8 posts tagged “jewlz”
Remember this post?
Well, after 8 months, the cafe is closing, along with the original one in Poulsbo. Part of it has to do with the recession, and I'm sure there's other reasons too. One being that my kick-ass co-worker, Jewlz, finally found a great job with an easier commute and more money. If anyone knows that it's hard to replace Jewlz, it's me. Her leaving had a lot to do with the decision to close the cafes. Around here in these parts, it's hard to find people like Jewlz and me.
So that's the end of the Village Baker Cafes, but there will still be wholesale bread and danishes coming out of the bakery. And the first of the year, they will be selling the bread and danishes right out of the bakery Tuesdays thru Saturdays. So they are scaling down by closing the cafes but not the bakery. Some of my pals get to keep their jobs, in fact most of them. The ones that are hitting the unemployment line are the ones that manned the cafe counters. It's all very sad to me, since I was involved with the cafe openings from the very beginning.
Since this is a tourist town, recessions really hit us hard. The rumor is that a lot of businesses here won't make it through the winter with the gloomy holiday season forecast.
Here in the Welch household, we are "canceling" Christmas. No gifts this year. We'll spend family time together and have a nice dinner, but that's it. No presents, no stockings, none of it. Our non-spending won't help the economy, but the economy isn't helping us either. Times are really tight for us right now. All I want for Christmas this year is to be less in debt. Besides the last thing I need, or any of us need is more "stuff". I don't have any room for any more stuff anyway. You should see my office.......
So I have this whole section of my garage full of pastry equipment. Should I keep it? Will I get back into pastry again, or what? I have no idea what will happen in the future; I don't know how long I'll be taking care of my mom.....it could be a couple of years or maybe 10-15.........I wish I had a crystal eclair to tell me.
For now I'll just take things as they come and try not to worry about what I can't control.
If you live in Seattle, you lucky people get to taste Jewlz talents at The Famous Northwest Catering Co.
They are lucky to have her! Mom and I will be going there for lunch soon, since they have a little cafe too.
She will kick ass as usual!! Not Mom, I mean Jewlz!
Speaking of kicking ass, someone needs to kick mine. I'm not real motivated lately to do any extra projects. So far I'm just keeping up with the status quo. I feel like I need to do more..........
I'm sinking in guilt and feeling like I'm in over my head. Where to start? If I pay Calvin that dollar, I bet he'll tell me.
She will kick ass as usual!! Not Mom, I mean Jewlz!
Speaking of kicking ass, someone needs to kick mine. I'm not real motivated lately to do any extra projects. So far I'm just keeping up with the status quo. I feel like I need to do more..........
What do these women have in common? We're all pastry chefs, and now we're all married. Welcome to the club Marla!
That's me on the left, Marla, the bride, in the center, and the INFAMOUS Jewlz on the right. As women, we kick ass, but as pastry chefs we kick SERIOUS ass. We should open our own bakery. No we shouldn't. We're not that stupid; we like our life outside of baking as well or better than baking itself. WE HAVE LIVES and we intend to keep it that way. But we can't help fantasizing about owning our own place and having it be the rocking-est bakery ever.
Of course, it shall be called "Three Bitches Bakery". Our motto: "If you don't like it, go f*ck yourself". We don't take complaints, not that anyone would complain anyway, except vegans, but we'd kick their asses out the door before they could say "soy". We'd sell t-shirts:
We'd have a clock on the wall:
We'd probably offend a lot of people, but we wouldn't care because our stuff is so good, people would come in anyway.
That's me on the left, Marla, the bride, in the center, and the INFAMOUS Jewlz on the right. As women, we kick ass, but as pastry chefs we kick SERIOUS ass. We should open our own bakery. No we shouldn't. We're not that stupid; we like our life outside of baking as well or better than baking itself. WE HAVE LIVES and we intend to keep it that way. But we can't help fantasizing about owning our own place and having it be the rocking-est bakery ever.
