These days modern cooking techniques include turning carrots into foam and squeeze bottles are filled with hydrogenized fluids rather than familiar red wine or a plain tomato coulis. But on Saturday evening 17 ambitious foodies traveled back in time and came together to celebrate the remembrance of things past at ICE鈥檚 Car锚me and the Grand Art of French Cooking in the 19th Century recreational class.
Chef Cathy Kaufman, ICE鈥檚 resident food historian, didn鈥檛 miss a beat introducing us to life in 1800s France. Ushered in with background music appropriate to the era, Chef Cathy launched the evening with a succinct and informative presentation explaining the man of the hour, Antonin Car锚me, the foremost practitioner of the art of classic French cuisine in his day. She guided us through Car锚me鈥檚 wildly lavish and obsessively aesthetic recipes. A glimpse at Car锚me鈥檚 actual illustrations for his trademark over-the-top culinary and pastry preparations set the stage for the task ahead.
However daunting the menu appeared, the promise for an elegant sit-down dinner with wine and the Car锚me-based desserts prepared under the skilled eye of Chef Kathryn Gordon鈥檚 Impressive Historic Desserts class across the hall, fueled students for the task ahead. The menu included dishes such as Ragout de Quenelles de Volaille aux Petits Pois (Chicken Quenelles with Baby Peas), Dindonneau 脿 l鈥橝fricaine, Grosse Piece d鈥橦芒telets, Sauce aux Truffles 脿 la Parisienne (Capon with Parisian Truffle Sauce) and Le G芒teau de Mille Feuille 脿 la Moderne (Mille Feuille Puff Pastry Layer Cake in the Style of Car锚me).
With a course packet chock-full of inspirational French text and a kitchen abound with the aromas of classic French cuisine, this was a Saturday night with more magic than any local dinner reservation. Each menu item was precisely chosen by Chef Cathy, based on what was fashionable, or 脿 la mode, in the time of Car锚me. Two centuries later, and Car锚me鈥檚 slightly modified recipes are still in vogue, and unarguably delicious. Bravo to Chef Kathy Kaufman鈥檚 and Chef Kathryn Gordon鈥檚 culinary and pastry students who were truly up for a challenging evening that is sure to be a remembrance in their pasts.
