This page is dedicated to Professor Garcelon’s Culinary Arts I HGMT 1203 course. To access the class website, log into Blackboard via the CUNY Portal.
The ART of FOOD – First Year Hospitality Management Learning Community for HMGT1203/1204 & ARTH1100
Fall 2014-Profs Cheng, Garcelon, Jacus
Hi there Students of CAI. Today we discussed our FYLC reading “How Not to Boil an Egg” by M.F.K. Fisher. Don’t forget to explore the internet and find out about this prolific writer who was perhaps ahead of her time. come to our next class meeting and share your findings.
See you then
Professor Garcelon
I have fallen in love with MFK Fisher, a woman who embraced so many facets of life, eating, drinking, traveling, a woman way ahead of her times! Inspirational! And she has a great sense of humor and I like her writing style. Thanks for introducing her to me, Professor Garcelon!
Hi there! I was prowling the internet this weekend and found an article about a couple that opened a restaurant named after MFK Fisher. In spite of her passing many years ago her influence lives on…
http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20140707/BLOGS09/140709925/a-cafe-inspired-by-m-f-k-fisher#comments
I love the presentation of the chicken ballotine in the article.
I love Chicago s a city and it has a wonderful restaurant scene, quite cutting edge and now you have found a couple who has memorialized MFK! She was a well rounded woman who wrote for the ages !
I found this restaurant to be a wonderful tribute to such an amazing author and cook who evoked a way of communicating about food in a nontraditional way for all to understand. That even in this modern day society that is filled with the progression of technology, her work is still revolutionary.
Speaking of technology, I also wanted to share a new utensil that is up-and-coming in the culinary world that puts a whole new spin on when children complains about eating their vegetables.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/18/aroma-fork-will-freak-your-senses_n_5831642.html?utm_hp_ref=food&ir=Food
I was surfing the internet over the weekend for food poetry and came across a wonderful article in Saveur magazine that rounds up a collection of food poetry. I really love the poem ‘Counterman’ by Paul Violi (1944-2-11) because I can really picture the deli worker proudly building a sandwich – his work of art!
Take a look! Do any of the poems inspire you or activate any of your other senses? Here is the link: http://www.saveur.com/article/blog/A-Feast-for-Bards-13-Favorite-Food-Poems
My favorite of all the poem is chocolate milk by Ron Padgett. It got my eye immediately i saw the title chocolate milk.chocolate is one of my favorite desserts and i remember when i was a kid my mother used to prepare chocolate milk for my sister and i every night and when i came across this poem it just reminded me of how appreciative i was of my mother anytime she prepared us chocolate milk. I still drink chocolate milk every night before bed but its not as good as the one my mom used to prepare for me when i was a kid, i mean its the same chocolate milk but as the poem says there is something about some else preparing it for you, and for me the love my mom Incorporated into making my sister and i a chocolate drink made all the difference.
I could not resist picking Chocolate Milk by Ron Padgett as one of my favorite from the list of poems provided. As a child growing up we were raised on home made chocolate milk commonly known as cocoa tea in St. Lucia. It is made from ground cocoa beans and made with hot water and milk. Now I have the opportunity to prepare chocolate milk for my kids every day. Swiss miss chocolate milk has become the favorite breakfast drink at my home among my kids. Chocolate milk is like a comforter in the time of storm. I love chocolate milk.
I had a hard time choosing between Hot by Craig Arnold or Crazy About Her Shrimp by Charles Simic. Both resonated with me because of the role food played within the authors personal relationships. Culturally speaking, food has always been a way to interact with others and often enough a form of communication for me. The effort I might put into preparing a meal or dish, or in choosing a restaurant to take someone to, speaks volumes of what I think of that person. In both poems the authors are interacting, with different intent and circumstance, with another individual, allowing food to play a distinct and leading role.
In the food poem, “Chocolate Milk” by Ron Padgett, he vividly depicts the anticipation and process of having chocolate milk. The poem evokes that intense craving of the beverage as well as the actions endured to consume it. I relate to this poem because I highly appreciated chocolate milk as a child. At one point in my life, it was the only way I would drink milk. I remember being excited to pass the chocolate syrup to my mother and as she stirred in the syrup, I impatiently waited for it with my crazy straw. When I finally took the first sip of the perfected chocolate milk, it felt as if my whole world stopped. Nothing else mattered but my chocolate milk and me. I believe that the poem also supported an important concept of work; in order to receive reward first one must work for it. The want for chocolate milk is only satisfied after the simple process of stirring in the syrup to make the beverage to be able to consume it.
