Diff'rent strokes

Hi All,

It's been quite a while since I last posted. Thanks for the continued interest if you are a returning reader. Welcome if you are new. Things have been pretty busy since I returned from Mexico, so I haven't really found the time/energy to write a new post. Now that I have some downtime, here goes.

I finally tried the new Häagen Dazs flavor, Caremelized Pear and Toasted Pecan a two weeks ago. I have to admit, I was really disappointed. Nothing personal, Leslie, but as the title suggest, everyone has their own taste. In my case, I found the product too sweet, the pear flavor too intense, the pear bits too large, and the pecans indistinguishable from walnuts. Admittedly, I don't have the most refined palate, but it is what it is. I think Häagen Dazs should have gone with other elements of Leslie's original two versions submitted. Unfortunately, I didn't write down what those were. I think one version had the pecans toasted more, perhaps even candied a bit (I'm thinking the Chinese[-American] dish walnut prawns).

I have to say, though, the ice cream tasted better the next day. I have two explanations for this. One: the temperature of the ice cream was colder, so the flavors were more subdued -- less sweet, less intense pear. The first time I tried it, I had just bought it that day. However, I cooked dinner before hand, so it must have had time to cool back down, and I live less than five minutes away from the grocery store, walking (I picked up groceries on my way home from work that day, driving, so even less time freezert-to-freezer). Two: my expectations were diminished from my previous day's disappointment. And maybe Three: perhaps what I ate for dinner the first night didn't pair well with the ice cream. If I remember, I had a steak with caramelized onions and blue lake beans the first night (good thing I still have my receipt). That second night, I had a burrito from La Cascada before watching the Cal women's volleyball team play UCLA. I don't think I had the ice cream until at least an hour later, either before my basketball game or after. If after, then that might also explain why it tasted better.

In any case, I'm not sure I'd buy it again. I'm a little biased with Coco y Cacao, but I think I'd buy it again. Whether it would have become one of my favorites or not, I don't know.

Bakersfield, Day Two - Part One

Woke up bright (ok, not so bright) and early on Thursday. Nervous? Nah -- I only woke up before my alarm. Like that ever happens. Then forgot my chef's jacket on my way to the lobby. And, forgot my recipe. Couldn't believe I forgot that. Had a momentary feeling of panic, but then I realized a) I knew most of the recipes by heart b) I had a crack team of food scientists and expert chefs behind me -- what did I have to worry about?

After breakfast, we headed up for a brief "orientation" and our first opportunity to meet the chefs. They (Floyd Cardoz, Nancy Silverton, and Jacques Torres) were already seated when we arrived. As they were at the front table, with their backs towards us, it wasn't very conducive to introductions. We were escorted to our seats, to the left of the chefs; Chrissy to my left, Leslie to my right, then Jacques, Floyd, and Nancy. Jacques broke the ice by introducing himself, but before we could finish, the orientation began.

After orientation, we broke out into our teams and headed to the test kitchens; Bonnie and I were teamed with Denise and Mandeep in Kitchen #1. This is not your typical kitchen - it almost felt like I was back in my lab in Berkeley, except I had to be even cleaner (we had to don hair nets, lab coats or chefs jackets, and gloves). I felt right at home in the lab/kitchen -- this was the moment I'd been waiting for. No problem putting on my nitrile gloves. Hey, there's a water bath in here too. And a scale. Oh, and the Kitchen Aid mixer, but too bad it was red (ssssssss!, Go Bears!).

Part Two tomorrow...