WHERE'S THE BEEF?

Tonight we decided to practice two dishes we're still not completely comfortable with, Beef Bourguignon (Boeuf Bourguignon) and Tartelette Soufflee Au Citron (Lemon Souffle Tartlet). We still don't quite have the timing down for the beef or the amounts memorized for the lemon tart. We really shouldn't have trouble with the beef as most work is done in the beginning and then it sits, braising, for an hour and a half. But we haven't timed the pasta perfectly and we've cracked the tart dough after removing it from the oven.

DISH: Boeuf Bourguignon, Beef Bourguignon

DUE: 10:05 p.m. SERVED: 10:05 p.m.

COOKING NOTES: While we may not have felt completely comfortable with this dish going into it we were pretty confident with the processes all the way through. Instead of using the pasta machine to make the noodles we made them freehand like Chef M. showed us in previous classes.

CHEF'S CRITIQUE: Chef M. tasted the dish and immediately asked us if we had tasted it too, and if we'd added stock. My partner and I both said we had but we looked at each other and knew we'd completely forgotten it. The beef had braised only in the wine marinade. As a result it was a little tough and tasted overhwelmingly like red wine. Also, a little uneveness with the noodles is one thing, it can be rustic, charming, but these were a little too uneven to the point that they cooked at different times. Not a perfect situation at the last moment when the noodles are the last things needed to finish the dish. Overall, good effort but not terrific results on the beef.

DISH: Tartelette Soufflee Au Citron, Lemon Souffle Tartlet

DUE: 10:15 p.m. SERVED: 10:14 p.m.

COOKING NOTES: No real problems here with the process of the tart. It's actually a pretty simple dish now that we've broken it down and struggled with it several times. Yolks whisked over the double boiler with sugar and whites whisked off the stove with sugar and a pinch of salt. Reduced lemon juice is mixed with the yolks then folded into the whites and portioned out. The only hitch was that there wasn't any raspberry coulis for the garnish on the plate. I made some simple syrup, added lemon juice and rind and used it for garnish on the plate. It looked good for the first few minutes but was reduced too far and froze up on the plate. It would be too hard to serve a customer.

CHEF'S CRITIQUE: The tart was cooked about two minutes too long. Chef M. preferred that the top wasn't quite so brown.

OVERALL: Regarding the mistakes on the beef, at this point, these last mistakes are the ones that nail down the final things we need memorized about the dish. Perhaps the top was slightly too brown but it still looked pretty. I think we've got these dishes down.