Month: November 2019

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REFLECTION…

For this lab we had to create our own risotto from scratch as a group. This was exciting because I’ve never had a risotto before but I’ve definitely heard of it so i was pretty eager to try it.

The methods involved in creating this recipe were knife skills which we used to prepare the veggies going into the risotto, saute where we had to all choose one veggie that we would saute to be added into the risotto later on in the recipe, Rice cookery was for cooking the rice where we would slowly add broth to the rice little by little so the rice could absorb it which can help with the overall flavour of the dish, finally we used the one pan dish method which meant that the whole risotto would be made in a single pot or in our case a large cast iron pan.

What went well for me was communication with my group, we all did a pretty good job doing that, our final product also turned out pretty well, and finally we finished the risotto in pretty good time.

What i need to work on in the future is my organization skills when preparing for a recipe, I was kind of confused in the start trying to figure out how much water we needed to put in the pot and other small things like that. I also need to work on taking a little more responsibility in the kitchen like helping with adding the water to the rice for example.

Overall i was really proud of how the risotto turned out, the rice was slightly under cooked but it still tasted really good either way. I would love to make this again and hopefully next time i’ll completely cook the rice, i would probably make this for my family because they like risotto’s and i would love to show them how I’ve been in the class so far.

For these reasons i would give myself 4.5/5 stars on this recipe.

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REFLECTION…

For this special lab, every group had to find two appetizers that we had to make over three days and then we would present it for teachers and students to come and try. For me and my group we decided to make some mini taco cups and some spinach artichoke dip with some bread on the side.

What went well for me was my ability to follow the recipe, and i feel i did a good job communicating with my group if i needed help with anything my group was there to lend a hand, I did the same when they needed it too. I also think our time management skills were pretty good throughout the lab and we made good time when we were at our last few minutes putting the final touches on our recipes before we had to present them to our peers. I was also happy with how they turned out in the end.

I think next time i need to work on my confidence a little bit more and to not ask much questions and just follow my instincts more, i also need to work on figuring out what spices go well with what because I had a harder time picking out what were the right spices to use to help season the ground beef and to use for the taco seasoning.

Overall I was really happy with how they both turned out and I would definitely make them again because sadly i didn’t get to try the taco cups because everyone else got there before me. I would eat these with my family because i believe that they would enjoy it a lot.

For these reasons i decided to give the lab 5/5 stars

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REFLECTION…

For this lab we had to create our very own pasta without a recipe, we had to choose our own pasta noodles, veggies, meat, cheese dairy and sauce as well. me and my partner chose to use spaghetti noodles and we mushrooms, tomato’s and a couple other things for our veggies and finally we decided to make a cheese sauce to go with it.

What went well for me was the communication skills with my partner, and i believe that we did a good job preparing the sauce and the noodles, which turned out pretty well. Finally i think the final product turned out really well.

Next time i think I need to work on my time management skills and for trying to pick the right spices to add to the soup, i didn’t choose these ones but it ended up being pretty spicy so i hope to learn about what spices can be used to defuse the intense taste a little bit.

Overall i was pretty happy with how it turned out and it tasted pretty good but next time i would change the spices used in the pasta because it was a little to spicy for me but besides that it was just the way i wanted it.

I would definitely make it again, but next time i would change the spices, but overall that’s the only thing i would change. I would have eaten this meal with my parents because my mom makes pasta for dinner sometimes, so it would be cool to show her the kind of pasta that I’m able to make.

For these reasons i would give this lab 5/5 stars

REFLECTION…

For this lab we had to design our very own Buddha Bowls, we had to choose our own protein, greens, veggies, seeds and garnish to go on top. Some of the requirements necessary for this lab included different colours, knife cuts, textures, flavours and at least one roasted veggie of our choosing which i decided to go with cucumbers. The important idea for this lab was presentation, because when we had to assemble it at the end we had to try and make it look good because that’s an important skill to know in the cooking industry and can really help you become a better chef.

What went well for me was my final product and presentation, I believe i did a good job with my knife skills too due to all the different veggies i had to dice, small dice, slice and mince as well.

Next time I feel I need to work on my time management skills and to try and be more confident while in the kitchen.

Overall, i was pretty proud with how everything turned out and i would love to make it again because you can add whatever you want to it and add your own spin on it. I would eat this with my grandparents because they haven’t heard of a Buddha Bowl before so i would love to show them how fun and easy it is to make it and how good it is as well.

With the following reasons i would give this lab 4.5/5

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REFLECTION…

For this special Halloween lab we had to find two Halloween themed desserts or meals, which we would make and at the end we would display for teachers and students to come in and enjoy what we have created over the two days. For me and my group we decided to go with peanut butter monster cookies with reese’s pieces and candy eyes to represent monsters on top, and we also decided to go with some pizza rolls where we would put olives on top as eyes to try and make it follow the theme a bit.

What went well for me was the communication between our group for both the recipes, i also think i did a pretty good job following the recipes and improvising on them when there were obstacles in our way.

I think i need to work on my time management skills a little bit and i think that i need to work on my confidence and also improving on my leadership skills in the kitchen.

Overall i was pretty proud with the final product, but i wish they could have turned out more the way i wanted them too. Sadly i didn’t get to try the pizza rolls so i couldn’t get the best representation of how they looked and tasted but i heard all good things from my peers so that’s a win in my books.

I would share these delicious meals with my family because i believe they would enjoy what me and my group made and i would like to show them how I’ve been doing so far in the class.

For these reasons i would give both recipes a 4/5

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REFLECTION…

For this lab we had to create our very own chicken salad sandwich recipe with a filling to go inside. I decided to go with shredded chicken for my protein and I went with a variety of different veggies like lettuce, carrots, red and yellow peppers as well. We also had to choose some different spices that would be chosen specifically for our chicken to help give it some extra flavour, the spices I went with were Cumin, paprika, 1 bay leaf, poultry seasoning, red pepper flakes and some salt and pepper.

What went well for me was cooking the chicken which was pretty new for me because I haven’t really practised cooking with meat before but I was pretty happy with how it came out, I also think my knife skills also improved a bit due to having to cut up all the different veggies that I had picked out before hand. Finally I believe the final product came out mostly the way I hoped it would, it was creamy, crunchy and was packed with flavour.

I think next time I need to work on being a little faster getting the recipes done, I also believe I can improve on my confidence a little bit and try to follow my instincts a bit more, I will try and improve on these skills because with these skills mastered it will help me become a better chef in the future.

Overall, I was very happy with how the dish turned out and I would definitely make it again in the future, I would also share it with my family because I would like to show them some of the amazing things I’m making throughout this course.

For these reasons I would give the recipe a 4.5/5