During week number Nine, I was the chef of the week. The item we had on our  menu was Tempeh, which was used in each one of the five dishes we made that night in vegetarian class.

The question is “What is tempeh?” It is a soy product which originates from Indonesia. Tempeh contains high levels of calcium and potassium. It is made by a natural culturing and controlled fermentation process that binds soybeans into a cake form. This provides the dishes with an unique texture, however the tempeh must be marinated to absorb more flavor.

The tempeh itself does not have much flavor but light nuttiness. This week every group was responsible to incorporate tempeh in all the different styles of preparation. The outcomes were fantastic because of the presentation and the great flavors tempeh had acquired after the marination process . In my opinion, the tempeh texture was very similar to chicken meat. Since this was a vegetarian dish, we did not use any meat products in our dishes. Most importantly, the dishes still taste delicious and full of nutrition value.

Group#1: Glazed maple tempeh strips with sauteed kale and corn and Sweet potato mash. The sweetness from the maple syrup has helped the tempeh with glossy appearance and meaty texture. The sauteed kale and corn has refreshing flavor as the side.

Group#2: Tempeh with mole ,squash mousse and green beans with shallots. The green beans has great crunchy texture with creamy squash mousse next to the tempeh, which has balance very well.

Group#3: Tempeh with coconut curry and basmati and Slaw. This dish was like a super summer happy color dish, which contains so much flavors and vibrant colors.The coconut and the curry was creamy and on point.

 

Group#4: Stuffed poblano with sauce and Swiss chard. The poblano pepper doesnt have strong spicy flavor and perfect shape to stuffed the tempeh. The plating was very elegant with just green, orange and tempeh color.

Group#5: Tempeh scallopini with red pot and asparagus. The temeph scallopini was delicious because it was first marinated then pan fried and then coated with the reduced sauce. Far distance, the dish looks like BBQ spare ribs. On the plate itself, has three different texture food, the crunchy asparagus and  saffron risotto.

The class had done great job with different recipes to have the amazing outcomes. At the end of the class, we enjoyed the meal we have prepared. Things we have added extra or reduce during the process.  Plating has definitely played an important role in cooking because a beautifully plated dish was more interesting to the eye.  Often time, we chose what stands out to our eye.

As conclusion, Art of vegetarian cooking not only provides healthier food and can be delious too.

Thanks to Chef.Hoffman and my amazing teammates!

-H

If you are part of the Hospitality Management major, then you probably have seen the Disney College Program poster, post card or small business card somewhere on the second floor of N building. Even if you are not a hospitality student, you might have seen some where inside the N building. It is a purple poster with Micky mouse on it, really easy to recognize. I mean, the posters are literally EVERYWHERE inside the N building. DCP Stands for Disney College Program. I have always wanted to be part of , which i have finally gotten accepted to the upcoming Fall 2016 program after few tries and fails  . ( DO NOT give up  if you did not get in the first time !)   I want to write a blog post to share some of the things that I’ve learned during the process. For those of you that also interested to be part of the program, Hopefully my experience will help you in someways. Definitely do more research about the program before you apply . Keep in mind that once you get the program, you will be leaving your home to live on your own. However, this  is an amazing internship opportunity that allow one to gain so much hand on experiences of the hospitality field and  much more . Have I mentioned this is a PAID INTERNSHIP that every college students are qualify to be part of ? Super excited to share this journey with you all.

Alright, let me begin my experience in applying for the program! This is specifically targeting the Florida, Walt Disney World….Everything in this post is based on my own opinions and own experience. There might be slight differences because we are all unique individual that have different strengths and experiences and way to handle situations .

Few semesters back, when I first started my study in Hospitality Management.  After reading through the pile of papers  regarding the different workshops, the programs, Disney College program has caught my attention right away.  ( I mean, about 5+pages, a pile is a little over exaggerate, you get the point, lots papers) .I’ve  gotten lots papers from the Hospitality department, I almost immediately decided that I  want to participate the DCP, aka Disney College Program.  Long story short, I talked  to friends about the program and have learned more in details about the program. As a hospitality student, it means so much to be part of the program. Not only enhance your knowledge, experience and make your resume stands out more.  I have talked to Prof.G ( the one professor who knows all about the program in our major. She is so patient, super nice , which she answered  so many questions that i have ). Ps: Do not forget to make appointment ahead of time. 

