rounded flavor profile from hors d'oeuvres through dessert.  In a true fine dining experience, each course should be portioned to be satisfying, but not overwhelming.  We all know that an overly attentive (aka nagging) woman is a lonely woman and the same principle applies to a menu.  The food should fulfill the patron's needs, but keep them craving what's next.  Even after the dessert, your guest should want to return to see what new experience awaits him next time.  In the patron's absence from your table, some of those lovely adjectives should linger in his mind and on the tip of his tongue, driving him to return in the near future.

You may not own a restaurant or catering establishment that produces menus on a regular basis, but try writing a menu for your next dinner party or event.  Use quality paper, take time with the layout concept, employ some juicy adjectives and artfully construct a complete flavor profile that will wow your guests.  Assuming you have the cooking skills to back up all your fancy talk, your menu could be the difference between a polite smile and an anxious lip nibble.

Explore food with all your senses, understand that food is pleasure and stay blessed!

Resolve.

I resolve to be a better business owner.
I resolve to not leave my baby (my blog) alone for this long again.
I resolve to explore new ingredients.
I resolve to take my cooking to even greater heights.
I resolve to have my clients fall in love with my food with every bite.
I resolve to make Culinary Princess Catering the choice catering company in the Los Angeles Area and beyond.
I resolve to pray over my loves, talents and my business daily.
I resolve to maintain a clear, focused, motivated mindset to achieve my goals.
I resolve to help others become successful.
I resolve to curb my fascination with donuts (this might be the hardest one to keep.)

New Years resolutions are corny, or so I have always said.  Maybe I never made them because I never felt truly resolved to do anything mind-blowingly amazing in the past.  Maybe I was afraid of professing my commitments because I was afraid of the accountability that would naturally follow.  Either way, it feels good to have a purpose that I care about enough to make a resolution about.  I look back and read some of my first posts (Passion. and Purpose.) and am overcome with a feeling of being so blessed that I have come this far in such a short amount of time.  I am extremely interested in seeing where a bit of resolve can take me.

Most people say that their New Years resolutions last for a max of six months.  During the warm summer months their lofty plans are faint memories in the recesses of their minds and by the time the festive New Years hats and champagne are broken out once again, they have forgotten what their last resolution was (or they look down at what are still not washboard abs and just keep drinking with a sense of disappointment tinged with self-pity).  My resolutions are not like that.  I resolve to keep my resolve (Ha!  A double resolution.  Beat that! Hehe).

It is only the sixth day of the New Year and I am already on my way to helping several of my goals come to fruition.  Step 1) I am writing this blog entry and apologizing to all of my readers for having been away for way too long.  Not making excuses, but starting a business while going to school is a bit time consuming IJS.  Step 2) I bought some new marinated goat cheese yesterday.  While it may not be a long-named fruit no one has ever heard of, it is still a new-ish flavor.  Gotta give myself kudos for the little things.  Step 3) Culinary Princess Catering has some great new things in the works that I hope will make you smile, and make you hungry (I am mostly banking on the hungry part).  While I have many more steps to take in the pursuit of my goals, I know that I have no choice but to be successful.

Sorry this post doesn't contain a recipe, witty diatribe on the degradation of our society at the hands of fast food or a tip on how to cook like the pros.  But, I hope that my resolve can be contagious.  I pray that your resolutions are more successful than they were last year and that you have found the purpose that makes you want to make a resolution in the first place.

With that I leave you with the immortal words of Drake and Trey Songz... "I just want to be successful"

Turn your resolve into attainable goals, speak life into your dreams and be blessed.

Myths. #2

Myth #2: 
I am too hungry to cook!  When I walk in the door, I know Marie Callender will satiate my tummy grumblings in 5 1/2 minutes.  Why cook when I have Marie?

If you use this myth as an excuse, I am going to be nice and refrain from calling you "lazy."  I will just simply say that you seem to be motivationally challenged when it comes to cooking (Princesses are nothing if not tactful).  You may just be busy or perhaps you are not that great at planning ahead (just being honest).  I get it. 

When I eat dinner, I have a classically trained chef readily available to cook for me (so what if it is me).  I obviously love to cook and love the experience of both feeding myself and nourishing other people's bodies and souls.  However, I do understand that sometimes you are just plain old hungry and need a quick fix.  I know that almost crack addict like urge to reach for a Wendy's #6 when it feels like your stomach just might implode if you don't put something in it.  Indulging your cravings for food in fingertip reach every once in a while is not bad.  This blog is a safe place and you will not find any shame throwing here (not much at least).  However, if you find yourself eating every meal either out of a box from your fridge or from a drive through window, it is time to enroll in the Princess Eating Academy (PEA for short).  Participation is highly recommended before you start seeing Marie and Wendy show up on your thighs.


Don't pay too much attention to the fact that I just made up PEA on the spot or that you just may be the first participant.  The important part is that you learn how to kick your own lazy booty off the couch and into the kitchen by learning how to cook in a way that fits into your lifestyle.  There are three key areas that will help you into recovery from your slothful fingertip food habit.


