Chef Cameron vs Chef Ramsey

Friday was my kitchen tour day. A little nervous dressed in my whites and smiling large. I was reintroduced to my instructor for the next 5 weeks Chef Cameron a Scotsmen who had come to Canada 30 years and ended up in Halifax because the hotel chain he worked for had a place for him to cook. The accent is thick and his demeanor is kind. That night I went home and dreamt he was Chef Ramsay and was yelling for Knots not being tied right. And coming in late. Not a dream it was a nightmare.

Monday morning I arrive to school an hour early, practice the knot in the locker room and head to class. Anxiety of my dream coming true starts to dissipate. No yelling, just a pleasant good morning and " you are early go have a cup of tea."

We start out as Legumier's learning how to Julienne, Brunoise and mirepoix our carrots, onions, leeks and celery. Chef comes to inspect, my first attempt at shaving a thin piece of carrot before being julienned is horrid and can be used as a "door stop". I am unsettled with this large knife in my hand. Knife skills are not my strong point and I realize quickly that I will need to work hard to uniform the veg.

My name is called out often and I am almost sure it is because it is one that is easy to remember. I am eager to learn and we began with some veg in the tilting skillet with a little olive oil. We make chicken stock and veal stock or demi - glace. We chop herbs and we add to our stocks peppercorns,we add Bay leaf. These stocks will be made regularly. They will be the base of great soups and sauces for the chicken and fish that we will cut and clean up. Today is a good start to the rest of the year.

The afternoon is filled with theory. I come home and crash. Long day getting up at 5 am. I am excited for my alarm to go off in the morning.