Introduction to Food & Beverage Management HMGT 1102 Fall 2013

Date: December 9, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Angela Wu

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

On October 10, 2013, in the Anna Nurse Workshop, Craig Hobson, executive chef of Le Cirque, presented corn flan with honey vinaigrette and chicken breasts with shallots in saffron for the audiences. The most amusing one is the chicken breast. The chicken in a Ziploc bag was cooked in slow motion. Then he fired the chicken to make one side of the chicken crispy while the chicken is soft on the inside.

The audiences were very amused by his talent. I, as an audience enjoy the lesson and watched a chef cook for the first time. I am able to him cook and taste the dish instead of watching a chef cook through the television.

Date: December 10, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Darlene Mariano

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

The presenter at the workshop was Chef James Peterson. He is an award winning cookbook author who demonstrated the preparation of lobster with puffed pastry and a beurre blanc sauce. Chef James Peterson’s demonstration taught me quite a bit. His demonstration with the lobster showed everyone how to tell the difference between a male and a female lobster and how to take the meat out of the lobsters. He also told the audience how to make lobster butter through using the leftover lobster shells. He also went through a detailed demonstration of how to make puff pastry. He showed how much time and attention is needed when preparing it because puff pastry is very fragile. The overall dish tasted great. The puff pastry and the lobster with the beurre blanc sauce all tasted wonderful, well at least the tiny portion that I got did. I really enjoyed his demonstration, but I wasn’t one of the audience members who got an entire plate to themselves to taste.

Date: December 9, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Roselyn Cintron

Who was the presenter?

Chef James Peterson, he is an award winning cookbook author, and cook.

What was made/presented?

Poached Lobster on a puff pastry with a sauce called Beurre Blanc. Peterson wanted to make it with a female lobster to use the roe to make the sauce but instead was sold two male lobsters. He also demonstrated how to prepare a puff pastry.

What I learned?

I learned that lobster shells can be used to make butter. I learned how to make a puff pastry and I also learned that when you enjoy yourself preparing a meal, it would turn out amazing.

Did I enjoy?

Of course I did, the lobster was delicious and fresh and the puff pastry was new to me but very tasty.

Date: December 7, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Brandon Clarke

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

The presenter of the dish at the workshop was Chef James Peterson. He is an award winning cookbook author. The dish he made was poached lobster with puff pastry and a butter sauce called Beurre Blanc. He was very knowledgeable about what he was doing. Chef James wanted a female lobster so he could use the roe to make sauce but at the time it wasn’t available so he had to stick with preparing two male lobsters. He also gave us a very detailed demonstration on how to prepare puff pastry. It is very important to get the air pockets inside the dough and letting the dough rest in between folds, so when it is baked it is very thin layered and the layers on the inside of the dough won’t break. The Beurre Blanc sauce was very rich and sweet when mixed with the pastry and lobster and it was very delicious. The main thing I learned from this workshop though is that, when you enjoy preparing food in the kitchen, the product will always come out great and this was definitely true with Chef James.

I really enjoyed this workshop because of Chef James’ style. He likes to make people laugh and keep them entertained and informed of what he is doing. He answered pretty much every question anyone had to offer and before we knew it the food was ready to be eaten.

Date: December 5, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Clarissa De La Rosa

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

The presenter for the Ana Nurse Memo was Craig Hobson. He is from Australia and is the executive chef at Le Cirque. He made chicken breasts with shallots in saffron. Then for dessert he made a corn flan with a honey vinaigrette. I learned man y important tips to keep in mind when cooking these dishes like when putting the chicken breast in a zip lock bag and in the water bath you have to make sure there is no air in the bag and that the temperature is 143 degrees F. Also when the mix for the corn flan is ready you must pour it immediately in the mold and let it sit for 10 minutes exactly.There are also more things I learned from this workshop, like I learned that even though trying new things might seem scary or boring it will help to open new opportunities for you.

I loved this presentation because chef Craig Hobson was very nice, natural and inspiring. He was also very knowledgeable with many years of experience. he was willing to answer any questions about how to make the foods and you could tell that he has passion for what he does.

Date: December 10, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Kelly Laurent

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

Chef James Peterson is a cookbook author, cook and teacher. He worked at two restaurants in France and wrote 17 cookbooks about sauces, soups, fish and shellfish, vegetables, wines, French cooking, etc. James Peterson made Poached Lobster with Beurre Blanc on a Puff Pastry Crust. The sauce on the lobster was supposed to be made from the female lobster’s roe but the seller only gave Chef Peterson male lobsters. I learned that you can make butter from lobster shells and that you can identify a female lobster from a male lobster by the top of their abdomen; by the swimmerets. The female lobsters have soft swimmerets; the male lobsters have hard swimmerets. I also learned that you only need to boil lobsters for four minutes any more is overcooking it and female lobster’s roe turns from green to red when boiled. I usually don’t like eating lobster or any seafood from restaurants because it is either too rubbery, has no taste, or tastes burnt; but the lobster tasted fresh and it was good with or without the sauce. The puff pastry was burnt so I didn’t get to experience the complete flavor of the meal he prepared for us.

