Task 33- Catch 2 Live Sporting Events (Boston RedSox vs. Tampa Bay Rays)

After a washout the night before Dustin Pedroia Bobblehead night became part of a doubleheader. With the rescheduled game still in question most of the day the weather held and the stands filled slowly. It was a quiet start with the RedSox's Dustin Pedroia scoring 1 run in the first. After a no score second inning the Tampa Bay Rays scored a run each in the 3rd and 4th innings bring the score to 2-1 at the end of the fourth.

The excitement came when Dustin Pedroia slid into home and was called out to the roar of disapproval from the crowd. The challenged play started with David Ortiz lofting a double high off the Green Monster. Pedroia raced from first in an attempt to tie up the game. As he slid into home plate first-base upire Toby Basner called him out. A frustrated Pedroia popped up immediately and showed his frustration.

Third-base coach Brian Butterfield threw down his helmet in disgust and was promptly ejected from the game. As he stormed off the field Sox Manager John Ferrell challenged the call and after a delay for the umpires to review the call and the whole stadium watching it replayed on the jumbo-tron the call stood. The roar from the stand’s all booing the call was deafening. 

The game went on but the Sox couldn’t pull off another run. It ended with a disappointing 2-1 loss. The only upside was that on Dustin Pedroia Bobble head night Dustin pulled his weigh and scored the only run and almost a second.

The burning question at the end of the 2-1 loss to the Rays was did Dustin Pedrioa’s left foot tough home plate? If you listened to the crowd during the replay you would have said it most certainly did. Sadly for the Sox the umpire’s didn’t agree and the call was upheld.

Task 42 - Take a Cooking Class (Date Night - Romantic Italy)

Class Description: Bring your favorite date or friend and together combine ingredients to produce incredibly authentic, rustic and refined flavors of Italy. Under the instruction of our in-house chef, you’ll learn a variety of techniques. Prepare a savory appetizer, learn tips for cooking chicken, create a pan sauce, make a delicious side and finish with an incredibly decadent cheesecake. Savor the abundant flavors and learn simple preparation techniques so you may create a sumptuous Tuscan menu together at home.

Menu: Polenta Bites with Gorgonzola and Olives – Prosciutto-Wrapped Chicken Breast with Lemon Sage Cream Sauce – Broccoli Sautéed in Wine and Garlic – Honey-Ricotta Cheesecake

Instructor: Jeff Kaye

For my birthday I decided to take another cooking class at Sur La Table. I have taken many before and always had a great experience and thought it would end a great day of fun at the circus. A few of my co-workers decided to join me and we selected Date Night: Romance in Italy because its menu sounded delicious.

The menu started off with polenta bites with gorgonzola and olives. I am not a fan of olives so this wasn’t really something that sucked me in but the Main entrée of prosciutto-wrapped chicken with a lemon sage cream sauce more than made up for it. For a side we would make broccoli sautéed in a wine and garlic sauce and to top it all off one of my favorites a cheesecake. Not just your typically cheesecake but a honey-ricotta cheesecake.

This class was taught by an instructor I had not yet taken a class with before. His name is Jeff Kaye and his background includes being a chef at several restaurants such as MetBar and Grill, Watch City Brewery and chef/owner of Fava Restaurant. In addition to his professional career he is an instructor at Cordon Bleu’s Boston Campus. 

After washing our hands and a brief introduction by Chef Kaye we got started right away on the first task. Some believe that desert is the best part of a meal and as such that is what we started with. No we didn’t eat it first but we did start our cheesecake since it takes the longest. The key to a great cheesecake is allowing it to set and as such it was the first of the courses we needed to prepare.

To help speed the process Chef Jeff had already prepared the graham cracker crust. The process isn’t difficult. You crush your graham crackers up and mix in melted butter. Form an even layer at the bottom of your spring form pans. Then bake the crust for 8-10 minutes to lightly brown it.

While it’s baking you want to mix the remaining ingredients. Using a mixer add the ricotta and blend until smooth. Then add the cream cheese and sugar until smooth. The last step is to add the honey and orange zest. Once everything is combined and smooth. Pour mixture into your prepared crust. Bake for 40-45 minutes at 325-degrees. Center will be slightly giggly. It will stiffen while cooling.

