Prep continued....

With the insanity of the weekend over, I slept in on Sunday until 10 A.M. That may not seem late, but I don't think I've done that since after college. My body was exhausted. I even slept through my husband raking snow off our roof. My intention of Sunday was to have a lazy day of football watching, but two feet of snow fell and our driveway and puppy was calling. So my day of relaxation was put on hold.

Back to the catering. Shopping for my product took longer than anticipated and I my Thursday was spent in the car instead of in the kitchen. Once I was settled at home, I did some preliminary prep. I trimmed three tenderloins for one party, marinated the chicken (tequila-lime) and lamb (Mediterranean), roasted twenty pounds of beets, marinated the olives, and grilled all the vegetables. I didn't get a lot done on Thursday and therefore my Friday was long. Very long.

I started at 6:30 and didn't sit down until 8:30 that night. The true mark to the end of my work day is when I take my shoes off. Once the pressure is released and my feet can breath, there is no turning back. There is no use in listing all the prep that I did and it's hard to convey how many details are involved, but it's a lot. And especially for one person, it's a lot. Just even making the individual Parmesan cups took hours. I'm only able to bake seven at a time. They take seven minutes to bake and then have to be shaped in the molds. I repeat until I have 70 cups.

Let's take the citrus crab in cucumber cups. Each cucumber gives me about 12 pieces. I only use English cucumbers because the shape is easier to work with and they have less seeds.

Here are the steps involved:
1. Peel the cucumbers and cut then into 12 pieces, about a half an inch each.
2. Core the seeds to create small cups.
3. Lay the pieces on paper towels and refrigerate until some of the liquid is lost. Change the paper towels and flip the cucumbers and continue to drain.
4. Pick over the crab and pick out the small pieces of shell.
5. Prep the rest of the salad: Brunoise red and yellow pepper as well as red onion. Because there are going into small cups, it's important to keep the cut to a true brunoise (1/4 inch dice).
6. Zest orange, lime, lemon and grapefruit.
7. Combine all the ingredients and flavor with OJ, salt, pepper and fresh chives. Let the mixture marinate for a couple hours, taste, and adjust the seasonings.
8. Once the flavor is on and the cups are dry, fill them with about a half a teaspoon of the mixture.

At the parties, they are garnish with a delicate piece of chervil. I prepped 120 for the weekend.

To take break from cooking during the day, I gathered all the equipment and serviceware for the FOH and BOH for each party. It's just different body motions. It's walking, bending, twisting, and reaching, instead of standing and standing and standing some more. The key with this is to pack enough of everything (cocktail napkins, coffee prep, bar bins for wine and beer, business cards, leftover containers, gloves, sheet pans, etc) and pack it efficiently so I can fit all the parties in my car at one time.

Once the shoes came off and I slithered into a bubble bath, I quietly feel asleep and woke up to the taste of soapy bubbles. It was time to get some rest and focus on Saturday. I kept a piece of paper and pen at my night table for all of the random thoughts that I had.

I'll continue later as dinner calls.

Let's Get Cooking...

After a derail in New Jersey and New York for a few days, I've returned home to prep for this weekends' catering gigs. It's now Wednesday night and I'm scrambling to put together my final lists for my vendors and of course, waiting on clients for the final numbers. I have three parties on Saturday with estimates of 100, 70, and 40 guests.

After securing one menu, I tried to sell the same items to the other two clients. Streamlining any of the prep is always ideal. But it didn't work. I only have one item overlapping between two of the events. My shopping lists are long and varied, from crab meat and tenderloin to fresh figs and brie. The most involved menu is below. Nothing is complicated to prepare, but there is just a lot of different items.

Antipasto Station. To Include:
Prosciutto Wrapped Grissini
Orange and Thyme Scented Oil-Cured Olives
Artichoke Hearts and Mozzarella Salad
Assorted Cured Meats and Italian Cheeses
Grilled Vegetables, Crumbled Goat Cheese, Snipped Chives

Mediterranean Station. To Include:
Grilled Eggplant, Tomato and Mozzarella Salad with Fresh Basil
Toasted Pita with Hummus, Baba Ganoush, and Tzatziki
Mediterranean Lamb Kebabs over Cherry Tomato-Red Onion Salad
Roasted Red Beet Salad with Watercress, Feta, and Pomegranate, Orange Honey Vinaigrette

Assorted Skewers:
Tequila Lime Chicken with Cilantro Dip
Charred Shrimp with Red-Onion Port Sauce
Caprese Skewers with Pesto

Assorted Canapés:
Curry Chicken Salad on Pompadums
Citrus Crab Salad in Cucumber Cup
Goat Cheese Mousse in Parmesan Cups, Candied Red Onion
Figs in a Blanket: Fresh Figs Wrapped in Prosciutto
Beef Tenderloin on Horseradish Cream and Caramelized Onions

Dessert
Assorted Mini Pastries

This menu combined with the other two means I have to be creative with refrigerator space. It's times like these when I'm glad I live in New England. Worst case scenario, I can store items outside overnight. To add to all of the confusion, Boston is due for a foot of snow on Friday. I will be hunkered down in my kitchen chopping, dicing and searing, but last minute trips to the store will be unlikely. I must check and recheck my lists and work efficiently given the time constraints and potential weather.

My plan of attack:
I will spend Thursday morning placing final orders, including pastries, rentals, breads, and ice. I'm going to order my produce this evening and pick it up tomorrow. Delivery is available but I've never once received an order that is 100% correct. It's just easier for me to look things over in their shop so I can check the quality and make sure the order is complete. If they deliver and forget something, it could be hours until they make their way back to me. In addition to my produce vendor, I will also head to my restaurant supply store for meats, cheeses, and dry goods. I should be back to my kitchen by noon and after taking an hour to unload and organize, I should be ready to get cooking by 1.

I plan to have a long day Thursday so I can spend Friday finishing last minute things and getting organized and ready for Saturday. It takes a decent amount of time to gather everything needed for both front and back of the house service. This includes all cooking equipment and tools necessary for cooking on site as well as passing and serving platters, risers, table decor, serving utensils, coffee necessities, and aprons for staff. I also review each menu and prepare garnishes for each dish. I keep things simply, garnishing only with items used in those specific dishes, typically using lots of fresh herbs. I also print out invoices and menus, and package half a dozen truffles that I leave as a 'thank you' gift for each client.

I'm working the event with the above menu and looking forward to it. I love seeing my ideas become reality and observing the guests reactions. The true test is how many business cards are left by the end of the evening. I'm pushing to really impress this weekend. It's my first December in business and word of mouth is my best marketing tool. This weekend could really boost my sales for 2009.

Wish me luck!