SMSU Prepping for the Gala 2009

Southwest Minnesota State University

Prepping Blackened Filet Mignon

Mardi Gras Gala

Friday, October 9, 2009

It is game day!

OK, not Mustang Football game day, that will be tomorrow. Tonight is the Mardi Gras Gala and MY!! Big game day!

There is a laundry list of things that have to be last day prep just because of the nature of the beast. One of those are the C-Asian Marinated Asparagus Bundles. (Named because it is both Cajun and Asian isnpired. This is a recipe that is sorta the combination of my Carrot and Asparagus Bundles recipe, except without the carrots. We decided to leave out the carrots because there were already carrots in the Muffaletta Olive Salad. On Wednesday, the students had cleaned, blanched and marinated the asparagus in the Rice Wine Vinegar and Cajun Seasonings. NOW, we needed to blanch the leeks, strip out the green leafs which are used to tie up the bundles. And, of course, bundle the asparagus! ALL 300 plus of them!

Basically we had teams in 4 locations. Amanda, Wanda, Steph and Brian were cooking the Soft Shelled Crawfish, Turkey and Andouille Gumbo and Rice in the Culinology kitchen. Chad and I were cooking the Crawfish Nets Sauce and Blackened Filet Mignons in Aramark's kitchen. And BTW, I had to blacken 39 WHOLE Filets Mignons in their tilt skillet. WOW!

Michael Cheng led a team of Hospitality students in a make shift kitchen of the concession stand in the R/A Facility. This is were we heated, plated and served the hors d'ouevres.

Chef Dennis Nord of Aramark led the team in the rear of the R/A Facility for the main meal of the gala.

Decorations get you to the Mardi Gras.

Thanks to Jim Tate and Michael Cheng of SMSU for taking and supplying many of the above pics!!

Check out many other pics on Michael Cheng's Facebook Photo Album

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