Chicago Food Managers Club at Eli's Cheesecake Plant

The Chicago Food Managers Club held it's annual benefit and awards night Friday February 29 at the Eli's Cheesecake Factory in Chicago. Proceeds from the event benefited the Chicago Food Depository.

Several students from area culinary schools were awarded scholarships and gifts from industry sponsors. Two of our students, Christine Smith, Baking and Patisserie, and Missy Ewing, Culinary, were honored that night. Christine, prepared a Chocolate station, creating hand made truffles and bon bons with cold infused fillings, and also a chocolate fondue with humongous fresh strawberries and the sweetest Hawaiian pineapples around. Missy, hand-ground some curry spices for her coconut curry Contessa shrimp and the Spanish tapas-inspired Garlic shrimp on pesto drizzled La Brea bread. The aroma from the garlic shrimp and curry permeated the Eli's plant and everybody made a beeline for the CHIC tables. Chef John's and Christine's floral display added to the success of the night.

LCB Chef Jerome Druart and Plated Desserts

Visiting Chef Jerome Druart of Ottawa spent time with the Baking and Patisserie Department to play with plated desserts. Chef Jerome demoed a pastry cream based white chocolate mousse with a raspberry gellie insert on a pistachio dacquoise. He then glaced it with a white chocolate glacage. We practiced on garnishes and piping.

2007 World Pastry Forum: Nashville Tennessee

Chef Nancy and I attended this year's World Pastry Forum at the Gaylord Opry Resort and Convention Center. It was great to see and rub elbows with the pastry world's best of the best. Giving demos this year were our very own Chef Christian Faure, Anil Rohira, Donald Wressel, Tony Liu of HongKong, John Kraus, Kegan Gerhard, Ciril Hitz, Chef kijima of Japan, Nicholas Lodge and Ewald Notter

It was great learning new techniques in sugar and chocolate. It was interesting to see the "war faces" of the competitors in this year's National Pastry Championship. The evening lecture series on anything you want to know about joining a competition was an eyeopener. If you see us around, ask us how to get started in competition. Most of all, I actually feel good that my students can do this competition. Seeing those bons bons and plated desserts, in my mind, my students do really well. Just imagine, some of these teams have been practicing for almost a year, some once a week, others more. Some have been practising for months everyday. All of them got sponsorship money to buy tools, equipment and miscellanoeus expenses. A team practised in a simulated kitchen.

What was the best part? Hanging out with the chefs. Chef Christian. Inbar. Chef Stephane Glacier. Chef Stephane Iten. Attending the sponsors dinner. Listening to Nashville musicians. All the bands in the area were pretty good. Seeing the gardens, the waterfalls.

What was the worst part. Sleazy forum attendees. Gaylord Reservations. When I booked the room reseravations, I specifically asked for 2 double beds. When we got there, we got one King bed. We called immediately and were told they do not guarantee room requests. Long story short, we finally got 2 double beds by Day 3, and they lost our bags. I waited til 2:00 am for them to deliver the bags to our room.

Flowers in my garden