10 Things That Delighted Me During My First Culinary Course

                Last time I told you about the 10 Things That Irritated Me During My First CulinaryCourse. I didn't want to unbalance the system by showing all the negatives, so here is a list of the positives! And believe me; these alone make it worth it.

               

1. I learned a lot about knife cuts.

   This may not seem like such a big deal, but before, I just randomly chopped things up, impressing everyone with my speed. I never truly 'diced' things… more like cut into weird little bobbles. I thought dicing celery was just chopping it down its length and chopping a carrot was making half-moons and cutting that in half. Herbs were a little rough, garlic wasn't fine… I look back like damn, what was going on? Now, I take my time and I've gotten faster with perfecting perfect squares. I'm a little obsessed with making them exact squares as well. I can almost tell the difference between small, medium, and large dice as well, which is probably one of the hardest things. Another great thing is that I now know how to have less waste!

                               

2. I have committed basic things to memory through practice.

     I have a really poor memory- that's no secret. One of my worst fears in school is that even though I have get a degree, I will forget everything, so I'll be worthless in my field. How could I commit a ton of basic recipes to memory? With this class, there's no way I will forget how to make white stock, roux, or Velouté sauce. I know the percentages of mirepoix, a bouquet garni, and a sachet. I was amazed how easy it was to commit these things to second nature and I'm so glad that is happening. Now I'm hoping to get that with my baking!

                               

3. Good people.

     The entire class was one big family. Even the nut-jobs and the annoying people were part of our special group. I could talk to anyone and ask them a question, we could all laugh as a group, we all chatted about our exams after we took them, we all rolled our eyes at the same things… we had a good bunch! I really thought everyone would clique up and leave me out of everything, but it was completely the opposite! Which brings me to my next point…

                               

4. I thought I would be the old outcast, but everyone was of a different background and had different stories.

   I thought it would be typical. I would be the chunky black female that's too old to be starting an introductory culinary program while everyone else was perfect, skinny, white, high school graduates who had the best chef knifes, had to pin their jackets to fit their small torsos, and practiced every technique in the book through their high school vocational courses. I thought no one would talk to me, and I would just keep to myself the whole semester. Boy was I wrong! In the group of girls I told you about alone, two were lesbians (one black with a wife and two kids and one a white high school graduate), and one was a mixed girl. The class was sprinkled with different races and backgrounds. Some were old enough to maybe be my father. No one was stuck up and everyone had the attitude that they wanted to learn. Except for those who dropped out… that was cray cray. Anyway, I appreciate diversity and acceptance in a school, especially when Wikipedia will tell you that Livonia is the whitest city in America.

                               

5. Great, caring chefs.

    Each chef may have had their unique personalities, and each chef might have been a little tough, but you could tell instantly that they cared about every one of us. There was nothing that indicated that they didn't love to teach. Each conversation and lesson was given with warmth and tough love.

                               

6. The beautiful and unique facility.

     The reputation of Schoolcraft College's Culinary Arts program precedes itself. I've only heard about good things and success stories (one baker going on to work with a Food Network chef, another becoming  a personal chef for Lady Gaga) and I plan to be one of them. One of the things they don't talk about enough is how awesome and state-of-the-art the facility is. The VistaTech center is huge and beautiful. The various culinary kitchens have almost everything you need, and everything is curated specifically for that purpose. I still love that we obtained that panning machine! The school is proud of and cares about the culinary program for sure, and that makes everything an even higher quality.

                               

7. I felt like people were in awe of me in my uniform.

    I've worn a chef coat before. In fact, I get compliments because the stark white looks nice against my brown skin. However, when I wore one for MSU, it was obvious to everyone I just worked as a student cook in the cafeteria. When I walk around after a day at Schoolcraft in my white chef coat, white toque, and lame checkered pants, people stare and ask questions. I like to browse in the produce section of the grocery store so it can look like I'm about to cook something from scratch. It's like I get an instant professional upgrade!

                               

8. I learned about various herbs and spices I would have never used before.

   For our herbs and spices identification as you may recall, we needed to know what certain herbs looked like, smelled like, tasted like, and what it was used for. I've never heard of savory and mace, and I never thought to ever want to use coriander or fennel seeds. Now, when I shop at the store, I want to include new spices to add more dimension to my cooking.

                               

9. I am now the go-to person for everything culinary.

    Ok, this is sort of a win-lose type of thing. I mean, I took one freaking class and people are acting like I'm a Master Chef! Now my family and some of my friends already ask me things because I always knew a little more about cooking, but some people go over the edge! I can't make any accidents or people will be like 'I thought you were in culinary school!' it drives me crazy! However, I do enjoy it when people are interested in my opinion and my techniques. I like when people go for my things  first at work because they know I'm an aspiring chef, or when people request me to make things. My joy comes when people love my food and brag about me. It's embarrassing, but my boyfriend brags about me all the time to his family and friends and he has even told me I'm his inspiration and he admires me. My mom does the same, and random Facebook people will message me asking about something to do with cooking or a recipe. I will never get tired of that.

                               

10. I actually enjoyed school and learning.

      I have always hated school. Now I know it's necessary and I've always worked hard to get good grades but I just want it to be over with! Especially an 8 am class! With this course, I looked forward to spending my entire Saturday in class. It didn't feel like the usual learning. It was so engaging and informative that I couldn't wait until the next class. I had zero problems studying and reading the book because it was interesting. I didn't have that even in some of my fashion and interior design courses which I loved. This is probably the hardest I have every worked in a college course and came out smiling.

So these are some pretty positive things and if you are thinking about going to culinary school, you should start thinking about what is important to you in a classroom setting. You're going to be spending hours at that place! Make sure your dedication lines up with the requirements of any program you are going into. Everything is not going to be easy, but if you really want it and you work hard, you will succeed!