Leslie Bartosh, CEC, AAC, FMP

 Sometimes with food it is the simple things!  The crumb of this demi-baguette is a great example.  The nice open texture of the crumb contrasting against the caramelized crust.  You know it is good before you ever taste it! #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #FamilyFood #StaffOfLife Your comments and questions are always welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

 One of the protein items for the 2022 Southwest Region Jeune Commis Competition. #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #ChainedesRotisseurs Your questions or comments are always welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

 Due to some technical issues I had to replace the flag counter on my blog.  When I replaced it, this was the information it contained. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

  Smoked chicken confit with red pear on Kalera  Baby Romaine Salad This dish realizes two different goals.   First: I wanted to try the Kalera Baby Romaine lettuce.   I recently found it in a local grocery store. I became aware of Kalera a few months ago when a peer of mine mentioned them to me.   This occurred, in conjunction, with Kalera opening a farm in my general area.   For those who do not know, kalera is a hydroponic, vertical farm.   They control the environment and all aspects of the plants life.   Quite an intriguing operation.   Second: I wanted to serve the smoked chicken thigh confit in a new method.   In the past, I have served the confit on a bed of white beans with potatoes fried in the confit fat.   This dish works perfectly.   I just wanted something different. As I thought about options, a duck confit salad I had a couple of years ago came to mind.   The idea of the confit salad, triggered another memory of serving a duck confit hors d’oeuvres toppe

  Maybe it is how I was raised..........To me, Sunday Supper requires comfort food, like this beef stew with Duchess Potato. I like to play with themes like beef stew but do twists on them.   Like adding a duchess potato to the dish.   This allows for a very interesting play on textures and flavors.   It also adds nice visual contrast to the plate. Often when I make duchess potatoes for this type of dish, I will flavor them.   As an example, it is fun to bury a whole clove of roasted garlic deep inside the piped potato.   A buried surprise if you will.   Almost like the baby in a king cake but edible. Horse radish also makes a nice addition to a duchess potato when the potato will be pared with beef or lamb.   Horseradish also works any other item where I can see the flavor combination. When I make duchess potatoes, I usually make a big batch.   I freeze the raw piped out potato.   When it is frozen solid, I vacuum pack it and place it back in the freezer.   This allows me to h

  Normally when we think about braised dishes, we are thinking about ingredients that need a long slow cooking process with moisture.   Like a pot roast, as an example.   But, naturally tender items like a chicken breast or a piece of fish can also be braised successfully.   The cooking process is still same:   sear the item and then finish cooking it in a flavored liquid or in this case sauce. This dish came out a brainstorming session a week ago.   It is the 2 nd of dishes to come out of that session.   I have at least one more similar dish in mind.   They are all influenced by a Middle Eastern fish dish, that I used to make in class.   Normally the term Puttanesca refers to a pasta dish.   It does not have pieces of fish in it.   This dish is attributed to the Naples, Italy.   Naples is located on the Tyrrhenian Sea.   So, the idea of using the sauce to braise a piece of fish seemed to be a good match. Braised Riverence Steelhead trout in a puttanesca style sauce, accompani

  Some months ago, a recipe from Texas Monthly, came across my desk.   As soon as I read the title, Smoked Chicken Thigh Confit; I was intrigued.   Daniel Vaughn, the T.M. BBQ Editor was the author of the recipe. What was this?   Smoked Chicken Thigh Confit?   I am familiar with duck leg confit and it is one of my favorite dishes.   But smoked chicken thigh confit?   Being a fan of smoked items and confit, I had to try it. I make duck confit for a few reasons.   1. It tastes very good.   2. The duck legs become very tender. 3.   The confit keeps for a long time in the refrigerator.   4. As the confit is kept the flavor mellows becomes even nicer. But duck legs are not readily accessible to me.   I have to make an approximate 25-mile round trip to buy duck legs at a local Asian market.   Where duck legs are not readily available to me, chicken thighs are at my local grocery.     The 1 st time I made the smoked chicken thigh recipe, I made four thighs.   I then made the recipe a