Spring is Near

Illustration by William Nicholson

Sorry for the lag in posts. been on vacation the past two weeks and just needed to not worry about food, work etc.....

But now I'm back, getting ready to return, refreshed, motivated and with plenty of new ideas and thought running through my mind. Spring Menu needs to be finalized and menu items tested and tweaked before we try and roll out the new menu in a couple of weeks(that's the goal but I'm thinking were 3-4 weeks out)

Spring is one of my favorite seasons here in New England, people just seem to have a better outlook on life, in the kitchen we are getting ready to see some of my favorite products to works with.

Spring Dug Parsnips, Fiddleheads, Ramps, Green Almonds, Morel Mushrooms, Stinging Nettles, Spring Garlic Scapes, Asparagus, Radishes, Cardoons, Cherries, Fava Beans, Peas, Rhubarb, Turnips.......I think you get the point.

Stay tuned for spring dishes.

Post James Beard

The weekend started off with a flat tire 45 minutes into the trip to NYC with a few hundred pounds of food weighing down the back of the truck. After a rapid (almost pit crew worthy) tire change and a stop at the Bombster Scallop Boats to pick up our scallops in Stonington CT. we were on our way!!   A quick stop at the New Haven Taco Trucks for some Beef Tongue Tacos and fresh churros (if you find yourself on route 95 in New Haven make it a point to stop and enjoy authentic Mexican cuisine from the original gastro pods) and rest of the weekend was a hit.

The dinner was sold out...the wine was flowing (Thanks Jorge & Jack the Man!!!) the kitchen was cranking without missing a beat , the Beard staff was on point, I mean you couldn't have asked for a more perfect situation.

I could go on and on but I think you get the point, a wonderful evening that I will never forget. Cooking in the home of an American culinary icon, working with my friends side by side, having my wife, cousins and mom along with some old friends and new ones in the dining room....on of the best nights in my professional career.

As soon as we get some photos of the cuisine back, you will be the first to see them.

The Beard House Dinner 2010

Our First Trip to the James Beard House April 2009

3 days of prep, triple checking the list to make sure everything is packed and in the right coolers, make sure that we have all the needed non food items, last minute calls to our vendors asking where the hell is the one and only thing that I need today that cant wait until tomorrows delivery! Oh, and of course we decide to cut off the reservations at 65 people and we are at 77 with a last minute phone call asking if we can please take 3 more!!!!! 80 it is....

Our second trip to the James Beard House seems just as stressful as the first one, only we know what we are walking into this time. It seems that we have cut down on the amount of food and extra "whatever" it was that we took with us on our first trip. This time around I am happy to be cooking with Matt (Chef de Cuisine) and Imani (Sous Chef) along with  Jose "Pepe" Rodriquez (my chef de cuisine at Havana Blue during my St. Thomas days as the Executive Chef of Blue Shore Grill Restaurant Group) and James Messinga the Executive Chef/Owner of Crazy Chefs Catering and Loco Tapas Bar in Easton MA. A kitchen full of chefs that all are humbled to be working together to put out a meal in the home of the father of American gastronomy.

I'm just as nervous, just as excited and looking forward to a amazing night cooking with friends and cooking for friends and family who made the trip from their homes to join us in NYC.

A special thanks to my wife Nicole, for putting up with the stress and long hours that went in to making this dinner possible.

I will post pictures of the dinner and the food, and maybe some crazy moments or two next week.....

Fish School

Matt & I had a great opportunity to attend a 2 1/2 day fish class put on by Foley Fish, one of Bostons original fish purveyors.

We spent some long,long days starting at 5am at the Boston Fish Pier, on board a ground fish boat, a scallop boat and  the New Bedford Fish Auction in between class time spent talking about sustainable New England Fisheries, quality control of seafood products and some amazing demos by master fish cutters.

All in all one of the best professional experiences I have had in very long time. The things that as a professional chef you feel you have a pretty good grasp on become elementary compared to the people who deal in that particular expertise day in and day out.