P: Prep in Advance
If you chop, marinate, or otherwise prepare your food in advance, you could beat Marie's cooking time and have a healthy, home cooked meal.  For example, if you are planning to make a one pot meal, like the Braised Chicken Legs and Thighs in the Myth #1 blog entry, the mirepoix can be chopped in advanced, refrigerated and then just thrown in when you are ready to cook.

Another great option is to purchase a family size package of meat, like chicken breasts, and marinate each breast individually in a ziplock bag overnight in the fridge.  Once they are done marinating, you can toss them in the freezer and then defrost and cook them when you are ready.  Ladies and gentlemen,  you have just created your own frozen meal, no Marie needed.  A great chicken marinade to use is lemon juice, white wine, garlic, cilantro and cayenne pepper.

If you are good with eating leftovers, make food in large batches on the weekend and just eat your readily made food during the course of the week.  Lasagna, casseroles, pot roasts and meat loaf are great things to make in larger quantities that will last well through the week.  As soon as you come in the door, just plate the food, pop it in the microwave and you are ready to go.  I bet you could do that in less that 5 1/2 minutes.  Take that, Marie!

The best part about cooking your own food is that you know exactly what has gone in it.  You don't have to read a package full of ingredients you can't pronounce.  You don't have to pretend you didn't just read that the meal you are about to eat has enough sodium to last you for a month.  You also don't have to feign casual ignorance of the high calorie count of the McDonald's hamburger currently making its way to your mouth.  You can eat healthy food that doesn't have unnecessary hip baggage included as a mandatory side dish.

E: Eat small meals throughout the day
The old school way of eating is three square meals every day.  That worked for many generations.  The problem in our contemporary world is that our sedentary yet hectic lifestyles, combined with easy access to food low in actual nutritional value, has made the old way of eating obsolete.  Many dietary experts recommend breaking up your large meals into smaller meals throughout the day, which means you should snack.  No Mr. Sneaky, I am not talking about snacking on Mike & Ike's (my favorite candy), the McDonald's Dollar Menu or Starbucks Frappuccinos.  Those are all full of empty calories that neither provide much nutrition nor do they give you the energy to tackle your busy day (not to mention the fact that their culinary artistry is so low it isn't even on the scale.)  

Try packing fruit (fresh or dried), nuts, boiled eggs and veggies along with your lunch for work.  You can even take it back to childhood and get creative with fun snacks like ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins).  Snacking will help you stay healthy and should feed the hungry beast in your stomach so you aren't so ravaged when you get home.

A: Accurately manage lifestyle expectations
Let's be realistic.  You aren't going to change your eating habits over night.  Why set yourself up for failure by kicking Marie out of the freezer on Monday and expect to eat only organic, whole grains by Tuesday?  Think of quitting fingertip food like quitting smoking.   People who ditch the cancer sticks cold turkey are usually less successful than those who slowly wean themselves off their addiction.  However, there are multiple ways to slow the fast food hemorrhaging to a trickle.

We aren't talking about cutting down your burger ration from 7 a week to 2 (although that would be a great start).  How about transitioning to healthier burger options and finally cutting back to having fast food be a treat rather than your gastronomic norm?  Not a fast food junkie, but you can't seem to eat anything unless it comes in a plastic dish from your freezer?  Put down the Hungry Man Dinners and pick up healthier options such as Kashi, Amy's, or Trader Joe's frozen meals.  These healthier options are lower in sodium, have better portion control and contain more organic and natural ingredients.  Plus, in my humble opinion, they taste A LOT better.  Keep in mind, even healthier frozen meals should just supplement your growing cooking adventures.


Congratulations on taking the first steps in your PEA program!  I wish you the best of success as you strive to cook more and eat better.

Although not part of the PEA program, there is yet another healthy option: Micro-Catering by Culinary Princess Catering.  You can have a classically trained chef cook your meals for the week and deliver them.  Not only are the meals catered to your specific health and dietary requirements, but the food tastes fantastic.  Micro-Catering is convinient, healthy and scrumpdidlyumptious!

Thanks for working with me to debunk yet another myth and remove a harmful excuse to why you can't cook.

Next Time: Myth #3 "Cooking for myself and family is too expensive!  Don't you know we are in a recession?  Well, if you don't get it, McDonald's understands.  Why else did they invent the Dollar Menu?"

Myths. #1

A wise woman once told me, "Excuses are tools for the incompetent that build monuments of nothingness."  Did you know that some excuses have become so popular, so widely accepted, that they have propagated potentially harmful myths?  Many people have decided to use the same excuses repeatedly about cooking and their actions have have constructed misconceptions that have created monumental barriers for those lay people who want to learn how to cook.  In this blog series, we are going to tear down the myths about cooking.

Myth #1:
Cooking is hard!  It is so arduous and taxing that when I even think about cooking, I can feel the life getting sucked right out of me!

