1-12 Day at Sea

1-12 Day 7 At sea

What an amazing day! This had to be one of my best at sea days ever! I had a cooking class (only 12 participants) with Chef Matthew Gennuso. He is a well known chef who now is the chef and owner of Chez Pascal, a French-American bistro in Providence, Rhode Island. He trained at the Culinary Institute of America and has cooked at some of the best restaurants on either coast as well as worked with other great chefs like Paul Bertolli, etc. In spite of all that, he was a real down to earth kind of guy and fun to cook with. The session started with all of us getting chef hats, aprons, and recipe cards. Everyone had the opportunity to participate in the food prep for the best lunch I've had on the ship so far! So, you are all invited now to try some of my new cuisine at Chez Tauna. Our menu was date and almond roasted chicken (the “rub” for the chicken was excellent!); potato dumplings with leeks, peas, and bacon; and crepes with caramel sauce. Everything was made from scratch. After we completed the preparation, we enjoyed eating it in one of the small, dining rooms on the ship – accompanied with a delicious white wine! From start to finish was almost 3 hours – some of the most fun three hours I've spent. I immediately signed up for his next cooking class. He will only be on the ship for one more demo class (no hands on) and one last hands-on class.

After that activity, I immediately went to a creative writing class. This is going to also be great fun and a great learning experience. Our instructor taught us two techniques to close off our left brain to let our creative right brain function at its max. We will meet every sea day from now on. Who knows – I may be writing about one of YOU before too long!!! Not to worry – everyone will remain anonymous!

Caught up getting e-mails out and writing my Blog entry from yesterday's adventure. Doug enjoyed his day relaxing, reading, and getting the e-mail complications worked out. He is also looking forward to trying some of my new recipes!

Ended with a dinner (one of the best so far!) of beef tenderloin with Bernaise sauce and wonderful veggies and roasted potatoes (not to mention the butterscotch sundae dessert!) Today was definitely a great food day! Waddle, waddle!!!