Of course, it shall be called "Three Bitches Bakery". Our motto: "If you don't like it, go f*ck yourself". We don't take complaints, not that anyone would complain anyway, except vegans, but we'd kick their asses out the door before they could say "soy". We'd sell t-shirts:
Remember this is just a fantasy anyway, so we can say whatever we want. In a perfect world our customers would have the same sense of humor we do.
Seriously, put the three of us together, and you are talkin' serious bakery experience and talent. We care about our stuff, and we know how to do it right. That's right, we're talkin' love here. Love is the ingredient that goes missing in larger bakeries, so we'd keep it small and keep our hands in the dough instead of just raking it in. Ha ha! Did I say raking in the dough? Seriously, I know that doesn't happen in the bakery biz. It's just a fantasy.............sigh.
There is a fourth bee-yotch out there that DID open her own place, and I've had the honor of working with her. She rocks too. If she moved up here, we'd call it the Four Bitches Bakery and we'd get along famously. If you're in Texas,
make sure you check out Simply Cakes. You want a woman with experience and knows her way around cakes? That's Robin. Any bride with a brain will get her wedding cake there. Guaranteed satisfaction.....you've got my personal word on it.
Someday, perhaps, Marla, Jewlz, and I will have drunk too much wine and decided that opening a bakery is a good idea. I'll let you know when that day comes. Then the next day we'll have sobered up.
Seriously, put the three of us together, and you are talkin' serious bakery experience and talent. We care about our stuff, and we know how to do it right. That's right, we're talkin' love here. Love is the ingredient that goes missing in larger bakeries, so we'd keep it small and keep our hands in the dough instead of just raking it in. Ha ha! Did I say raking in the dough? Seriously, I know that doesn't happen in the bakery biz. It's just a fantasy.............sigh.
There is a fourth bee-yotch out there that DID open her own place, and I've had the honor of working with her. She rocks too. If she moved up here, we'd call it the Four Bitches Bakery and we'd get along famously. If you're in Texas,
make sure you check out Simply Cakes. You want a woman with experience and knows her way around cakes? That's Robin. Any bride with a brain will get her wedding cake there. Guaranteed satisfaction.....you've got my personal word on it.
Someday, perhaps, Marla, Jewlz, and I will have drunk too much wine and decided that opening a bakery is a good idea. I'll let you know when that day comes. Then the next day we'll have sobered up.
And I thought my last boss was easy! This is Mom. The one I'm "employed" by......the one I am now caring for. She looks kind of grumpy, but she's really not....she's just concentrating on "Wheel of Fortune". She never misses it.....or "Jeopardy" either. Every night, it's dinner, then "Wheel of Fortune" and "Jeopardy". I've only been at this caregiving thing for a couple of weeks now, and I'm about to go MAD! Mad I tell you. But I found a little help......
No, I'm not a drunken caregiver.......but a glass of wine now and then never hurt anyone, right? See, here's the deal.
I'm a pastry chef that is used to deadlines and pumping the product out.......move move move.....time to lean time to clean......that sort of stuff. On my feet all day......die on the couch when I get home....etc etc etc. Life was moving at 78 rpm (for you young'uns, that means 78 revolutions per minute, which was the speed of very old record albums), and now I'm at 33 1/3........actually less. I'm like the bionic man, who, when he was shown using his bionics, he ran verrrrry slowly with the accompanying sound effect....ch ch ch ch ch (or was that when he was jumping off buildings?) Ok, I've got to stop dating myself. Kids today are like, "record albums? 33 1/3? Bionic man? Huh?"
Anyway.
This caregiving thing isn't about deadlines or moving my fat butt around the kitchen as fast as I can go to "git 'er done". It's about patience, sacrifice, putting another person's needs over yours.........something similar to what Moms do everyday, except I've never been a "mom" until now. Now I'm my Mom's mom. Did I say anything about patience? Yeah, well lucky me, I have it. For instance, the other day my mom decided to go through her rolodex and reminisce about every person in it, from A-Z. She'd say "Oh remember Herb and Irene?" I'd say "yes", then she'd say, "they're dead now". And so I got the current update of who of our friends and relatives were still alive or dead. I can't TELL you how much fun that was. My eyes were glazed over and I hadn't even had my glass of wine yet.
