“how do you stay faithfull in a room full of hoes”

Yes, no, maybe… but please lets not reject all the work and knowledge we had accumulated over the past decade. im seeing this trend to reject the creative process in favor of pretentious simplicity , aka elitism.

i came across this article, where the chef is boasting on how he took pictures and then threw away culinary “chemicals”, thus rejecting culinary heritage, thus these same perceived values he deeds to uphold when he said that there was  “…no mortar and pestle”.  So sad to blame the technology that propelled humans from sickness and poverty into wealthy nations.

so i raise the chalice to  you ” farm to table” and “bean to bar” people, but i don’t think that you’re “keeping it real” at all . there i said it…

kambocha

i was thinking of you, not in a positive way, nor a hateful one either; but more as a specimen, a curiosity case something that reveals as itself over a stretch of time. I’m not sure how long this stretch takes to become a truer revelation, do you?

is it pride that propels you to nose dive into a caldron of self imposed vail and confusion. when will the fog lift?  not sure why i thought of you, i guess take it as a compliment.

so i was asked to do a hands on workshop for the Starchefs.com annual chefs congress event.  i have been to this event the past 3 years and i wanted to add something unique. So instead of recipes, i’m going to talk about the concept of coming up with inspirations and harnessing the steps of architecture of a dish. In TechniqColor, a nod to Os Mutantes album, i’m going to show some technique of working with sugar, chocolate and color. here is some guidelines i came up with. Now i’m stressing that i;m not trying to put food in any kind of a bubble, i think that its just a good excercise for creative brain stretching or overcoming creative block.

Step 1.

Identify your collaborators and conspirators.  What is the medium you want to engage or wrestle with?  Is it stone, glass, smell, color, a phrase or a pun, collage, a gesture either physical or social?

Step 2.

Choose your technique(s), feel free to appropriate from unlikely places.  For instance, a technique of applying paper to make a collage-like painting is very similar to making a chocolate transfer, or relating glass blowing to sugar blowing, or curing metal is similar to crystallizing chocolate.

Step 3.

Reflect and question your motives. What is the relevance of my creation, and will my guests identify with or enjoy this?  Why is it important to showcase this fruit or this grain?  How does seriousness or playfulness translate at the diner’s table?  Does interactive dining make for a better dining experience or is it distracting?  What are the nuances and qualities that determine where your creation lies on a scale between subtle and obtrusive?

Step 4.

Rinse and repeat

StarChefs-2009-ICC-schedule

Lake Geneva / Leman Lake

Originally uploaded by Fritz Oley

what a difference 2 hours flight makes. i could not pick a more contrasting country to go to after morocco. Switzerland is everything and nothing in contrast with Morocco. I have a rash that was brought on food in morocco and I’m fine with that. my Moroccan doctor told me to stay away from foie gras, avocado, peanuts, sardines and chocolate. i’m also having perch from this lake and i feel good about this decision. sheep’s head in morocco followed by perch with potatoes natural style next to that lake. fine I’ll take it. seconds on potatoes, sure! oh and also boletus and morels mushrooms in sauce. ok why not! no one could tell me what not to eat, they don’t even know me. oh don’t forget about the wine, this one is just from across the street. great, lets try it!

fish

Originally uploaded by Fritz Oley

I was walking back to the hotel from the hamam (bath house) when i saw a fight in progress. Usually i shy away from taking photos in such public places, but then i saw this opportunity to take some photos of food stands that deal with selling single ingredient. since everyone had left their stands to watch this fight no one was selling or buying.

then i head the thumps and realized that what people were watching was pure violence. A man and a woman were hitting each other, and at this point the woman was down and the man was punching full thrusted nuckes to her flesh. I have no stomach to watch this violence so i walked away shaken by what i saw. hoping that the had subsided i came back to the same place only to see the woman get up and as the clowd moved out of her way, she ran over to the fish stand and grabed a knife. at first i thought surely she would yeild it at her attacker but she turned the knife on herself. i walked away in even more shakes. I was prepared to see the body or blood but i was not prepared to seethe impact itself, i sis not want to witness the action of the stab itself. i came back again only to see all the sellers packing away their products obviously shaken by whatever transpired. i guess no one wanted to go on with their night as usual.

double decker cattle truck

Its been  now 3 days now since i’ve stepped my foot in Morocco, this land of trinkets that are made only for export to a faux hippie youth all over the world as artifact to their spiritualism.  Interestingly enought the locals do not place importance on chatchka aesthetic, instead they really simplify their life to bare essentials at home.  The kids play with cardboard and other found objects and  just toss them to the side when they’re done.  The carved out little squares look like a large clay pots full of people busy to even notice that they live in a pottery of a city.

In the north of Morocco, the Mediterranean  diet of fresh goat cheese, cured olives, semolina breads and other simple preparation prevail.  Some hot mint tea please.

emply snail shells

what would we do without guidelines, how would we know when to stop if the vessel has no boundries. I mean without these clues we would be paralized by the posibilities.  Artists have mediums, i mean they can use many at ones, but there is finite number of element to introduce until the object of the artists affection becomes mute.

Its the times when i see artist work and i think, its perfect not a color more, not a stroke less,  it really fuels me and inspires me.  So people get a chance to have an audience to tell a story or to summon for a cause.  For me Robert Rauschenberg and Cy Twombly were the individuals who’s work instantly touched me.It was clear to me that we shared the same feelings, and they were able to show them so beutifully and with such clarity it still gives me goose bumps.

These are some chocolate transfers we’ve been working on

So Daniel and I went to Philly and made some treats to bring some sunshine to otherwise grey town.

One of my first jobs was assembling ceviche at a Latin American restaurant. By the 8th month, my hands were eaten away by citric acid and vinegar, and resembled a mars like soil. But here i was back in Philly, rehashing the past.

Not coincidentally, the hostess was my previous girlfriend and much of the furniture and the ambiance looked very familiar. I suspect that my memory rehash was largely because some of the furniture used to belong to me, but now was tastefully reinterpreted and nicely cohabited.

Anyway it was a blast so thanks for ya’ll for comin’

blackening of tomatillos

reducing orange juice with guajillos

bay scallops with mango and orange guajillo sauce

fluke with blacked tomatillos

the cookies jaime made were called alfajores

brahma beers

colleen, jaime, kate and christine are enjoying pisco sours

jaime , me and daniel.... a few piscos later