Week 2 of Cooking 101

I recently started the culinary program at L'Academie de Cuisine and we worked on soups during our last class with the stock that we made during our first class. I'm still having a rough time getting used to no recipes and just technique. Chef Patrice Olivon tells stories about growing up in Southern France. We learned to make 4 soups... Butternut squash soup, cultivateur (the farmer), fish soup and consomme. The word Consomme translates to "completed" or "concentrated." Consomme is a clear soup made with ground meats, vegetables egg whites and stock. The simmering brings the impurities to the surface of the stock. The solids form a raft at the surface of th stock and it is held together by the egg whites. The end result is a clear liquid that is passed through a sieve. The clear consomme has so much flavor. Next week we are moving onto vegetables.
Photo by Emily Clack