Mom doesn't want to move into a retirement village or assisted living or any of that. She wants to stay home. I'm doing what I can to keep her at home without wiping out her finances, which is why I'm her primary careperson. Daughters work cheap......well, at least I do. Plus I manage her financial affairs, which is something a hired caregiver cannot do. She is too confused to manage her finances anymore, so I do that and pay myself a small fee.
Mom has Crohn's Disease, and Myasthenia Gravis, both are which autoimmune disorders. They tend to make her somewhat homebound, and she's gotten to the point where she is uncomfortable driving. So she doesn't get out of the house unless I take her out and she enjoys that a lot. It's just that there are limited places to go. It can't involve a lot of walking, and a restroom must always be nearby or within a short distance. This presents me with many challenges.
Especially since Mom doesn't show much interest in anything in particular. No hobbies, crafts, or anything like that. A lot of the day goes by where she just prefers to sit in front of the TV. I have this feeling that I need to keep her company, or entertain her and so I'm watching a lot of tube with her. TV is fine, but not THAT MUCH. I need stuff to do so I search for recipes and I cook a lot. At least my chef skills are still in fine tune.
I'm still in touch with Jewlz from the bakery, and she gives me the scoop as to what's going on. I can't help but obsess about that place since I was the starting chef for the cafes......it's like it's my "baby", and I've had to give my "baby" up.
How's my "baby" doing?
Seems that we didn't find a suitable replacement for me until the DAY BEFORE I had to leave, but we found one, which is what was important to me because I didn't want to leave Jewlz in the weeds with no help. Lizzie did a great job, but we only got her for two days and she left her key on the third saying her husband got an opportunity on Orcas Island that they couldn't pass up. And just like that she was gone. So it was just down to Jewlz and our assistant whom I shall not name. We'd had her since December and was a great help to us; getting a lot of the grunt work done and such. But there were personality problems between her and Jewlz, which to this day I (and Jewlz) could not figure out. She didn't seem to have much of a problem with me........but for some reason she wanted to blame Jewlz for all her dissatisfaction there. Not a week went by that I was gone, and our assistant left her key saying she "didn't feel welcome" and that the volume of work that had to get done is not what she expected. Oh, that's nice. It's too much work so just leave Jewlz by herself....she'll magically get it done. Nice move. And this leads me to my pet peeve.........
I'm a pastry chef that is used to deadlines and pumping the product out.......move move move.....time to lean time to clean......that sort of stuff. On my feet all day......die on the couch when I get home....etc etc etc. Life was moving at 78 rpm (for you young'uns, that means 78 revolutions per minute, which was the speed of very old record albums), and now I'm at 33 1/3........actually less. I'm like the bionic man, who, when he was shown using his bionics, he ran verrrrry slowly with the accompanying sound effect....ch ch ch ch ch (or was that when he was jumping off buildings?) Ok, I've got to stop dating myself. Kids today are like, "record albums? 33 1/3? Bionic man? Huh?"
Anyway.
This caregiving thing isn't about deadlines or moving my fat butt around the kitchen as fast as I can go to "git 'er done". It's about patience, sacrifice, putting another person's needs over yours.........something similar to what Moms do everyday, except I've never been a "mom" until now. Now I'm my Mom's mom. Did I say anything about patience? Yeah, well lucky me, I have it. For instance, the other day my mom decided to go through her rolodex and reminisce about every person in it, from A-Z. She'd say "Oh remember Herb and Irene?" I'd say "yes", then she'd say, "they're dead now". And so I got the current update of who of our friends and relatives were still alive or dead. I can't TELL you how much fun that was. My eyes were glazed over and I hadn't even had my glass of wine yet.
Mom doesn't want to move into a retirement village or assisted living or any of that. She wants to stay home. I'm doing what I can to keep her at home without wiping out her finances, which is why I'm her primary careperson. Daughters work cheap......well, at least I do. Plus I manage her financial affairs, which is something a hired caregiver cannot do. She is too confused to manage her finances anymore, so I do that and pay myself a small fee.
