Rosé Sauce With A Twist

It was in the early 70s that I was lucky enough to purchase “The Grand Diplôme Cooking Course Books”; there are 20 volumes that teach you some of the techniques from the Cordon Bleu Cooking School. I read those books from cover to cover more than once trying hard to master it all. The books were filled with all the classic recipes. I didn’t make them all, but once in a while I would venture into this culinary heaven.

Later in 1992, I took a correspondence course of Catering and Gourmet Cooking. The main instructor was Chef Jacques Pépin who taught us how to succeed all these techniques. Let’s just say my family ate well during that period of my life.

As much as I loved cooking, I never made this as my career, but day-dreamed about it. I focused on preparing meals for my family and enjoyed organizing dinner parties for friends to show off a new chef d’oeuvres; my husband was great collaborator in this venture. Everything I learned made it more fun as well as a challenge. We didn’t have the Food Channel then to inspire us so my books were my bible.

Since then, many shortcuts and convenience products have appeared in the food industry. For a long time, I felt that it was cheating to buy anything that was not made from scratch. Now I am quite willing, even anxious to try these new methods; some are great while other are not so good. Beware, many have preservatives or too much salt and chemicals that can sometimes create problems; read the labels.

Many recipes call for beans; I found that instead of cooking dried beans, I often buy canned beans and rinse them well before adding to soups or casserole. You save a few hours of cooking and still get the great taste and nutrients.

I was taught to produce a good gravy and sauce you had to make a roux and whisk your broth in it. Another trick was to mix your flour and cold water in a jar and stir in the broth. I still enjoy making my gravy this way but, have you ever tried Veloutine? It is a powder that you stir or whisk into your broth; result no lumps; white or brown gravy, your choice and always perfect.

I love adding herbs to my recipes; not too many fresh herbs in our part of the world for a good 8 months of the year. Now they have them ready for you in a tube or frozen cubes; it beats that dry stuff anytime. You have to try ginger in a tube; it tastes perfect in your stir-fry.

Frozen or Refrigerated Cooked Chicken Strips are one of the best convenience food to have. How often would you like to add cooked chicken to your soup, salad or casserole? Never would I have considered buying this, but now I wouldn’t be without it.

Frozen Puff Pastry, phillo dough, pizza crust, Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie crust can make you look like a pro. I found out even the real pros take short cuts so can’t we? Makes easy monkey bread for the grandchildren.

A bag of frozen Chinese vegetables in the freezer will give a healthy stir fry in no time. Bagged Salad is not something I would use all the time, but so handy to have when need it. You can buy roasted red peppers already in a jar; fantastic for so many different recipes.

Most supermarkets now carry fresh pasta; some are really good; give them a try. This is fantastic ravioli from President’s Choice; it tastes almost like home made; very light; melts in your mouth good. They have stuffed with roasted vegetables or another one is stuffed with blue cheese. I served it with my own easy light Rosé sauce to accompany it.

Don’t be shy to try the new products out there. The companies have evolved and are producing some surprisingly tasty alternative. These days you can Google just about anything and get an honest review from consumers. A far cry for those TV dinners in the 70s.