Before starting the appetizer Chef Jeff took a few minutes to review proper knife handling. He taught us proper technique and also a few tricks. Once comfortable we began prepping all of our remaining ingredients so when we begin cooking we wouldn’t have to stop to cut our vegies. This process is called mise en plas. It’s a French term for “putting in place” all the ingredients. Once done we organized all the ingredients on separate baking sheets and set all but one aside.

We started next on our polenta bites with a gorgonzola and olive tapenade. Polenta is one of those things that is very easy to make. You start off bringing your vegetable broth to a slow rolling boil. Then you slowly whisk in the polenta to avoid lumps. Once combined you keep stirring until the polenta has absorbed all the broth and begins to pull away from the sides of the pot. Once done we took the finished mixture and evenly distributed it across a baking pan. We let it cool in the fridge while we started our tapenade.

The tapenade is something I would totally change. I hate olives and this is very heavy on the olives. Using the food processor we combined our garlic, sun-dried tomatoes and olives in the bowl and pulsed until the ingredients were roughly chopped. Then we began adding ¼ cup of olive oil and pulsed to combine. 

The final step was assembly. We used a square cookie cutter to form small bite size 2”x2” squares of polenta and topped them with the olive tapenade. Rather than wait until the end we took that opportunity to sample our first course. I topped my polenta bites with just a little gorgonzola. I won’t lie but these were not my favorite. They needed something but I’m not sure what.

After finishing the appetizer course it was a perfect time to take a break. While we explored the store the kitchen staff was cleaning up our mess and prepping for the main course. Chef Jeff joined us and showed off some of the tools he was using and explained what made one better then another. 

After about 15 minutes we returned to the kitchen and jumped right into our main entrée preparation. We started by working on the sauce. Every good pan sauce starts with butter and this entrées lemon sage cream sauce is no different. Using a saucepan we melted the ½ the butter over medium heat and then added our shallots and cooked until softened. Once soft we up’d the head to medium-high and added the cream, wine and broth. Once boiling we lowered the heat to medium and simmered the liquid until it reduced to about 1½ cups from the starting 3 cups of ingredients. Once reduced we removed it from the head and added the remaining butter and incorporated. Right at the end we added the chopped sage and lemon juice. We put aside on very low head just to keep it warm.

Next we seasoned our chicken with salt and pepper before wrapping each breast in a strip of prosciutto in a spiral. Then using canola oil we seared our chicken wrapped in prosciutto until nicely browned. Then we put the chicken on a baking sheet covered in foil and baked in a preheated 350-degree oven for about 15 minute of until the chicken wrapped prosciutto reaches 165-degrees.

While the chicken was baking in the oven we started our side. Our side for the evening was a broccoli sautéed in wine and garlic. To cook the broccoli we started with a large pot of water as “salty as the sea” on medium heat. We boiled the broccoli for about 3 minutes before draining it and blanching in to stop it from cooking any farther. You want your broccoli to be tender but not mushy.

In a skillet we cooked our shallots in a little canola oil until softened. Then we added the garlic and cooked until fragrant. Next we took our broccoli and added and tossed it until well coated with oil and garlic. Next we added the chili flakes and white wine and cooked until the sauce reduced by ½. We removed it from heat and added lemon zest and juice and parsley and tossed until combined.

The final step of the process was to plate the meal. We put our chicken and broccoli on the plate and put a healthy ladle of our lemon sage sauce over the chicken. We then all sat down and enjoyed the fruits of our labor. Everyone was in agreement that it was delicious. This is definitely a sauce I will make at home. It was quick and simple and extremely tasty.

Our dessert was served next and it was topped with fresh raspberries. While also very flavorful and delicious it didn’t quite set to its optimal firmness and as such was a little loose in the center. It is definitely a dessert I will give another try because I enjoyed the flavors but I would modify the recipe to make individual size cheesecakes instead of a larger one.

While the class started off a bit awkwardly Chef Jeff rose to the occasion and got all of us involved and interested in the process. While we enjoyed our desserts he recapped each recipe and added a few personal tidbits to help us repeat the menu at home. It was a great experience and I will be sure to take another classes hopefully sooner than later. 

Big Apple Circus comes to Beantown

The Big Apple Circus has been around for over 35 years amazing audiences with their circus acts. There are only about 15 rows under their small tent giving every seat a great view. Every seat is within 50ft of the ring. I have been many times over my past 34 years for my birthday.