Mom has Crohn's Disease, and Myasthenia Gravis, both are which autoimmune disorders. They tend to make her somewhat homebound, and she's gotten to the point where she is uncomfortable driving. So she doesn't get out of the house unless I take her out and she enjoys that a lot. It's just that there are limited places to go. It can't involve a lot of walking, and a restroom must always be nearby or within a short distance. This presents me with many challenges.
Especially since Mom doesn't show much interest in anything in particular. No hobbies, crafts, or anything like that. A lot of the day goes by where she just prefers to sit in front of the TV. I have this feeling that I need to keep her company, or entertain her and so I'm watching a lot of tube with her. TV is fine, but not THAT MUCH. I need stuff to do so I search for recipes and I cook a lot. At least my chef skills are still in fine tune.
I'm still in touch with Jewlz from the bakery, and she gives me the scoop as to what's going on. I can't help but obsess about that place since I was the starting chef for the cafes......it's like it's my "baby", and I've had to give my "baby" up.
How's my "baby" doing?
Seems that we didn't find a suitable replacement for me until the DAY BEFORE I had to leave, but we found one, which is what was important to me because I didn't want to leave Jewlz in the weeds with no help. Lizzie did a great job, but we only got her for two days and she left her key on the third saying her husband got an opportunity on Orcas Island that they couldn't pass up. And just like that she was gone. So it was just down to Jewlz and our assistant whom I shall not name. We'd had her since December and was a great help to us; getting a lot of the grunt work done and such. But there were personality problems between her and Jewlz, which to this day I (and Jewlz) could not figure out. She didn't seem to have much of a problem with me........but for some reason she wanted to blame Jewlz for all her dissatisfaction there. Not a week went by that I was gone, and our assistant left her key saying she "didn't feel welcome" and that the volume of work that had to get done is not what she expected. Oh, that's nice. It's too much work so just leave Jewlz by herself....she'll magically get it done. Nice move. And this leads me to my pet peeve.........
What the hell happened to the courtesy of two weeks notice?
No one who has been through my kitchen here in this town has given notice. Not ONE. They just quit on the spot. I'm not a mean boss; in fact I'm one of the easiest people to get along with, and I always end up with flaky people who don't have the courtesy, the COURTESY of giving notice. News flash people: quitting like that doesn't help your references on your lying flaky resumes! Oh yeah, please don't use me or Jewlz as references, 'cause I won't have anything good to say about y'all.
What is is about this town?
This seems to be one of the biggest problems here in the Port Townsend area......getting good, RELIABLE help. In Seattle I never had problems like that like I do here. There's practically no competition for the job we are trying to hire for, and I've gone from interview questions like, "Are you familiar with pate choux?" to "will you just show the f*ck up every day?" That would be nice. Show up and do your work......ok you're qualified. Sigh.
An alternative newspaper we used to have here called "Vigilance" had an article on the so called "Port Townsend Flake Factor". I found it amusing then, since I had just moved here, but now that I've been here a few years, I can attest to the validity of the "Factor". I hate the "Factor!" I personally will never succumb to the "Factor".....I may live here, but I'll never be one of "THEM".......
On a brighter note, while shopping with Mom at Bartell Drugs the other day, I spotted THIS!!!!
An alternative newspaper we used to have here called "Vigilance" had an article on the so called "Port Townsend Flake Factor". I found it amusing then, since I had just moved here, but now that I've been here a few years, I can attest to the validity of the "Factor". I hate the "Factor!" I personally will never succumb to the "Factor".....I may live here, but I'll never be one of "THEM".......
On a brighter note, while shopping with Mom at Bartell Drugs the other day, I spotted THIS!!!!
The original Star Trek Pez collection for only $16.99!