Spring/ Spring Advantage Program , Fall/ Fall Advantage Program.

During Spring, you may apply for the Fall/ Fall Advantage Program, and During Fall you may apply for Spring/Spring Advantage Program. The main differences between Regular program vs Advantage is that the Advantage program has extra few months more than the regular program. You may only allow to apply  and submit one application for either spring or fall.  In other words, you may only reapply twice every year, one per season. ( Spring and Fall, then you can choose either the regular program or the advantage program).

You have to apply online—->   http://cp.disneycareers.com/en/default/  Once you open the site, on the right hand  upper corner. you will find a green [ APPLY NOW ]button, click it to begin your application process. After you have submitted your application, Disney recruiters will review your information and send out email whether you will be qualify or not based on the information. Then you will be direct to the next step. Once you got accepted after completed all the required steps. Then its time to talk to Professor G for further plan. Congratulation~~ !

If you didn’t get it the first try, do not  give up, never give up! Keep on trying, reapply !!  I have to apply 3 times till i finally made it to the program.   🙂

So basically, it goes

Apply now ——-Waiting to hear back—————

Email notification regard Qualification for Web Based Interview [ Yes/ NO]

• ( if yes, great! move on to the next step)
• (if no, its okay—Reapply–DON’T GIVE UP)

Phone Interview [Yes/No] once you have passed the web based interview, you will get an email regard schedule date and time for your actual phone interview. You have to pick a date within the certain time period that they have provided. You can only reschedule Once.

• If you pass the phone interview, hang on, you are almost there
• If you did not pass, its okay–Reapply-DON’T GIVE UP)

After you have done the phone interview, MORE WAITING…Trust me, you will be checking your email literally ALL THE TIMES to see if you get accepted or not ! Nerve racking each day, Lol …Just take a deep breath, let it be!  I remember the day when I saw the acceptance email that i was having lunch with a friend. We were eating and talking how come I still haven’t hear anything from Disney yet!  Little that  i know, i have gotten the email like 20 minutes ago. YES, cant believe that I’m going to Disney in AUGUST!!! Dream does come true!!!!!!

Later you will receive more emails.  By the way you have 7 days to decided to accept the offer or not. Then you have little more steps to  go through, until you are officially part of the DCP.

DORM . Pick arrival date. Join different Disney FB Groups Find Roommates/ Go random (optional)…Take your times, read through the instructions carefully. 

No matter you get in the first time or not , Good Luck :)!

Dont give up if you didnt get in the first time!

“If you can dream it, you can do it”.- Walt Disney

 

— Next time, I will be sharing how i found my roommates and much more regard my DCP journey . If you have any questions, feel free to ask and comment below . Don’t hesitate to share your experiences and advises with me, as well.  Thank you! !

-H

 

Learning Chinese is not the easiest things to do because it involves learning different strokes and tones. One particular word with different tones can result in something completely different. Even with same tone,same pinyin that does not mean it will be the same Chinese character.

Luckily, in Chinese, there are only 4 tones, sometimes there is the 5th tone, called silence tone. For example, in pinyin, Wen with first tone, means Warm. Wen with second tone means Smell.Wen with third tone means Kiss. Then Wen with four tone means Ask. Who would of think of a word with different tones can become another new word. In English, there is no such thing as “Tone”, which makes very easy to learn, except grammar. Then in Chinese, there is no grammar to learn, just some simple rules.

In order to write the correct Chinese character , one must memorize all the strokes. In missing one stroke, a character might of turned into something very differently. I believe this is one of the biggest problem for foreigner to learn Chinese. I have asked few non-Chinese speaking  students in my Chinese class, they have agreed these are their major concern in learning Chinese. However, acquire new skill take times and  LOTS PRACTICES. Not only in writing, but practice to say words out loud enable learners to improve their Chinese skills with great result.