How to Cook Meals in Advance

This is a video that was recently produced for About.com’s Frugal Living Website. A few months back, a producer from about.com approached me about shooting a video about what it’s like to be a Personal Chef, and while we were shooting, she asked me to share some tips for home cooks about preparing food in advance and artful use of the freezer to keep the house stocked with homemade food. This video is the result.

You can see the full video and post at About.com

I was interviewed last week by a reporter from the NY Post, who was interested in the new Food Network show “Private Chefs of Beverly Hills“, and the article just came out in Wednesday’s NY Post.

I managed to steer her to how we as personal chefs are different than private chefs, and just how accessible the service is to regular folks. Although I had to give her a few tidbits of capricious requests from my days as a private chef to a billionaire…

I pointed her towards the lovely Chef Debbie Spangler of Yummy~issimo in Cincinnati, who was quoted, and a friend who cooks for “The Boss” in New Jersey. She also quoted my good friend Denise Vivaldo of Food Fanatics.

Despite the celeb dishing, she wrote a very balanced article, I think, and kept in much of what I stressed to her about how a personal chef service is great for regular folks, and not JUST for celebs.

“You hear stories — ‘I want this particular ice cream [so] send the pilot to go get it,’ ” says Mark Tafoya, who briefly worked as a private chef for a New York-based billionaire with a jet and his own island in the Caribbean.

But even ordinary New Yorkers can act like high-maintenance celebs when it comes to their food. No matter what or where he cooks in the city, Tafoya says one thing remains constant: “The size of the kitchen and the niceness of the appliances is inversely proportional to how much they’re used.”

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As a personal chef, I regularly get a front row seat to some of life’s most special moments. From birthday celebrations to anniversary dinners and business deals, I am there in the kitchen just off to the side when people celebrate the most important moments of their life.

Valentine’s Day is usually one of the most sought after dates for a Romantic Dinner for Two. This year, I was contacted six weeks ahead of the big date by a young man who planned to use the big Vday holiday to propose to his girlfriend. We sent many emails back and forth developing the menu, and this one went in a different direction than normal. Often, people choose to have “fancy” foods for these special meals, choosing expensive proteins and exotic preparations. He wanted instead to choose dishes that had significance for them as a couple.

He remembered with fondness having shrimp quesadillas at Dos Caminos on their first date, and insisted on having that on the menu. No problem! I just had to make fresh tortillas! He also wanted a Caesar Salad, since it’s their favorite salad, and they order it all the time when eating out. She adores scallops, so that HAD to be on the menu, and he wanted a special romantic dessert that would be a lead-in to popping the question. We had planned for apple-cinnamon empanadas at first, in keeping with the Southwestern theme, but a week before the big event, he had second thoughts about that, wanting to make the dessert the proposal. I suggested the heart-shaped apple tarts, but how to write “Will you marry me?” on them? If I were to use icing, it would melt quickly given the hot tart. Luckily a friend of his suggested a piece of chocolate with the message written on it. He took care of buying that ao I could focus on preparing the meal.

It’s always an honor to be there when a couple gets engaged, and this one was extra special. He was SOOO nervous, and I think this meal went by faster than normal, since he was anxious to get to the end. Rather than waiting 15-20 minutes between courses, he signaled quickly that he was ready for the next course. We had decided in advance that when it came time to bring out the dessert with the proposal message on it, I’d call him into the kitchen to “help” me bring it out, so that he could take it to her himself. She was genuinely surprised. She really had no idea that this would be anything more than a romantic meal. I hung back in the kitchen to give them their privacy, but I heard every word. His speech to her was one for the movies, as he explained why he had chosen each course, and what she means to him. I could hear him choking up as he got to the end and asked her to marry him, and I was tearing up a little myself! Luckily, she said yes!