Pretty cool, huh? Did I buy it? No. I had to restrain myself strongly. I wanted it, but I have to watch my spending. It would also leave me with a dilemma.........no serious collector would buy it and open the package....they would leave it intact and perfect and wrap it up to keep it pristine and original. As a collector I realize that, but as a PEZ fanatic, I simply wouldn't be satisfied if I couldn't eat a PEZ out of Mr. Spock's chest. It's best I didn't buy it because my collector's knowledge would clash with my strange urge to eat PEZ out of an original Star Trek dispenser. I might implode. So I made the best decision by not buying the PEZ.
Ack. Look at this blog deteriorate! From pastry, to caregiving to freaking PEZ. Well, dear readers, at least I'm still blogging!
Ack. Look at this blog deteriorate! From pastry, to caregiving to freaking PEZ. Well, dear readers, at least I'm still blogging!
Good news and bad news.
The good news is The Village Baker opened its second cafe in Port Townsend in addition to the one in Poulsbo. In a floundering economy, our business is booming. It's encouraging. My theory is that people will still spend money on affordable treats for themselves.....like good coffee and food. We've got that. Our main problem is that we run out of things constantly. It's been hard to keep up with the crowds.
We had our VIP preview opening on February 7th. Here's some pictures from that day.
This is me with my constant companion, a cup of coffee (as I like to call it, "a doublefat non-tall latte").
I'm behind my pastry case because I like to hide my fat. Besides, the pastries look great.
This is the right side of my pastry case..........
and this is the left..............
This is Tyson, the hardest workin' man in our shop. I'd like to say I was the hardest workin', but it's not
true......Tyson takes that award, and it's not an award I'm particularly working on getting. More on that later.
He's the lead bread man, and if you've never worked in a bread shop, cranking out more than 2000 lbs of
dough nearly every night in very hot conditions (even in winter), then you don't know what kind of sweat goes into that "pricey" loaf of artisan bread. We're not outsourcing our bread to India, so you pay a little more to keep our bread people contributing to our economy. Tyson's co-hort, Mo, isn't pictured, but she busts her butt just as hard. I have nothing but the utmost respect for those guys, because you couldn't pay me enough to be in that bread room. No way.
I've been there and done that.........no more! Also note how we bakers are usually seen with a cup of coffee.
Coffee+Baker=more work
Or, as the saying goes, "Drink coffee! Do stupid things faster with more energy!"
This is the fantabulous co-pastry chef Jewlz, her husband Tate on the left, and Tyson on the right. I have no idea what they might have been talking about, other than, "what the hell are we doing here? Are we crazy? Yep, we are batsh*t crazy."
This is Molly, one of the owners of The Village Baker. She also works hard, as does her husband and other owner, Michael. They pretty much eat, live, and sleep the bakery. Does Molly look happy but dazed? Yes, that's how it is these days......taking care of 2 cafes and a baking facility is more than a full time job, but they seem to handle it.........somehow. I've told them more than once that they are crazy to own a bakery, but I guess they like crazy.
Standing behind Molly is Marla, our new addition to the night pastry crew (danish and croissants) and she also works part time at the cafe as a counter girl. She's crazy too. If you have "crazy" on your resume, you're "in" dude!
This is Mr. Boss after our VIP preview day, and we employees broke out the bubbly. I took this
pic just after he opened a bottle and it sprayed over everything. A good laugh had by all, including
himself!
Now the bad news.
I'm behind my pastry case because I like to hide my fat. Besides, the pastries look great.
true......Tyson takes that award, and it's not an award I'm particularly working on getting. More on that later.
He's the lead bread man, and if you've never worked in a bread shop, cranking out more than 2000 lbs of
dough nearly every night in very hot conditions (even in winter), then you don't know what kind of sweat goes into that "pricey" loaf of artisan bread. We're not outsourcing our bread to India, so you pay a little more to keep our bread people contributing to our economy. Tyson's co-hort, Mo, isn't pictured, but she busts her butt just as hard. I have nothing but the utmost respect for those guys, because you couldn't pay me enough to be in that bread room. No way.
I've been there and done that.........no more! Also note how we bakers are usually seen with a cup of coffee.
Coffee+Baker=more work
Or, as the saying goes, "Drink coffee! Do stupid things faster with more energy!"
