ok for those of you who don't know that my major in college is gastronomy and culinary arts by a freak mishap, i am... and this coming friday i have a final for kitchen practice 3... i recently did a project for the same class, we had to research a chef that has 3 michelin stars and i chose heston blumenthal, in an ideal world i would be cooking his recipes however since the kitchen at my school doesn't have the sort of technology he uses i had to improvise and set up my own menu... here's my menu for the final

appetizer: seared scallop ceviché with sweet mango and passionfruit salsa

i know some of you are thinking "seared ceviché?" but here's how it works, sometimes when you cook something by simply sauteéing, you overcook it in order to cook it all the way through and this is my solution, i juice the lime and refrigerate it in advance so i have a cold lime juice, i very quickly sear the two flat sides of the scallop and put it in the cold lime juice immediately so that the acid in the lime juice ensures that the scallop is not overcooked and it is cooked all the way through, by combining these two methods, i get the best of both: a desired and delicious crust courtesy of the maillard reaction that takes place when searing, a scallop that tastes fresh and is cooked all the way through due to the lime juice...

main course: sous-vide duck breast with arugula aioli and candied cayenne apples along with balsamic reduction with fres pomegranate seeds

ok it's a mouthful to say... in an ideal world i would first season the duck breast, vacuum pack it and cook it in a low-temperature water bath that is temperature controlled... well my school doesn't have a vacuum packer or a temperature controlled water bath... my solution is to cook it in the vacuum package it comes in and season it when it is searing in the pan....

desert: peaches & cream sorbet

ok some of you will be going "what? cream sorbet? sorbet is vegan!"... i know, ok? the cream here is not in the sorbet, it is served with the sorbet and it is not really a cream... it is a white chocolate ganaché...

and i know that some of you might be thinking why on earth this is on deviantART... well this is my art... there will be photos to match after friday...

take care

cap ou pas cap?