I did cater in the Philippines, supplying food for a chain of gas stations, and turned it over to my daughter who continued on after I left . My first experience in America as a 'paid' cook came when I helped out my brother in his assisted living facility. I had to deal with low fat, bland and boring meals until one day, I saw a huge piece of ox tongue in the freezer which was actually meant for filipino staff but decided to cook it for the 'white' elderly people that lived in the facility. When lunch time came, my brother asked what I was cooking, and told him I was making lengua. He was flabergasted and said that the 'whites' wont' eat them if they knew what it was. And if they won't eat, they might get sick and we would get into real trouble. Since it was too late to make another meal, I told my brother we won't tell them what it was.
I made my lunch presentation as gourmetish as possible with 4 nicely cut slices of meat, smothered in perfect low caloried gravy and adorned with buttered carrots, potatoes and corn on the side of a round white plate. The meat was so tender that it melted in the mouth. When they asked what it was, I told them it was beef marinated in wine, (which was true of course) and if they were gourmets they would ask which part of beef. Luckily, they didn't so my brother and I were safe...whew!
Fast forward many years later, the cook is now a chef probably because of that piece of paper with a certification of completing such a course and that has my name on it. But unlike my daughter, who is an executive chef and lives on the adrenaline of a huge kitchen, I am content in serving meals in a home setting, where I am more relaxed and have to deal with nobody but myself-- except of course with the Brazilian cleaning ladies who come after my stint at the kitchen. I am now cooking for 2 italian households and one British family. Most often, I would make my own recipe but sometimes, the Italians are very picky eaters and would prefer how their moms use to make it. I don't know what's with this week (probably the halloween bug) but each household had requested me to make lasagna with their own instructions. So I obliged, and am sharing their recipes with you.
First Italian household. The lady of the house comes from Venice, Italy and wanted her meat mixed and no scrimping on the rosemary please...
meat sauce: Meat is a pound of ground pork with 2 pounds of ground beef
Onion, garlic and rosemary chopped together
2 cans of crushed tomates
olive oil to saute the onions
secret ingredient: nutmeg
plus lots of parmesan cheese for topping. (she had a block that I had to grate)
bechamel sauce: butter, flour and milk and seasoning of salt and pepper
even though she had 'oven ready' lasagna noodles, we had to boil them for 2-3 minutes before assembling
Second Italian household. The lady of the house comes from Modena, Italy-- home of the best brand of balsamic vinegar ...and yes, it is truly the best (as far as my taste buds are concerned)
meat sauce: 2 lbs of ground beef
onions, garli, lots of fresh basil, oregano
instead of two cans crushed tomatoes, only one and the other is tomato paste
bechamel sauce: butter, flour, milk mixed with different kinds of cheese. (havarti, cheddar and parmesan)
oven ready noodles was used also
the Brit/American household where we only have 4 ingredients total:
a box oven ready lasagna noodles
spaghetti sauce (Prego or whatever brand you like)
1 lb. of ground meat
one pack each of mozarrela or cheddar cheese...(she used make it with 2 packs of mozarella but i changed it. cheddar adds the saltiness to the bland mozarrela)
brown meat, dispense of the oil from meat, pour in the sauce and when it boils, turn off heat.
then assemble..thats it!!!! how simple is that.
Although they do have the same procedure of assembling, each had its unique taste. I love the meaty texture of the first recipe. The rosemary and the nutmeg makes it so distinct as well.
The second lasagna has the sourness of the tomato, that balances with the 3 cheeses. I love the distinct flavor and smell of the basil. The noodles though is not as soft as the first one. Although it is true, that the oven ready cooks just as well, the pasta becomes softer when boiled before hand.
And the third, with the lady of the house as a midwestern american, she does her lasagna the easiest way. Just put together and then assemble. After all, americans live in a fast food mentality...and this is the fastest way to make it.
Like any art, cooking is an expression of oneself. And the satisfaction of a chef comes when his meals are savored, appreciated and talked about. Oh and one more thing...I have now the liberty of eating myself to excess, after all, who would ever trust a thin cook!!!!
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