This year was no different and I got a chance to see their new show Luminosity which celebrates the 24/7 hustle, bustle and vitality of life at the “Crossroads of the World”. The show is designed to take place in very crossroads of the world we all know as Time Square. 

We got there a little early and were one of the first to take our seats under the big tent. It's a cool experience being under the big tent almost completely by yourself. The rows of seats cast in the blue glow from the light is very cool.

If you have every been to NYC then you know getting around the busy intersection requires a fair amount of skill and coordination. Many of the characters you meet are represented by performers such as Japanese juggler Ty Tojo. His character runs a hotdog cart. Like the real vendors who juggle customers and product Ty handles first three, then four, five, six and seven balls effortlessly. This 2014 Guinness Book of World Record holder didn’t disappoint as he dazzled the audience with his uncanny ability.

Between acts we were entertained by the amusing and talented clown Rob Torres. His humorous skits definitely kept us well distracted from the preparations for each act. What I enjoyed most was his ability to get the audience to participate using props such as the cheer box.

He also made a variety of interesting balloon animals for the younger audience members such as a question mark and Sunglasses.

What city isn’t always under some kind of construction and repair man can be found everywhere. The circus portrays French circus pro Daniel Cry as a paint splattered ladder carrying repair man who channels Fred Astaire with his gravity defying latter act. It was awe inspiring to watch him balance effortlessly on his ladder.

As amazing as he was the next act stayed mostly on the ground but balance and strength are just as important. The Acro-Duo show up like construction workers and proceed to build mind boggling examples of balancing city life with their bodies as the medium. Their hand-to-hand, hand-to-feet, shoulder-to-shoulder and hand to head poses are an impressive feat of human skill.

As preparation for the next act took place we were entertained by Pierre Ginet who showed us that slight of hand can help you take anything from anyone. His flimflam abilities on one unfortunate audience member had us all amused and the victim wondering what happen.

By the end of the act the poor guy had empty pockets and a confused look on his face. It was amazing to see how easily a person can be pickpocketed by a skilled professional.


Next we meet the local dog walker and her four legged companions. Jenny Vidbel treated us with a performance by her perky pooches. Try to stir clear of those leashes. My favorite part was the miniature horse who acted like a taxi cab for his other four legged friends.

High above all the fray in any city are those who wash the windows of our high rise office buildings and keep our views clear. Many of them are aerialist themselves and the Mongolian Angels represents their contribution to city life. Without fear they ascend 20 feet up and perform a series of high flying stunts sure to make anyone hang on the edge of their seats.

After the intermission we got to see Jenny Vidbel once more with her amazing horses. These large animals sashayed their way around the ring like synchronized swimmers. Each following the lead of the other in a perfectly choreographed production.

Rob Torress returned once more with a series of amusing and audience capturing gaffs designed once more to distract from the setup for the high wire act of Duo Guerrero. They represent the many skilled construction workers building those gleaming glass towers and balancing on steel girders high above our heads. Once preparation was completed they ascended to their perch high above. The female member of the group serenaded us along the way.

Once high above she performed a series of daredevil acts such as balancing on a chair, walking blindfolded across, sitting precariously while her male counterpart danced his way effortlessly and even jumped over her. As they wrapped up their skilled performance they descended gracefully with her standing balanced on his shoulders. It certainly was a great experience.

The final act was the Dosov Troupe. They represent everyone in the city trying to make their way to their destinations. Navigating the crowded streets requires skill and precision. Their teeterboard performance not only had their flying cast members soaring high but each and every audience member mesmerized by their flips and spins as they spun and flipped their way back to the ground. Their sculpted lean muscular bodies helped them twist and flip in unimaginable ways and like a cat landing perfectly on their feet.

One of the most important people however is the ringmaster John Kennedy Kane who throughout the performances introduces and delights. His relationship with the two clowns both amused and intrigued the audience and provided perfect transitions between the bigger acts. The first of the clowns was an adorable goofball named Rob Torres who seemed to collect the energy of the crowd in a box while his cohort Pierre Ginet spent his evening pick pocketing unsuspecting audience members. 

The whole show is designed to remind us that Luminocity is the City of Life and while the reality of life in the big city can be daunting it is all still just the circus of humanity. All the performers came out for one final bow at the end while the audience showed their appreciation with a hearty applause.