The Final Test: This Is IT

DISCLAIMER: Today was the only day there were no pictures. I hope my words can paint a vivid image of my experience and my nerves… Enjoy!

Seven weeks went by so fast.

Chopping, slicing, dicing, simmering, tasting, laughing, smelling… all of that culminated into one final showdown. The Final Practical.

Homework quizzes have been done and graded. Whatever you got on that was what you got, what you didn't finish was a plain zero. The end arrived. You either studied or you didn't. You either got those knife cuts and the smell of Old Bay down to a T or you didn't. You either passed this exam or you didn't get into the Culinary Arts Program. If this is scaring even you, imagine how the class felt.

I walked in twenty minutes early. L was already there and we went around smelling spices and checking out large equipment. Surprise! Some spices were those we have never heard of. We scrambled to figure out what it was and what it smelled like before we had to return to the demo kitchen. Once Chef Gabriel and Loving arrived, everything was put away. At that point, it was time to prove our worthiness.

We set up our station first. Mise en place. Then we sat back in the demo kitchen and began our written exam.

What is a demi-glace? I know that it's half veal stock and half espagnole reduced. While taking the written exam, I completely forgot. What are the five grading criteria for stock? Clarity, Flavor, Body, Aroma and… No fat? That is what I marked. The last answer was color.

Once I turned that exam in, that was it. I couldn't dwell on it. Either I passed or I didn't. Don't worry, the other millions of questions I was sure I answered correctly, but I am not without mistakes.

Knife cut time. This was the most nerve-wracking. I barely finished last time and that was a few cuts. Here were the cuts we were given:

Medium and large dice of potato

Batonnet of potato.

Small and julienne of carrot

Short julienne of onion

Roast a pepper, slice it, deseed it

Chop parsley

Mince garlic

Perform two of tomato concassé

Perform oblique cut of carrot

Perform weird cut of carrot we don't remember learning

All this in 1 hour 15 minutes.

Ready…. Set… GO!

I have been more scared in my life, but most scares are artificial. This was real. I nicked myself with my knife and kept going. I peeled, diced, julienned, evened out… but soon there was only five minutes left.

I still had to chop garlic, do my tomato concasse, perform the last two carrot cuts, chop parsley, and julienne onion.

I julienned the onion. I minced the garlic. I started the parsley with thirty seconds to go because at least I could have SOMETHING.

11:15 came. I threw my hands up in exasperation… 11:15 went… the buzzer didn't stop.

1 hour and 15 minutes meant 11:30… not 11:15.

Chef Loving came over and calmed me down. He let me know I still had 15 minutes. It was the scariest thirty seconds of that day, but with relief, tears poured out of my eyes. I let out a humorless chuckle as he placed a hand on my should. It wasn't the time for a meltdown. He said now wasn't the time to mess up, helped me figure out what to clean up, and said to keep going. I did. I finished my cuts. My parsley was not perfect, but I finished with time to clean my station.

They scored in front of us. Each cut was out of five (the tomatoes and extra carrot cuts were not on there) I got 5/5 on both the medium cut of potato and the batonnet, 4/5 on all of the other cuts, but a 3/5 on the parsley because it was rough. I didn't care… that was an awesome score to me!

Next we warmed our stock from the week prior and let the chefs taste it.

5/5 Taste and Body, 4/5 Aroma, Color, and Clarity. PASSED.

We made a roux with clarified butter and flour. I used half of my stock and a little roux to start my Velouté. It immediately started to reduce when I suddenly got an idea. My girls around me had a thicker sauce, but L said you can't base anything off of anyone else's because they might be wrong. I added more stock and put in more roux so that it looked like Velouté instead of adding roux little by little until it simmered into a Velouté look. With that method, my sauce stopped reducing. It sloshed around, it had good nappé (coating consistency), so I place it in a little cup and waited.

M- too thick, L- too thick, A- too thick… mine?

"Not bad!" he goes. I sighed in contentment. This was happening. I was passing.

After the clean up, it was time for the Identifications. We were split into two groups. I was ready. I knew most of the items, so instead of wasting time, I went as fast as possible. My group started with small equipment. I waltzed around the room, writing down everything I knew, guessing what I didn't (only two pots looking things and I think my guess was pretty good). After that, I sat in a small area and wrote down the uses. I did the same for Large Equipment.

Imagine walking around a room and seeing the things you either used at home or have used while working on campus in a cafeteria. You have to treat this like this is what you want to do. It's not 'studying', it's knowing what you're using. That has to be your mindset in this program. You can't 'memorize' that this is a buffalo chopper and you can use it for chopping carrots. You need to know first hand in the back of your mind- I want to chop my carrots or mince my garlic quickly- I'm getting out the Buffalo Chopper. It soon becomes second nature.

The herbs and spices were my favorite. It was challenging, but I ran around the room inhaling and tasting spices. That can't be paprika because it's burning my tongue something awful… it must be cayenne! Mace smells like nutmeg, ground mustard tastes like crap! This sage stuff is what I can use to make stuffing! For the herbs, I broke those leafs apart and inhaled. That saved me so much because the basil and the mint looked alike. I broke it open- one smelled of Italy, the other like fresh chewed gum. What would I use this mint for?? CRAP! Oh… I can make Mint Julep!

That's how it went. No lunch break, no bathroom break, nothing from 8am-3pm. I finished that and turned in all of my papers. I didn't get to say goodbye to anyone, but I knew it wasn't good bye… it was see you when we're in the program, crying on each other's shoulders.

I stepped outside and there was my future hubby, in the same clothes I left him in, but well-rested and looking like love and promise. I was exhausted, I was shaken, I was almost defeated, but I smiled at him. First thing I say? "I need a drink!"

Bahama Breeze, Top Shelf Long Island Iced Tea… thanks.