If you were living in 18th century France during the time of Marie-Antoine Carême, or you happened to be Laura from The Little House on the Prairie, this wouldn't be be a myth, it would be a reality.  I may love to cook, but I am not trying to churn my own butter either.  However, in the age of electricity, one pot cooking, and easy access to quality food (for most Americans...don't get me started on the lack of of American nutrition), cooking is much easier than you think.  The problem is in the misconceptions created by overworked home cooks.  For most would-be novice cooks, the image of slaving away over a hot stove for hours while the life drains out of you, puddles on the floor and mixes in with your own sweat and tears keeps you as far away from the kitchen as possible.  While that image does ring a bit true when you speak about professional cooking (gotta keep it real), everyday culinary expression doesn't involve nearly as much melodrama.  In fact, it can be quite pleasurable (don't give me that snarky look.  Yes, I said you can have FUN while you cook). 


Start simply.  When you first begin to cook, you may not have perfect knife cuts or intricately layered flavor profiles, but making yummy, nutritous meals is as easy as 1, 2, 3:


1. Embrace one pot cooking.  One pot cooking not only makes the cooking process easier, but it minimizes the amount of clean up required.  Starting off by making casseroles, lasagna, stews and braised meats will help you gain confidence in your own culinary skills and spark ideas that will help you continue to improve.  These meals tend to be quickly prepared on the stove top and then popped in the oven, which means that you can spend your dramatic slaving away over the stove time on better things, like drinking a glass of wine and dancing around in your underwear to your favorite Beyoncé song (please set a timer so you don't burn the food, you dancing machine you). 


A quick one pot recipe to get you going: Braised Chicken Legs & Thighs (Serves 4) 
Ingredients:

• Chicken Legs & Thighs (attached (4 pcs), or detached (8 pcs).  Skin on)
• Mirepoix: 2 cups onion, 1 cup celery, 1 cup carrot (all rough chopped)
• Herbs: Bay Leaf, Parsley Sprig, Thyme
• White Wine (1/2 c)
• Chicken Stock (enough to cover meat 2/3 up)
• Garlic Cloves (2, rough chopped)
• Cayenne Pepper
• Neutral Oil (enough to coat bottom of pan/pot)
• Salt

Method:

1. Heat a saute pan with oil
2. Season Chicken on both sides with Cayenne Pepper and Salt
3. Place chicken skin side down in the oil and cook until skin is golden brown.
4. Flip the chicken over so that it is skin side up
5. Add Mirepoix, Herbs and Garlic
6. Add White Wine and reduce
7. Add Chicken Stock 2/3 of the way up the Chicken
8. Cover and bake in a 350 degree oven for approximately 40 minutes, or until chicken is done
1. *Note: Chicken is done when it is firm to the touch, 165 degrees F internally, the juices run clear, the joints are loose and the meat pulls away from the bone.
9. Serve the chicken with or without the Mirepoix
10. Enjoy!

2. Educate yourself.  We all know the now cliche adage "knowledge is power."  However corny that may sound, it is very true.  Cooking is about flavor and pleasure, but you cannot evoke an emotional response (the ultimate goal in my opinion), from your diners unless you first understand cooking and its proper techniques.  Only when you move away from being a strict recipe thumper and into the realm of flavor connoisseur, can you truly begin to fall in love with cooking.  


The most traditional way to learn anything is by taking a class.  While I think Culinary School is awesome, the average person just wanting to learn how to make better dinners for their family may not want to devote that kind of time to food.  Luckily, many culinary schools, such as Le Cordon Bleu, offer one-time Master Chef Classes that teach you techniques and new dishes.  Not only will you get to learn from the pros, but you will feel pretty spiffy in a working professional style kitchen.  Culinary School classes too heavy for you?  How about some light and fun ones instead?  There are many different classes, such as HipCooks, that will teach you how to make some great meals in a light and friendly atmosphere.  


If you are more of a bookworm, one of my favorite new books is The Flavor Bible.  While it does not focus on how to cook, it will tell you about various flavor combinations and affinities so that you can walk away from the recipes on the back of the Campbell's Soup cans and start creating your own signature dishes.  Other must haves in your collection are Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Escoffier by Auguste Escoffier, and The Art of Eating by M.F.K. Fisher.  


3. Get a cooking buddy.  Try out your new recipes on a willing participant.  You get to spend quality time with one of your closest friends while cooking for someone who is intently interested in the speedy improvement of your culinary abilities.  You can bounce ideas off of each other while growing as partners in your passion for food.  Cook for each other once a week, alternating weeks.  Step out of your comfort zones and encourage each other when things turn out a little "Cajun" (or burnt for those of you who have never used that excuse).  You can even go grocery shopping and farmer's market hopping together to see what new ingredients you can play with.  Never offering advice I haven't tried myself, my friend John N. and I started doing this when we were neighbors in college.  Not only did we grow closer as friends, but our food got better too!  

Next time: Myth #2: I am too hungry to cook!

Until we meet again, treat the kitchen as your friend, take baby steps to master your food and stay blessed!