Voila - delicious!

Level six has officially begun and the station I am working at is called Saucier. Don't you love that name - it sounds so sexy and fun! Believe me its not. It's hot and dangerous! Damn...that sounds kind of naughty too. What I mean to say is this is a busy, nerve racking station where we grill the hangar steak and sauté the pheasants. The pans are smoking hot with sputtering oil and the oven is set cranked up to 500 scorching degrees, dangerous for someone who is less than graceful, which is me. Last Tuesday night I managed to escape with only a few burnt fingertips. I love the plates though so I thought I'd share them with you - please see pictures taken from my trusty mobile phone.

The hangar steak comes with a delicious decadent bordelaise sauce accompanied by a brussel sprout slaw and pommes dauphines. The pommes (potato) dish taste like fancy pants tater tots, for those of you who grew up with them. They are the same shape and have a crisp salty crust with a creamy, fluffy center. I could eat 100 of them, especially right out of the deep fry. I make eight per dish. As you can see from the picture five make it on the plate. Trust me, the other three didn’t just roll off the counter...

The other dish is sautéed pheasant with a delicious mousseline under the skin, and a parsnip puree. If you like to sneak a bite of skin off the turkey on Thanksgiving day while people tell you that's disgusting and unhealthy for you, the pheasant will be right up your alley. That skin is divine.

These will be two of the dishes that we might have to prepare for our final exam next month. But the thought of that final gives me a stomach ache…so for now, I’ll just not think about it. Instead, I’ll just enjoy the dishes for what they are, mouth-watering and delicious.