Over
the last eight weeks I’ve taken a class at Ivy Tech Community College, called Pantry & Breakfast, that is
held Monday and Wednesday from 7:00-11:50 am. As it was only eight weeks long,
I just finished that class (and another eight week class, Nutrition) last week,
right before spring break. I’ll miss that class quite a bit, but not too much.
What to know why? I have the same teacher, the same classmates, and the same
timeslot for the next eight weeks for a class called Soups, Stocks, and Sauces. I don’t feel like the class is really over, which is great, because that
Pantry & Breakfast was the most awesome class ever! Let me elaborate.
For
starters, I have a wonderful teacher. She’s so encouraging and fun and
knowledgeable that she makes the class fly by. I’ve been inspired again and
again by her, in my love for food and cooking, and also just embracing life and
being myself in general. She also makes each of us start out the morning with a
fun activity when we are MOD (manager of the day), and we’ve done some pretty
fun stuff! After morning coffee, (which is one of the primary responsibilities
of the MOD), we’ve hula-hooped in the dark with flashing hoops, playing many
card, board, and trivia games and participated in a spice-smelling game where a
member of each team is blindfolded and has to identify the spice or herb under
their nose. We’ve also played a little soccer and for our last class, we
indulged our MOD with a few rounds of Duck, Duck, Goose. Oh, and then there was
my personal favorite-Musical Chairs! I won that game, and I’m very proud of
that fact. No one can take that from me, not matter what happens later in life.
After games, we’d all sit for our short lecture and then head into the kitchens
to cook up eggs or sandwiches. Once done, we’d lay out our feast, eat and
socialize, clean up, and then head home or to another class.
The
last two weeks of class were really busy! On the seventh week, we prepped on
Monday for our short-order breakfast that would be help between 8:30 and 9:30 on
Wednesday, as well as making cold canapes for that class period. When Wednesday
came around, and the people from the school began to show up and order their
food, I got a little taste of what it’s like to work in a very fast food
setting! I was in charge of making the Eggs Benedict, and I’d never done that
before-I’ve fried lots of eggs but I’ve never poached them, and I also hadn’t
ever made hollandaise sauce! After a demo by my teacher, I struggled through
the first three or four sandwiches before I hit a rhythm and started operating
smoothly and easily. When the breakfast was over, I got quite a bit of great
feedback on my Eggs Benedict, which made me super happy!
For
the eighth week, our class prepped on Monday again, this time for a full
breakfast buffet, held on Wednesday at the same times. We also made hot
canapes. Then Wednesday rolled around, and this time I wasn’t in the kitchen: I
had my own omelet station to man out by the buffet! I didn’t think I could flip
an omelet in a pan, as it’s much bigger than an egg, but I found to my surprise
that I could indeed flip a whole omelet! I ran the station pretty steadily,
heating up the omelet ingredients that the visitor wanted in one pan while I made
an American-style omelet in another pan. It was a great experience to juggle
cooking with speaking to visitors and trying to keep them occupied with small
talk while their breakfast cooked.
So,
that’s the end of the
eight-week-currently-most-awesome-class-I’ve-ever-attended. I look forward very
much to the next eight weeks, and what they hold! I’ll give another update in
May as to my culinary college experience.