As you can imagine, when I’m cooking these dinners, my primary focus is always the preparation of the food, but I do manage to find a few moments here and there to snap photos with my iPhone, which admittedly, doesn’t produce the best photos. However, it’s a quick and easy way to document the dishes, and I can share them in almost real time via twitter and Whrrl. Here’s the photo essay from Whrrl:

If you’re in New York City and would like to have me prepare a special meal for you, call me at 917-405-0088 for info.

I’ve headed across NY Harbor 4 times this past month to cook dinners for the same client (whom I GREATLY appreciate!) who lives in Staten Island, just steps away from the Ferry Terminal, so despite the long subway ride from Upper Manhattan and the ferry ride, it’s actually quite convenient. This is the 4th and final of the dinners. This night, the client was having over some of his best friends for a guy’s night dinner, & wanted guy’s food! When he asked for Surf & Turf, I thought to myself “Geez, I’ve never done that for a client before, it’s the kind of meal you go to a seafood restaurant or steakhouse for.” But the great thing about a personal chef service is that everything is personalized and customized, so of course I said yes!

The hard part was getting the timing right. The main course involved steak, lobster and risotto, all 3 of which require to-the-minute timing! (especially since we had steak orders for medium-rare, medium, & medium-well!) Since the risotto takes 20 minutes, I started that, and then was aflurry with the rest of the cooking as I kept coming back to the pot and wooden spoon to stir! Luckily, the broccoli I had pre-cooked and just heated up right before service. I managed to get it all plated in time (including the drawn butter, but excluding the fancy “Charlie Brown Cut” lemons, which didn’t make it to the plate when I took the photo, but which I sent to the table later).

Winter Special:

This winter season, I’m offering a special price on Personal Chef Dinners for 2, 4, or 6 people in Manhattan. It’s the perfect gift for a food lover, recent parent, or your sweetie, a fabulous way to thank clients for their business, or just an excuse to have a great gourmet dinner at home that you don’t have to cook!

$400 for an all inclusive 4 course dinner for two

$500 for an all inclusive 4 course dinner for four

$600 for an all inclusive 4 course dinner for six

Winter Special

Special Dinner for 2 $400.00 Special Dinner for 4 $500.00 Special Dinner for 6 $600.00

By having set menus with 2 choices for each course, I’m able to offer it at a lower price than the normal menus which are completely customized, as a means of introducing the service to new customers. Price includes shopping, setup, cooking, serving and cleanup! (Menu Substitutions possible for an additional fee)

Please ask me about the special Manhattan Winter dinner pricing when you call.

917-405-0088

remarkablepalate@gmail.com

Current Menu

Salad:

Pear & Prosciutto Salad over Mixed Greens with Sherry Vinaigrette
or
Fennel & Blood Orange Salad with Red Currants and Shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano

Soup:

Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Grannysmith Apple Garnish
or
Apple & Turnip Soup with Cinnamon Creme Fraiche

Main Course:

Lavender & Balsamic Roasted Cornish Hens
or
Bourbon Pork Loin Stuffed with Nuts & Dried Fruits

Dessert:

Poached Pears with Raspberry Coulis

or
Rustic Apple Crostata with Whipped Cream

A Day In The Life of a Personal Chef

This is a video that was recently produced for About.com’s Careers Website. I was approached by a producer for About.com who produces videos about the various careers available to people, and she asked if I would talk about what it’s like to own a personal chef business. The video focuses on aspects of the business, but it also gives viewers insight into what it would be like to have a personal chef of their own.

You can see the full video and post at About.com

ReMARKable Palate #221: Balancing Food and Fitness

This week, I speak with Chef Donna Mintz of Basil & Barbells. Donna has been a personal chef and Personal Trainer for years, and is now expanding her business into holistic health counseling, and she joins me to discuss ways that Americans can achieve balance between food and fitness.

Theme Song: “Go Fish”, by Big Money Grip, from the Podsafe Music Network.

ReMARKable Palate is a production of The Culinary Media Network. www.culinarymedianetwork.com