Existential questions

You know what the difference (perhaps I should say "a" difference) is between the last institution of higher education in which I was enrolled and this one?

There, we'd spend hours, days, weeks debating philosophical questions, like which came first, the chicken or the egg.

Here, we just learn to cook 'em both on the same day.

(I thought this was really quite witty yesterday. Today I'm not so sure...)

Chef Bruno taught us how to make an amazing caramelized onion omelet that I can't wait to teach my dad. Dad has spent quite some time perfecting his omelet technique, and he's got it down to a science ... but I learned a couple of new tips that made this omelet truly delicious. (Hint: They involve butter and creme fraiche. Right. Of course they do.)


He also taught us how to make poulet roti et son jus (roast chicken au jus), served with artichokes topped with vegetables jardiniere. Now, roast chicken is one of my favorite things to eat, a real comfort food, so I was excited to get to give it a try today. My favorite thing I learned today, since roasting a chicken really isn't terribly complicated, is that with a good knife, I too can carve a chicken. It was even easier to carve than my poached chicken from week one!

I also learned that, even more than turning potatoes, I'm not a big fan of turning artichokes. I have a feeling we're going to be turning vegetables a lot from now on. Guess I'd better sharpen my knives.


Oops. An errant green bean.

Cooking chicken on a Friday morning was perfect, though, because it meant that this was my Shabbat dinner:


Almost as good as Mom's!! (Who am I kidding? Pretty much just as good as Mom's!!)