Fun Friday: Garnishes

Today's Fun Friday was all about garnishing techniques. It has become a lost art in the culinary world because it requires extreme knife skills and patience but the outcome is always so worth it. 

Today on the Menu: Seared Ahi Tuna/Potato Gnocchi/Herb Oil

The Fryer: Round 2

Today I decided to give the fryer a second chance. Again at the Indian Station, I had to fry some paneer. Paneer is an un-aged, non-melting farmers cheese that is really popular in South Asian cuisine. It is pretty flavorless as is, but after being fried and soaked in turmeric water it soaks in all that flavor and becomes a great addition to any meal. 

Lesson Learned: Don't Stick Your Hand in the Fryer

So today I was given the task of frying papadum, a thin, spicy cracker found in Indian and Pakistani cuisine. This seemed easy enough, I was up for the task. I cut all the papadum into halves and started frying them up in batches. I was using tongs which meant I was reaching into the oil to grab all the fried crackers. This started off fine, but about halfway through I got a little too comfortable and reached in a little too far. Sticking your finger in hot frying oil is probably about as painful as it sounds, not to mention the glove I was wearing--I had to peel that off my fried finger bits. Needless to say, Lesson Learned: Don't stick your hand in the fryer.

Chefs To End Hunger

Chefs to End Hunger is a California-based organization that is dedicated to taking excess food and giving it to the hungry rather than letting it go to waste. It makes me proud to work with a company that feels passionately about issues such as hunger. Bon Appetit frequently contributes to Chefs to End Hunger--Today we donated couscous with rainbow carrots and a barley side dish.

links: Chefs to End Hunger Website

Fun Friday: Cake Decorating

Fun Friday is a program set up for interns where every Friday we get off of work 2 hours early to come together, eat, and learn a new lesson about food. This week we learned about cake decorating and let me just say that it is a LOT harder than I had expected. My cake is on the right and clearly displays my amateur frosting skills. Despite this fact, at the end of the day cake is cake and a chocolate-kahlua combo can do no wrong.

Team Building: Seasonal Produce

Today was just another exciting day of Team Building! Sadly, it is my last day at the Teaching Kitchen but I spent an incredible 3 weeks here. I have learned so much thanks to my team: Chef Dede, Jared & Noel and also thanks to the Kitchen Sync Cafe team as a whole. I can't say enough good things about my experience here and I hope that the next cafe will allow me just the same.

Since it was my last day, I decided to have fun with today's team build set-up so I made a rainbow of produce.
Below are the three dishes the Team Build created today-- Photo credits to my lovely coworker Jared, you're the best!

Today's Lesson: Sushi 101

For today's cooking class, there will be no actual cooking. This lesson is going to be on sushi. Jerome is the ultimate sushi chef at Kitchen Sync and he is going to teach the Googlers how to make it.
As usual, we set up all the ingredients for class and today Jerome is going to be the teacher while the rest of us assist.

Zagat Chef: Tanya Holland

Today at the Teaching Kitchen, Zagat Chef Tanya Holland visited Google to do a food demonstration on two recipes from her new book "Brown Sugar Kitchen: New-Style, Down-Home Recipes from Sweet West Oakland". She owns Brown Sugar Kitchen restaurant in Oakland, CA and is dedicated to making modern soul food. I cannot express how honored we all were to have her talent, positivity and outgoing spirit in our kitchen.
   To prep for her arrival, the Teaching Kitchen team (of four) followed and pre-made two of her recipes-- Black-Eyed Pea Salad and Baked Sweet Potato Wedges. Much like a cooking show, Tanya came in and "cooked" or demonstrated how to make these dishes while on camera and afterwards, the attending Googlers were able to taste Tanya Holland's recipes.

Links:
Restaurant Website
Book

Citrus Tasting

  On days we don't have class, Teaching Kitchen often sets up tastings for Googlers while they're eating their lunch at Kitchen Sync Cafe--Today we decided to go with a citrus theme. With each tasting we usually research some interesting facts about the food we're serving. For example, blood oranges contain antioxidants called anthocyanin. This antioxidant is nearly flavorless and odorless however, it is responsible for giving this fruit its crimson color

  Above is a picture of the fresh produce we will be using--kumquats, tangerines, blood oranges. To the left is the final set up of the tasting including the fresh produce, orange vinegar and samples of the different citrus flavors

Team Building: Iron Chef

    Team Building is type of class we do in the Teaching Kitchen where Googlers compete in teams of two to create the best dish. Each team has an hour to complete 3 plates (one per team member and a third for the judges). Much like the show, Iron Chef, teams are judged on-- completion on time, creativity, taste, cleanliness of their stations and last but not least, use of seasonal ingredients. To prep for the class, we set out a variety of fresh, seasonal ingredients as well as spices, condiments and cookware the teams have at their full disposal.

Examples of Seasonal Ingredients: Tangerines, Kumquats, Avocados,
Bok Choy, Broccoli, Kale, Swiss Chard, Mushrooms and Blood Oranges...

Herbs&Spices: Basil, Rosemary, Tarragon, Chili Powder, Cloves, Cumin, Chervil, Cilantro, Cinnamon, Dill and Palm Sugar...

Condiments: Soy Sauce, Mirin, Maple Syrup, Tamari, Mustard, Fish Sauce, Gochujang, Pecans, Chili Oil, Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar, Red Wine Vinegar and many more kinds of vinegar & oil...

Cookware: Sauce/Sautee/Sheet Pans, Blenders, Woks, Pots, Peelers, Zesters and Oven Mitts...

    When the final products came out I was thoroughly impressed. These were techies turned culinary chefs in a matter of minutes. It was so enjoyable seeing the Googlers ask for ideas, trying new combinations and really being creative with this whole process. Team Builds allow for open conversation and in the end we all come out of it with a little more knowledge about food.

Flavor Profiling

Today at the Teaching Kitchen--a class where Googlers can go to learn new cooking techniques and how to create different dishes-- we created Flavor Profiles. Each column has a designated flavor (Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter & Spicy/Pungent) and in each one there are 7 different ingredients that are "profiled" in this flavor category. 

Flavor Profiles help expand the students' palettes. It encourages them to taste food with more than just the "it tastes like chicken" response. This exercise forces students to search for flavors beyond the appearance of the ingredient. For example, we ask them to think about the different kinds of sweet they taste or the different layers of flavor they find rather than just using a single-noted 'sweet' label.

Just Exploring

Today was dedicated to figuring out NorCal's public transportation system and previewing the place I will be working for the next 9 weeks. The Google Campus is very large, very green and has dozens--if not hundreds--of these signature-colored bicycles scattered across the property.

Introduction

Hello Friends! 

My name is Shannon Manning and in this blog I document my journey working for Bon Appétit in the Google cafes. My research project is all about creating healthy flavor particularly when limited by certain dietary restrictions. Animal by products not only add flavor but also develop texture-- So when these ingredients are no longer options, cooking becomes more challenging and more creative.

Bon Appétit has graciously taken me on their team allowing me to work alongside some of the most brilliant and innovative minds in the nation. I cannot express my gratitude towards them for giving me this opportunity. With such a multi-faceted and hands-on learning experience I am sure to gain knowledge and skills that will last me a lifetime. Thank you all for sharing this journey with me.

Best,
Shannon