Flexibility

Wow, it's been a long time. Why's that? Well, I've taken a break from cooking. More like had a break forced upon me, but who's counting? Finally last week I jumped back into the swing of things with an end-of-the-school year picnic in Moorestown, crafting kid-friendly (and by that I mean having no nuts anywhere) menu for a repeat client. I'd just like to say, it feels good to be back.

It has been suggested that I am insane for letting someone else do the shopping for me when I chef for personal clients. That assumption has gone so far as to include the accusation of my being unprofessional and even "half-assed" (you know who you are). To them I offer the following rebuttal: first, if the client wants to do the grocery shopping, who am I to stop them? Yes, there are certain challenges that present themselves when you're not picking out your own food stuffs, but there will be challenges anyway. As I am fond of saying, a rough 80% of catering is putting out fires (as in problems...not literal fires).

I look at occasions like this as cooking roulette. I am often presented with items I did not expect, but can turn an otherwise straight-forward dish into a rather interesting one. Crab cakes got a boost from home-roasted peppers of all colors. Black bean dip, a kick from fresh tomato. It's like being on "Chopped": you're given a basket of ingredients, and you're expected to make something spectacular. I love it.

When Jossie Catering outgrows my kitchen, this is the way I will craft the menu of Jossie, the restaurant. Fluid, ever-changing, and full of fresh surprising ingredients. Some of my favorite produce grows in a really short season: Fiddle head ferns. Summer squash. Edible flowers. And if confined to a rigidity of my own design, these gems would be grossly overlooked. So this begs the question, what's on your summer menu?