Standing behind Molly is Marla, our new addition to the night pastry crew (danish and croissants) and she also works part time at the cafe as a counter girl. She's crazy too. If you have "crazy" on your resume, you're "in" dude!
pic just after he opened a bottle and it sprayed over everything. A good laugh had by all, including
himself!
Now the bad news.
I'm leaving the bakery. My mom is getting on in years and has some health problems. I was having a caregiving company come in three days a week to make sure she got on ok, but a year and $18,000 later, I decided that wasn't too affordable anymore. I am now taking on the job of making sure Mom is ok, and I will be commuting and staying in Redmond (2 hours away) about 3-4 days a week. My main job in the coming days will be maintaining two households; my Mom's and my own. I don't mind it and I have the full support of my husband. He's such a good guy.
Mr. Boss says I'm welcome back at the bakery anytime, but I don't know when anytime will be. It could be years. Months.....weeks........it all depends. But I must say it's a generous offer and a compliment to my hard work that I've done for them in the past. Perhaps I'll be able to come back, but perhaps things will have evolved in the future and there won't be room for me there. I accept that. This is a big change for me.
Most of all I will miss the fantastic Jewlz. She's in the number one spot now, and she kicks ass. We'll stay in contact for sure, but I'll miss seeing her every day. You know how co-workers can be like family and she's more than family to me.
I'm hoping we can find some sort of body to replace me before I leave on the 11th of March. The pickin's are slim around here as far as finding dependable food people. There's plenty of people who have "crazy" on their resumes, but it's not the right kind of "crazy". We need crazy AND dependable, and that's a hard combo to find.
Mr. Boss says I'm welcome back at the bakery anytime, but I don't know when anytime will be. It could be years. Months.....weeks........it all depends. But I must say it's a generous offer and a compliment to my hard work that I've done for them in the past. Perhaps I'll be able to come back, but perhaps things will have evolved in the future and there won't be room for me there. I accept that. This is a big change for me.
Most of all I will miss the fantastic Jewlz. She's in the number one spot now, and she kicks ass. We'll stay in contact for sure, but I'll miss seeing her every day. You know how co-workers can be like family and she's more than family to me.
I'm hoping we can find some sort of body to replace me before I leave on the 11th of March. The pickin's are slim around here as far as finding dependable food people. There's plenty of people who have "crazy" on their resumes, but it's not the right kind of "crazy". We need crazy AND dependable, and that's a hard combo to find.
What will become of this blog?
Well, if you don't mind reading various ramblings from an ex-pastry chef turned elder caregiver, than that's where this blog is headed. There'll be pastry thrown in here and there, since it's my first love, but since it won't be my primary job, it won't be my primary subject. I'll always be a burned out pastry chef though....whether I'm working or not......
I wish my co-workers and bosses the very best.....they've got a good quality thing going and I'm sure it will be very very successful......
Well, if you don't mind reading various ramblings from an ex-pastry chef turned elder caregiver, than that's where this blog is headed. There'll be pastry thrown in here and there, since it's my first love, but since it won't be my primary job, it won't be my primary subject. I'll always be a burned out pastry chef though....whether I'm working or not......
I wish my co-workers and bosses the very best.....they've got a good quality thing going and I'm sure it will be very very successful......
A legend in my own mind that is.
Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to win a trophy. I tried hard at everything I participated in, especially if there were prizes involved. Apparently my best was never good enough, because the holy grail always eluded me. Either that
or it's because I didn't kiss the right butts or off the right people. But I know I will never win a trophy for butt kissing; that's NOT my event.
I remember being very jealous when my little brother won a trophy in Little League Baseball. Why couldn't I win a trophy too? I finally got over the trophy thing eventually. I mean, they do kinda look a bit cheesy and they just gather dust, and they mean more to a kid than an adult.....and....I'm an adult now. I don't care about stinkin' trophies! Ok, yes I do. I'm still a kid in a lot of ways, and I want my goddamn trophy.
But I don't want a trophy for just anything or a "thanks for participating" trophy. I want a trophy that I truly deserve....one that I earned......one that says "You're the freakin' best".
