Final Exam; Kitchen Practical

This has been the day where most of us fear the most. We do not know what dish will be given to us on that day. It could be anything from duck breast to beef tenderloin to fish to rack of lamb! From the day I stepped into term6, I was praying hard to get FISH for my finals as it was one of the most easiest dish to prepare. Damn, I'm always hoping for the easy ones. Not challenging aite? :P

Anyhoo, I was unable to sleep well this morning as I was filled with stress. The moment I shut my eyes and try to get some sleep, my brain just automatically functions as though a movie was projected in my head. I may have doze off, but when I woke up, it doesn't feel as though I actually slept. I was having a movie-dream on what and how to do things during the exam. I tried going back to sleep but failed and decided to just Facebook lol. I still remember, it was 4.32am and my heart was beating fast. I knew that the exam is gonna begin very soon. "I'm not ready at all!", I kept telling myself. "What if this this this happens and my commis isn't good and I screwed up this this this...", the questions goes on and on.

I was the second earliest to arrive, at 6.05am, carrying my super heavy plates, a huge ikea bag (yeah that huge blue bag), and my bag pack. As more people start to arrive, when they saw my bag, they were somewhat intimidated? Hahaha. I'm not showing off or anything but it's just to be safe. I feel comfortable using my own equipments. I even brought my own rolling pin and wire whisk in case of emergency! :x

At 6.45am, the chef informed us that we are going to start the exam. We were guided to the restaurants to complete our written exam; writing of fiche technique (recipes) and time organization chart. The restaurant was super cold this morning as though I was in a morgue. I was feeling very nervous already at that point. The question paper was just in front of me!

The moment the chef said, "Ok, you can take a look at your question paper now", I quickly opened it to see what I am supposed to cook!

First course: Seafood Quiche (A huge smile on my face!)

Second course: Beef Tenderloin with Bearnaise sauce (Heart sank when I saw the Bearnaise sauce)

Third course: Crepe aux Chantilly (Heart sank again...."WHY CREPES! T.T", I yelled in my heart)

And yeah, I quickly start doing my fiche technique. As I was going through my ingredients list, I realized that the vegetables were more suitable for fish? There were zuchinis and asparagus. No french beans, no broccoli, no cauliflower. Most importantly, NO GARLIC. I was so frustrated as I was not able to make my sundried tomatoes. But life has to go on....It's my final exams here we're talking about! I cannot afford to fail :O!

As the clock strikes 9am, we were brought in to the kitchen and we were able to set our station. We were supposed to brief the commis at that time and I didnt know. Gah. Time wasted again. But everything ended up pretty well. There were capsicums too not to forget =.=. I do not know how to utilize it well and decided to make a Gaspatcho for my starters. It's basically a vegetable juice; blended capsicums, tomatoes and shallots. Rushed my way through all the preparations and cooking!

As you can see in the picture below, my appetizer is the one with the rectangle plate and a shot glass on it.

I had a salad dressed with white wine vinaigrette, seafood quiche and a refreshing gaspatcho accompaniment.

Then below, was my main course. I had a pan seared beef tenderloin served with bearnaise sauce and beef jus (we had to make 2 sauces...), carrot puree, caramelized potatoes, sauteed button mushrooms and vegetable bayaldi. I kept my plating real simple and I hope you guys are somehow able to picture it? I'm really sorry for not being able to snap a perfect picture of it due to the lack of time and by the time I got to the judging room, my presentation plate(in the picture) has been destroyed by some hungry people!

Then now, presenting my dessert! I ended it with a wow factor I hope!

Crepes aux chantilly served with mango coulis and mixed fruits. I loved my dessert so much! It looks so pretty~~~

Man, why can't I be good at both cooking and baking instead of just majoring in desserts...

Hahahaha, we just had to pose after the exam :P!

Session One candidates!

I'm feeling so free right now! Mwahahhaha