Cooking - Round 2

And now serving …again…

Did I ever mention that I love to cook? I love it so much that it gives me a good feeling to see the happy faces enjoying the food I prepared for them …because I make everything with “love” in mind (that’s what my case manager told me after sampling my enchiadas).

Just turned 46 on Tuesday …so what better way to celebrate it by cooking a special dinner for everyone! In a way, it was my birthday gift back to my friends …mothers with children …single men, et al. And the dinner of choice – my famous enchiladas with Spanish rice!

This was a tougher challenge than making lasagna …rolling tortillas shells with meat mixture isn’t easy (even burned myself a little on the arm – first battle wound!) …especially with people watching and waiting for more enchiladas. They loved the smell and vibrant flavors that burst through the meat …loved the spiciness in the cheese sauce. I have requests for personal pans of enchiladas from a couple of men.

Like the last time, people LOVED it!

It was exciting and something new for them to try …didn’t even make them spicy like I usually make it if I had my own place. They wanted more …and more …and more …some came down for seconds (that’s when I ran out of enchiladas to serve). In the end, my feet were seriously hurting …arms were hurting from carrying heavy pans and boy, did I smell like onions and garlic – again.

It’s amazing how my cooking sparked lively conversations amongst the residents …compliments from the kitchen and staff (they want me to make enchiladas every night!) …kids were finally eating something they could enjoy. In other words, my gift made everyone feel special as if it was their birthday.

PLUS – there NO chicken on the menu for dinner! I think that’s what made everyone happy.

Luckily, I saved the last two enchiladas (I didn’t eat before dinner service began because I wanted people to eat and enjoy my cooking …it’s something I do when cooking – always serving myself last).

Now, I have the difficult task of coming up with something to cook in two weeks. I’m torn between making meatloaf (if I do that, I would have to kick out the entire kitchen …can’t give away my secret recipe!) or something for the kids in mind …like pizza – pepperoni pizza in fact. I’m leaning towards the pizza because I want the kids to have a fun meal to eat since shelter meals aren’t really designed with them in mind.

*smiles*

Oh yeah …starting Monday, I shall embark on obtaining my food sanitation license here at ASHF …soon you can call me “chef” …but cook is just fine. Not into fancy titles …cooking to me is about passion …making people happy and feel loved.

Who knows – maybe one day, you might be a guest at my restaurant …already have a name for it – it’s quite simple with four little letters…

In the kitchen again!

Now, serving for lunch….

What an amazing feat! 

Cooking not for one or two …but for hundreds within a 3 hour time frame!

On Friday, I finally had my chance to cook at the shelter making my famous lasagna. First, I would like to recap what happened before telling you the result and reaction from the shelter residents.

First of all, I was nervous. I have cooked for family and friends – Thanksgiving/Christmas turkey (thanks to Julia Child for the tip on how to get a moist turkey breast) but never for an entire set of strangers who may or not like my cooking. I even woke up two hours early before the alarm went off. That’s how nervous I was. Then too, I was excited. Excited about FINALLY being able to cook in a kitchen. It felt GREAT! To chop and dice real veggies, herbs and spices for this special meal …and even though Skyler didn’t have all of the ingredients for this amazing dish …Edam was a good substitution for mozzarella cheese and the ground beef worked wonderful as the Italian sausage replacement.

Boy, did I ever work my arse off! 

If I was making lasagna for family and friends, I would take my time with the sauce …perfecting it until ready to ladle over the noodles and cheese mixture. Not enough time for that – I had to get everything ready before lunch started …11a! What a challenge …and if you know me really well – then you know I love a good challenge. My goal was to make at least 6 (2 inch) pans of lasagna. Yeah, it did seem daunting at first but I rose to the challenge, folks. I first tackled the process of chopping and dicing my mushrooms, green peppers, onions, and garlic for the sauce since that would take the longest of time to complete. I had until 9a to do that.

No problem!

Next, I had to get my cheese mixture which contained the Ricotta and Edam cheeses as well as the variety of herbs and seasonings like Thyme, Oregano, Parsley, and Basil. Yep, I had that kitchen smelling like my old apartment for about two hours while I had another cook stir and simmer my sauce (though it did need a little more salt and some dried spices in it). Even had the kitchen workers wanting to taste my lasagna before it was done. Told you, I add I special hidden ingredient when cooking – that ingredient is “love”. I love to cook for others. It puts a smile on my face …warms my heart to see people enjoying what I cook for them. It was soon crunch time …had only an hour to get the first pan in the oven …no problem but since the uncooked noodles would take an hour to bake, I had to switch up my recipe for the cooked noodles. I don’t like using cooked noodles but as mentioned – lunch was to start in one hour and I didn’t have enough time now.

The end result – 3 or so good pans of lasagna to serve …plus 3 others with spinach, noodles and sauce only – ran out of ricotta cheese making lunch. Yes, it was an amazing feat to accomplish in such little time…

The reaction? 

Well, I didn't "kill" anyone ...LOL

I did receive a lot of positive feedback not only from the kitchen but from the residents. Those three pans of lasagna went fast! If you weren’t down for lunch early …you certainly missed out on a great meal (though they did have other lasagna choices besides mine – a chicken one with white sauce and a “no meat” one). I stood in the kitchen after getting my daughter served her plate and watched the residents blindly picking my lasagna (others I knew – I told them which one was mine) over the other choices. Yeah, I was beaming inside again. It felt good to have that feeling. The kitchen staff meanwhile were raving how people were enjoying the food …asking me when I’m cooking again …the residents were totally raving about my lasagna. Some said I “put my foot” into it …meaning I kicked ass in the kitchen …they loved tasting “real” food again …reminded them of home and eating real food. Others thanked me …someone told she had to take a nap because it was that good. And here I was freaking out because it would turn out so well.

The reviews are still pouring in as people discover it was me who made lunch on Friday as well as the sad disappointments from those who missed my debut in the kitchen. Even have some of the staff and case managers wondering when I'm cooking again.

What’s next?

Well, I’m returning to the kitchen again on my birthday (April 21) to make not one but hopefully two meals for the residents …I have this taste for some Mexican food …and you guessed it – my enchiladas and chicken fajitas with Spanish rice. I already have my shopping list to give to the kitchen again. I’m also deciding whether this should be a permanent thing or not along with deciding if I should enroll the culinary arts program here at ASHF.

I do love to cook but never thought about making a profession out of it.

Maybe I should …and be the next "Julia Child"…