Well, this Christmas, my trophy dream came true! I won a trophy, presented to me by my co-worker Jewlz (yes, the FAMOUS pie-butt kicking Jewlz) for our Christmas gift exchange. She had no idea about my trophy dreams, but Jewlz being the fabulous Jewlz, always seems to know what I need. Not only is it a beautiful trophy, but it's a trophy for something I'm truly good at........
That's right kids, my years of effort (well actually, it comes naturally) have paid off. I've been recognized for what I do best.....that's right......I can proudly say I'm a number ONE Baker Bitch. The Pastry Chef of Pessimism. The Cranky Cook. The Dour Maker of Dough. One could say that I could be offended by this, but NO! This Award of Bitchiness is only meant in the good way, and I am honored. You know the acronym for BITCH, don't you?
Or, even better, it's "Being In Total Control, Honey!" I wouldn't say I'm in TOTAL control though.......I identify as a bitch more like this:
Yeah, that's more like it. Unstable. I always have some sort of psycho trick up my sleeve. Like crying for no reason. Damn I'm good at that. And being peri-menopausal has nothing to do with it.
Point is, finally at 46 I got my stinkin' trophy....so I can die happy now. Eat it, bitches!
Recently Jewlz and I had birthdays; I turned 46 (yep, downward slide to 50) in June and Jewlz turned 43 just last week.
I have a policy of always making a cake for everyone's birthday where I work, but when my turn comes around everyone knows better than to make (or buy) me a cake. ANYTHING BUT CAKE! Jewlz of course, feels the same way.
This was my birthday "cake" last year.
This year, Jewlz made me this:
Yes, kids, it's the "Blog Hog". A DELUXE ham sandwich on one of our artisan potato loaves. Behold Jewlz' ham carving talent! My boss, Michael, cleverly created the bottom board, covered with excerpts printed from this here blog. Hence, "Blog Hog"!
My "cake" for Jewlz wasn't nearly as clever, but it was thoughtful! Jewlz LOVES tacos. She could eat tacos for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a snack in between. She keeps hot sauce in the fridge and sprinkles it on everything.
Lucky for me, we have a mexican restaurant practically just across the street from the bakery. On her birthday last Wednesday, I ordered a chicken taco salad to go (or "on wheels" as they say in the biz), and topped it with my custom sour cream-inscribed fried corn tortilla which I had made up the night before.
Tacoriffic! Jewlz told me there was no way she could eat the whole thing, but she managed to anyway......
I also got her the the coolest kitchen timer in the world!
I have more fun celebrating other people's birthdays than I do my own!
Yipes....it's been a month since I posted to the ol' blog, but it's summer, and summer is full o' tourists, weddings, and people who like to ignore all the nutritionists warnings about the obesity epidemic, heart disease and refined sugar in American diets. Not to mention high fructose corn syrup, which is in practically everything. But I don't care about nutrition, because I'm a pastry chef......public enemy number one!
And to prove I'm number one, my desserts were recently voted as "Best in Kitsap County 2008" by a reader poll in the North Kitsap Herald last week. No, the North Kitsap Herald is not the New York Times, and North Kitsap, which includes such famous locales as Poulsbo, Silverdale and Bainbridge Island is not a booming metropolis. But I can say I'm appreciated in this teeny tiny corner of the United States, which is indeed, a very nice thing.
Of course, the North Kitsap Herald acknowledged The Village Baker as having the best desserts, and no reporter even bothered to ask if there was an actual person involved in the dessert making, and if this actual person had a name. But I am the person! I created the dessert menu, and made everything myself, from scratch and by hand. Of course, I can't do it without Jewlz. As referenced in previous posts Jewlz is a pastry chef's dream come true. She's MINE!!!!
If there's no Jewlz there's no kick ass desserts, because without her, I'm just half. Half of an awesome pastry team.
My employers, knowing that I deserved a little acknowledgement for this dealo in the newspaper, were kind enough to create a poster/ad that will hang in our Cafe......
YAY!!!!
