An Excellent Day's Work

The best part of cooking for a crowd is seeing the different reactions as people try new foods, develop new tastes, and expand their horizons. I recently catered a team building retreat for twelve very different people. The way the event was organized allowed the guests to be in and out of the kitchen. There were no real boundaries and it was more like a large family gathering than a paid job. Having conversations with the guests made the compliments at the end of the meal all the more heartfelt. At the end of the day, my two amazing chefs and I went out for champagne to celebrate a job well done. As far as the food goes, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Freshly picked carrots of all colors

Ready for roasting

Coconut prawns with sweet chili sauce

Dessert trio of lavender earl grey creme brulee, blueberry lemon curd tart, and pecan brownie

(Forgive the lack of an entree photo. Kitchen chaos is entirely to blame. For those who are curious, it was chicken breast with garlic wine sauce, citrus rice pilaf, and roasted carrots)

Career Adventures

In the five months since graduating from culinary school, I have been trying desperately to find my bliss and stay afloat financially. This blog has become more than a hobby; it is closer to being an obsession. I think up posts weeks in advance, read books on food photography, and apply for one in a million blogger jobs. This is my passion, but sadly, it doesn’t provide me with income yet. I spent the first month out of culinary school, selectively choosing places to apply. In that month I applied to maybe four jobs. Nothing happened. In the second month I began to get worried and applied to about twenty jobs. I had an amazing interview, but again, nothing happened. Month three was a rush of job applications, with at least one daily, but despite my best efforts, I remained jobless. Last month I decided to take my own kind of action. If I had trouble getting an excellent job, then I would just create one myself.

My dear friend Jaime created her business Allow Me-meals to go, and I decided to do something similar. Thus Adventures with Salt meal prep was born. This was the first week of actually being in business and I believe that the Quiche Lorraine with Garlic Rosemary Mushrooms and Tomatoes was a huge hit. This is the start of a new beginning and with any luck I will soon start to make a profit instead of trading services with wonderful people such as my dog walker Denise. I truly hope that I will soon be able to rely fully on my prep meals and blogging, thus living the dream! For more information about the Adventures with Salt meals, please comment or email adventureswithsalt@gmail.com