Misen en Place

1 Red Bell Pepper, 1/2 Green Bell Pepper, Chopped steak and Mozzerella

Cooking was never my favorite but I loved to bake. Baking introduced me to following a recipe. Too many drops of vanilla or baking soda and the entire batch is trash.

I am reminded of this fact as I create the perfect consistency for a Lemon Pound Cake Glaze. My family’s first attempts milk, but the consistency is too thin. I watch in agony as I yearn for my Chef hat and to take the reins.

Soon the kitchen becomes clear, and the room falls silent and I began to creep in the kitchen, looking for ingredients. Milk was one percent. That will not do. Its lacks in consistency and then my baking research from all those years ago begins to take over. “Sweetend condensed milk should do the trick right?” "A good chef can admit when they need to research the recipe to be correct because baking is a science.

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A fast google attempt proved to be a failed attempt. The wrong ingredient in a time crunch will ruin the entire dish. There was an electric can opener instead of a handheld one. Again, I must become flexible and trust my instincts and go with the age-old remedy: water and a whisk.

You have to trust yourself sometimes. I poured a decent amount of powder sugar and just a few tablespoons of water and began to whisk the mixture.

As it thickens, I squeeze fresh lemon juice, and after more stirring to the desired thickness. I performed the spoon test, where you check to see how the glaze covers the spoon. If it is too thin it will be runny but it if is just right, you will know.

The next step is to taste, the mixture, to make sure it is not too sweet and not under sweet, if is not sweet enough you can add more lemon juice.

It is these moments I have longer for. That you do not get in regular day to day cooking. It is the special occasion baking alongside family, or the dishes made for that special someone.

“Well, what if you are that special someone? Cooking and Baking are an act of kindness to oneself. And thus, should be performed as act of self-care and self-preservation."

 Like a memory that has been forgotten and finally found, I remembered my love of the kitchen. A clean kitchen, with tools aligned, and all the ingredients present. A sense of nostalgia engulfs me as I remember that some of life’s most precious moments involve cooking, baking, and togetherness.

Cooking and I learned to get along during the many attempts to cook rice to the perfect consistency or flip a pancake without breaking it.

I learned to appreciate cooking and began to enjoy it before realizing it was a stereotypical gender role expected of women across several cultures.

Nonetheless, my enthusiasm for cooking landed me in a Culinary Arts Program where I learned:

"Cooking is putting things together and hoping it taste right but Baking is a science"-Chef

This notion and the many Culinary exercises taught me to be more flexible in the kitchen, plating, "Mise en Place", and several cooking principals I still enforce to this day.

Mise en Place is a culinary arts term that was first introduced to me by Culinary Arts Chef Berbigler during my junior year of high school.

Fresh Veggies and Chopped steak

In today's economy, it is important to meal prep and utilize left overs. With extra burgers left over from a previous dinner, I gathered a skillet, a spatula, a Chef Knife, and a cutting board, for a breakfast dish.

The goal was a simple omelette made with Butter, American Cheese, Black Pepper, and Salt with Green Peppers.

Mise en Place

Step One- First, Read or know your recipe, Step two and three, gather ingredients, prep, and measure. Step Four, organize your ingredients.

However, I had to use what was available which was: Olive Oil, Seasoning Salt, Garlic Powder, Four Eggs, Half a Green pepper, Half a Red Pepper, Chopped steak, and Four cheeses.

Following the Mise en Place principals there are five steps to keep in mind.

Step 2- 4 Gather Ingredients, Prep, Measure & Organize

As I allowed the omelet mix with seasoning salt and garlic powder to cook until the bottom started to toast, I engaged in Step five of the Mise en Place process , which is "Clean as You Go". As I did the dishes and cleaned my area, that gave the cheddar cheese time to melt across the omelette on stove level six (6).

Once the cheddar cheese melted, I turned the skillet heat down to three (3) and spread a layer of both Green and Red Bell Peppers, Steak, Mozzarella cheese, sliced American cheese, Cheddar cheese, and seasoning salt with garlic powder across the omelette.

After allowing the cheeses to partially melt, and the steak to reheat, fresh spinach is added to one side of the omelette to allow an easier closure. Lastly, a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and cheddar cheese is dusted and melted on both sides of the omelette.

My Stuffed Pepper and Spinach Four Cheese Omelette turned out a lot larger than expected. I will have to try again to get the exact size and look I am aiming for. I recommend using cheese that you already have and use regularly as cheese is expensive (although mozzarella melts the best for me).

In the mean time, my good friend El Concinero, and I will be reminiscing, and refreshing our culinary arts techniques in the Miami Valley Career Technology Centers new commercial culinary lab, now called 68 Hundred Bistro.

The Culinary Café is a major staple of the Englewood and Clayton community. It exposes students to an abundance of opportunities throughout its curriculum , and has diversified the pallets of it's alumni, thus enhancing the experience of life through cuisine for generations to come.

The Bistro's first day of operation was March 20th, however, the Commis Chef's (Junior Chefs) only received a taste of the hustle and bustle of the kitchen due to its restriction of staff only.

The first day of operation open to both staff and the public to dine in and/or carry out will be announced this upcoming fall.

Presentation

Stuffed Bell Pepper, Steak, and Spinach Four Cheese Omelette