Date: November 28, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Jianwen Sun

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

Who was the Presenter?

Craig Hobson, who is the executive chef in Le Cirque, was the presenter of Anna Nurse Workshop on October 10. Le Cirque is a famous French Restaurant in New York City.

What did he make or present?

He presented two dishes: chicken breast with shallots, and corn flan with honey vinaigrette.

Did you learn something new?

Sure. There some key points I would keep in mind. For chicken breast, each breast in a Ziploc bag should be placed with a strip of lemon zest and mint stem. The breast should be into water bath and set at about 140F. Cook until the internal temperature reach 141F for one hour. A shallot in saffron comes with orange and lemon juice. People who are not professional chef can make honey vinaigrette at home. It concludes honey, sherry vinegar, balsamic vinegar, salt and olive oil.

Did you like the presentation, why or why not?

Yes, I like the presentation. I learned some easy food I can make at home like honey vinaigrette. The presentation showed whole cooking process with a lot of explaining. Chef Craig Hobson answered questions from students with details. Two dished tasted pretty good. I believe if people love cooking they will create more and more delicious food.

Date: November 25, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Esther Kee

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

Who Presented?

Craig Hobson was the presenter of Anna Nurse Workshop held on October 10. Craig Hobson is an executive chef at a French restaurant, Le Cirque.

What they prepared?

In this workshop, Craig Hobson made two dishes; Corn Flan and Chicken Breast. Craig Hobson has showed us step by step on how to make the corn flan which was made by corn, juice, cream locust, and agar. The second dish made was the chicken breast. The chicken breast was placed in the Ziploc bag with lemon zest and mint stem that was put into a water bath; which was something new to me. Afterward, he sliced the chicken; serve with the shallot, mint, cilantro, and parsley leaves and mixing them into the pot making the shallot tender, and syrupy.

Do you like what they made?

After Craig Hobson showed us how to make each dish, we get to try them. The corn flan was alright. It didn’t really have any flavor, to be honest. However, the chicken breast was delicious. The skin of the chicken was really crispy yet inside was really soft and tender, and I really like it. Overall, Craig Hobson presentation was good because he explains everything really well and precise. He demonstrated and shows us clearly step by step.  Also, he is willingly to answer all of our questions and concern.

Date: November 24, 2013

To: Professor Akana

From: Kaveesh Singh

Subject: Anna Nurse Workshop Memo

Who was the presenter?

The presenter of the Anna Nurse Workshop that was held on October 10, 2013 was Chef Craig Hobson. Craig Hobson is currently the Executive Chef at Le Cirque which is a French restaurant located in New York City.

What did they prepare and speak about?

Chef Hobson first prepared a Corn Flan that was made of, obviously, corn, cream, but also two ingredients that I’ve never heard of which was Locust and Agar. Both of these ingredients were used as a combining agent that held the corn flan together within the mold. Secondly, he prepared a Chicken Breast with Shallots. The chicken breast was prepared in a water bath at 143 degrees Fahrenheit then seared on a pan until its skin was crispy and the shallots were cooked in a pot in med- high heat until tender along with saffron, orange juice, lemon juice, and cilantro. This, was served with a salad of mint, cilantro, and parsley. Furthermore, Chef Hobson spoke about his experiences in preparing these dishes within his restaurant and a little about his life.

Your opinion of the food & the presentation.

The presentation overall was great and knowledgeable. Chef Craig Hobson was willing to answer any questions the audience had especially because he kept on asking us if we had any questions. The food was very interesting as I’ve never heard of Corn Flan, however, I wasn’t a big fan of it because I thought it didn’t really have any taste to it. On the other hand, the Chicken Breast with Shallots was amazing. The whole idea of cooking it in a water bath was a new concept to me as it preserved the chicken breast. The chicken with shallots was very flavorful and the salad of mint, cilantro, and parsley complemented it well.

Date: November 24th, 2013

To:  Professor Akana

From:  Martin Benitez

Subject:  Anna Nurse Workshop With Craig Hobson

Who was the presenter?

– The presenter was Craig Hobson. Craig Hobson is an Australian executive chef at Le Cirque. At first Craig Hobson was preparing a corn flan for everyone step by step. After making the corn flan, Craig Hobson made a chicken breast that he placed in a Ziploc bag with lemon zest and mint stems. He placed the chicken breast in the Ziploc bag in a water bath.

Did you learn anything new?

– Something new that I learned from the workshop was that you can make a flan out of corn. I also learned the technique used to make the chicken breast, putting the chicken breast in a Ziploc bag in a water bath. I was never exposed to this technique until Craig Hobson came and showed us all at the workshop.

Did you like the presentation, why or why not?

– I enjoyed the presentation of Chef Craig Hobson because while he was making the corn flan and cooking the chicken breast, he showed us step by step and asked us if we had any questions for everything he was doing. I was entertained the whole time while he was cooking. However when we were given the corn flan to try, I didn’t like it. The reason why I didn’t like it was because I don’t like corn, but I gave it a try because I never tasted it before. And for the chicken breast, it was good. It had nice texture and flavor.