Actually, I'm not much of a personal "horn tooter". I'm pretty happy just hiding in the kitchen making stuff. And when I hear that people love my stuff, that's kinda all I need. But the bad part is, when you're hiding in the kitchen you don't hear much from people......sort of a "catch 22". A couple other things worth noting are the fact that The Village Baker has only been in business in downtown Poulsbo for a little over one year. There are two other very well known and long established bakeries on the same street, and we beat both of them! Also, for most of my career, I've been known for the way my wedding and sculpted cakes looked......this time though, I've been recognized for taste.....something I've been trying for for a long time! As I've always said, it just doesn't count if something looks good, but tastes like crap. I strive for goodness through and through, WITHOUT using high fructose corn syrup. Well, not usually.
Besides Jewlz, I must also not only thank the Academy, but the other players who made this all possible. Butter, sugar, flour, eggs, cream (REAL cream), and chocolate. Without these lovely high quality ingredients, I am but just another ding dong in a sea of high fructose corn syrup.
I have a cartoon hanging in my office. It is of two houseflies; one is a waiter, and one is an angry diner. The waiter fly is saying to the diner fly, "But Monsieur! Our chef would never substitute Shinola for the real thing!"
That's my philosophy too.....I only use the REAL sh*t! Thank you real sh*t, for making it all possible. And did I mention Jewlz? She is da sh*t!!!
Oh, and I got this in the mail today!
Muhammad wants you all to know that for a serious ass kickin' of the sweetest kind, just
visit The Village Baker, downtown Poulsbo, next to the Marine Science Center!
Well, it's here......the new mixer is here. Safety freaking cage and all. But I must admit, that (aside from the safety cage), the mixer is better than I thought. I found out that all our Hobart bowls and attachments WILL fit on it, which is great. Other pluses include:
- that great "new mixer smell" which Jewlz likened to the smell of her mother's sewing machine. Namely, gear oil. Mmmmm.....nothing like a good ol' whiff of gear oil in the morning to get you going.
- a bowl lift that is actually easy to lift. I can do it one-handed, unlike the old Hobart where I had to use two hands and a "power-lifting grunt". UNNNNNNH!
- a TIMER! No more over-whipped egg whites or homemade butter from cream. Not that I ever walked away from the mixer and completely spaced it off.......no, not me.
- it's quiet. Not that that really makes any difference, since I have a convection oven that more than makes up for my lack of peace and quiet in my kitchen. And a radio that keeps me awake by blaring classic rock into my head.
- it has a warranty! But it's only good in Canada on Tuesdays between 1:00 pm and 1:05 pm. It's always good to read the fine print.
- it's shiny. Shiny is good. Shiny is cool. I plan to keep it shiny too........which brings me to my list of cons.........
- keeping it clean......because of the freaking safety cage, there's so much more to wipe down.....more nooks and crannies for flour, and various other "goop" to accumulate.
- the safety cage. I STILL hate it, although there IS an opening (a small opening....it has to be small....if I could get my hand in there, it would sort of defeat the purpose of the cage.) that comes with a pouring shield so I can add ingredients while the mixer is running and the cage is in place. But realistically the opening is so small that adding things through it is very inefficient because you have to do it so slowly. HOWEVER, I do know how to disable the cage mechanism....heh heh heh. I'll fiddle with that next week.
Jewlz loves the new mixer too. Having second speed back is a good thing. Here she is testing it out. Have I mentioned that Jewlz rocks my world and kicks my butt? I think I have. It's awesome to have a co-worker that not only steps up to the plate but hits a home run every time.......and she's not even on steroids. She drinks tea and eats lotsa veggies.....unlike me, the coffee-junkie carnivore.
In the left hand foreground is the ruling hand of Boss. Do not mess with the ruling hand! But it is OK to mess with the ruling head. HA HA! Just kidding Boss!!!!
He reads my blog you know. So, Boss, howzabout that dishwasher???? You know, that one.....sitting outside?
Or is that the first installment in the Village Baker Sculpture Park?
It's a very good thing he puts up with smart mouthed employees.