One of the things that I feel make me who I am as a chef is my desire to learn and continue to explore the world I work in on a much deeper level. Going into the belly of the beast so to speak to find out where my food really comes from, how does it get to my back door and by who.

Its easy to pick up the phone on a daily basis and place the order that magically arrives the next day. But to meet the captains of the boats and ask them the questions that you very rarely get to ask is truly going to the source and learning where its coming from and how its getting there.

If you can, get out and learn about the products you are using. Its not enough to ask your vendor where is it coming from, ask your vendor to take you where its coming from..............you may be surprised about what you learn.

Mugaritz Fire ....Stagières' Knives Appeal

Monday February 15 a fire destroyed much of the kitchen and the world famous MUGARITZ restaurant in Spain. The web site now simply reads in several languages..."The reconstruction begins from the foundation"

In an effort to help some stagiers ( motivated culinary professionals who travel the world to work for FREE in some of the worlds finest restaurants) who lost their most prized possession...their knives, a fundraiser has been set up. 
For more information on how you can help and to read a more in depth story go to DOCSCONZ- THE BLOG.

You may also go to firstgiving.com  to donate as well.

Total raised so far $1060.00 of the $2500 goal. (2/26/2010)

No excuses...Local produce in the winter in New England?? YES

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I recently had a conversation with a chef in the area about procuring local product. While most of you who follow the blog know that I support local agriculture, I support buying the highest quality ingredients first, make sure its fom sustainable source and then try and source it locally before I look elsewhere.

Anyways a little off track....the conversation with my fellow chef was about finding local produce here in New England in the middle of winter, he was saying there was nothing to buy and he would "jump on the bandwagon" in the summer again.

My feeling was that this was the easy way out. Yes it takes some extra work and no the farms aren't going to deliver as much in the winter. BUT fiqure out where you standards are. At Tastings we are all part of the solution. My sous chef gets up early to meet the Farm Trucks, Matt & I spend hours on the phone and online sourcing the product and then meeting the farmers, fisherman and ranchers. tasting the product, evaluating the quality vs. other sources and then putting our order together. Here is last weeks order in the middle of February for local product . I know its not a lot...but my point, its there and available....

Apples (Hill Fam)
Carrots (Schatner Farms)
Pasnips (Farm Fresh & Co. Farms)
Potatoes (Scatner Farms)
Seaweed (She Sells Seaweed )
Shrimp (Port Clydes)
Beef (Blackbird Farm)
Pork(Hill Farm)
Eggs Cage Free (Baffoni poulty farm)
Native Popcon on Cob (Schantner fams)

Port Clyde Fresh Catch

http://www.portclydefreshcatch.com/productcart/pc/home.asp

Over the last few weeks we have begun to use a product new to us in the kitchen, not that Maine shrimp is anything new, but finding a source for Maine shrimp that is sustainable and traceable is getting harder and harder as demand is reaching all time highs and supply is depleting.

But we are confident that we have found a source that cares about preserving the stock and the ocean.

St. George peninsula locate mid coast Maine, you will find the small fishing village and port of  Port Clyde. Port Clyde sits at the confluence of Muscongus and Penobscot bays, and provides key access to myriad fishing grounds. The village is steeped in the fishing industry, going back some 200 years.

 This heritage continues today with shrimp as well as ground fish such as haddock, flounder, cod, pollock and hake although much less in scale than 200 years ago, the fisherman remain as true to their catch as the they did then.

Roughly a dozen fishing vessels make up Port Clyde’s small fleet, the last between Portland, Maine and the Canadian border.

Determined to preserve their heritage, their community and the resources the fisherman of Port Clyde Maine use environmentally sustainable fishing methods.

They guarantee 100% supply-chain traceability, a return to the traditions of America's past — fresh, wild-caught seafood that we the customer can trace to the source.

A Kitchen Without Boundaries the ICC 2010

Got your tickets yet?

http://www.starchefs.com/events/icc/2010/html/index.shtml