There were actually two poems that stuck out to me. One being Ben Jonsons’ Inviting a Friend to Supper and the second Craig Arnolds HOT. These both gave me a more intimate vibe, like you could put yourself in their shoes. They spoke of things where you could experience yourself. Both poems also gave me a sense of friendship.
The only poem that got my attention was Strawberrying by May Swenson (1913-1989). At first I thought this was a poem for some a fruit farmer or some sort of fruit sympathizing poem since the speaker made the strawberries seem to be murdered in cold blood. But as a read, I realized the humor. It really is very graphic, but I think thats why it is almost funny. I liked it, but it is making me want strawberries too.
Hi class,
In preparation for this weeks class activity please click on the article I have posted in the above comment from Saveur and read over the food poems. Select your favorite for class to discuss. The second thing you are asked to do is review your photos from the semester and reflect on your progress using the photos as a visual aid.
Looking forward to seeing you in class!
PS: There is a really interesting documentary being shown at the NYC DOCS festival about farming in NY State. Here are the details: November 14 (Friday)
Film Premier – Grazers: A Cooperative Story
Event Description:New York State loses a farm every three days, and with it a way of life, generations of farming knowledge, small town infrastructure and a whole landscape. For two years Lisa F. Jackson and Sarah Teale filmed with a group of fiercely independent farmers in upstate New York as they attempt to form a cooperative to sell their grass fed beef. Grazers: A Cooperative Story is an intimate chronicle of the group’s struggle and illuminates timely issues regarding our food system: What is the true value of small farms? Can they realistically compete against an industrialized food system? Can the members survive their first year? At stake are their farms, the small communities around them, the health of the land and a way of life.
Join us for the world premier of this important new film, co-presented by Slow Food NYC.
Location: IFC Center – 323 Avenue of the Americas (@ West 3rd); Manhattan [Site]
More info and tickets: http://www.docnyc.net/film/grazers-a-cooperative-story
My favorite poem is ‘Poem About Chocolate Milk’ by Ron Padgett. The title itself chocolate milk brings out child in me. It is a short and refreshing poem that really hits home. Every stanza relates to me because my father used to fix me chocolate milk for breakfast. He encourages me to have at least have a glass of milk for breakfast. However, I am not a fan of milk so he’ll add chocolate milk powder to make it a chocolate milk. Reading the poem makes me smile especially the stanza ‘Even as they stir it in the kitchen, your mouth is going crazy’ I immediately thought of my father would constantly stir the chocolate milk powder until it dissolves.Overall, this poem takes me back to good memories in the kitchen in the morning.
I didn’t have a favorite poem. But the one that I was drawn to the most was poem number 10
Counterman by Paul Violi (1944-2011)
What drew me to it was the way the counter man talked to the people ordering and it reminded me of my self. When someone would order food with me and the order would be boring, for example if someone would order turkey on rye with just Swiss I would heckle them to try and see if I can get them to ad some flavor to what they ordered. I would always ask if they wanted something extra or if they were sure that was it. The second thing that drawn me to the poem was the way the counter man talked to the person who gave in detal exactly how they wanted the sandwich and the Counterman new exactly what he was talking about and didn’t heckle to add anything. I’ve see so many people behind counters do this and simple reply “ok papi I got you” after reciveing an order from someone who knew exactly what they wanted. I do this sometimes as well but more in an interactive way where I’ll question the person on why they like it that way and have suggestions on what they should try next. It was the split interaction between food service provide and customer that drew me to the poem.
My favorite poem is chocolate milk by Ron Padgett. Especially in this weather this poem brings me to my childhood winters. Chocolate milk is better when it’s done with love. When I was younger my grandma would go to Ecuador and she would bring back lots and lots of chocolate barks to make chocolate milk with. That chocolate milk just makes your mouth water and this poem made me feel as I was drinking chocolate milk as I read the poem.