Fun Fearless Foodie

Bonjour! 2011 has been off to a great start, so great that I haven’t had time to share my adventures with you on Fun Fearless Foodie because I’ve been working nonstop. But it’s all good, no complaints here. Here’s a recap of what I’ve been up to in the Big Apple:

Interning at the Food Network

I kicked off the new year with a new job, working as an intern in the culinary production department at the Food Network. Working with the FNK (Food Network Kitchens) team has been a once and a lifetime opportunity. My first assignment was assisting the lead food stylist on Sunny Anderson’s show Cooking for Real. For ten days we filmed season nine of her show, which focuses on no-fuss comfort food for the home cook. Sunny was great to work with, and I learned some valuable lessons in culinary production from the crew.

Behind the scenes of Cooking for Real

As soon as we packed up the CFR set it was on to the next show. We changed gears completely and began production on Desserts First with Anne Thornton. It was all things chocolate, butter, and sugar for the last two weeks as I worked with the FNK team. We’re the magical elves that work behind the scenes to make the food look good at every take. It was almost like an intensive pastry program, giving me an opportunity to bake more than I ever have and learn valuable skills that will be sure to benefit me from here on out (and you too!)

A peak at our amazing prep kitchen for Desserts First

In between filming I also had the pleasure of catering a launch party for Debi Mazar’s new show on the Cooking Channel, Extra Virgin, and assisting our executive chef Rob Bleifer (an FCI alum) on teaching none other than Liz Lemon (aka Tina Fey) how to work with phyllo dough, making spanakopita and baklava. Never a dull moment in the kitchen!

I’ve loved my time in the kitchen, but it’s on to new things starting tomorrow as I join the editorial team for the rest of my internship. Excited to report on the experience soon.

Weekend Warrior on Marcus Samuelsson

If you’ve been checking out the site lately you’ve probably noticed my Weekend Warrior posts, which is a column I’m writing for chef Marcus Samuelsson’s website. I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to reach a new audience and grow my writing and recipe development skills. Be sure to check out the recipes I’ve been posting, which include the kind of food you want to try out on the weekend, when you can enjoy your kitchen and take your time, not rushing through the weekday dinner routine.

Babble.com and mommy bloggers

I had my first real freelance writing opportunity come my way and was tasked with writing bios for the mom’s selected as the Top 100 Mommy Food Bloggers for Babble.com, a parenting website. While not exactly Saveur or Food & Wine, it’s a start, and something to put on my resume. Spending countless hours reading food blogs written by moms was an interesting process, some of them are really stellar, others, not so much. Regardless, I’ll be sure to post the list once it gets published so you can judge for yourself.

The Nate Berkus Show

OK, so the show doesn’t have much to do with food per-se, but Oprah’s latest spin off, diy design guru Nate Berkus, stopped by FCI a few weeks back to film a segment where one of his viewers got a personalized cooking lesson from one of my favorite chef’s, Tim Shaw. Never one to turn down an opportunity, I volunteered to appear as a student in the class and stopped in on my day off, which was great fun. Watch the clip below and see if you can spot me, my long brown ponytail seems to get the most airtime

The final stretch of culinary school

I can hardly believe this as I write it, but I only have 4 weeks left of school! It really feels like only yesterday that I was posing in my chef whites for the first time, full of nerves and excitement, but on March 16 (as long as I pass my final) I will be a graduate of the French Culinary Institute. I’ve been working in the school’s restaurant, L’Ecole, for the past few months and am still enjoying the experience. If any of you are in the New York area and want to stop in for dinner, make a reservation for any Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday and I’ll be there cooking for you.

Check out the nightly specials I came up with while working in the pastry kitchen:

Peanut butter banana cream pie

Trio of tart tatins: pineapple, sour cherry, and apple

What’s up next

The next month is going to be all about finishing culinary school strong, learning as much as I can from my internship, and trying to line up work post-graduation. My goal is to work freelance assisting food stylists and/or culinary producers, writing more, updating the site, and trying to build the Fun Fearless Foodie brand. Not sure where this adventure will take me next, but I can’t wait to find out!