January 28, 2007

Chefs4Students.org - Give Back to the Future of Your Industry Recent News on the Chef2Chef News Desk This Week's Foodservice Daily Newsletter: Hass Avocados - Year Round Flavor Visit our Newest Market Place Vendors The Hass Avocado Recipe of the Week: Tiny Tostadas of Smoky Chicken Tinga with Avocado and Aged Cheese Today's Top Professional Chef Forums New Jobs! Jobs at Chef2Chef.net!

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Chefs4Students.org - Give Back to the Future of Your Industry!

Chefs4Students.org, created and overseen entirely by Chef David and Pam Nelson, is a not-for-profit organization committed to giving back to the future of the industry. Chefs from all over the world come together and raise money by booking out their restaurants for food and wine pairings along with silent auctions. Generous culinarians donate what they can, including cash and product donations for auctions, cookbook donations and more. Visit Chefs4Students.org to learn how you can help (or how you can apply for aid).

Note:  All future culinary grant functions will  be organized through Chefs4Students.org - not Chef2Chef.net.

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 This Week's Foodservice Daily Newsletter: Hass Avocados - Year Round Flavor

Date: January 29, 2007 - February 2, 2007
Guest Host: Avocado.org
Theme: Haas Avocados - Year Round Flavor

• Monday: Avocado Scallop Ceviche; Avocado Roasted Garlic Dip.
  
• Tuesday: Avocado, Tomato and Mozzarella Tower Salad; Avocado Niçoise Salad.
  
• Wednesday: Argentinean Guacamole; Japanese Guacamole.
  
• Thursday: Avocado and Canadian Bacon Pizza; Avocado and Rock Shrimp Pizza.
  
• Friday: Curried Avocado Triangles with Fresh Mint Sauce; Honeyed California Avocado Crepes with Mango Sauce.

Not a Member Yet? Click here Foodservice Daily Newsletter to sign up today and start receiving these informative mailings on Monday!

The Hass Avocado

The Hass Avocado Board  (HAB) was formed in 2002 and is comprised of fresh Hass avocado producers and importers from California, Chile, Mexico, New Zealand, and the Dominican Republic. HAB is dedicated to ensuring a continuous supply of fresh Haas avocados to the United States, throughout the year. The following organizations are established or recognized under the Hass Avocado Promotion, Research and Information Act of 2000: California Avocado Commission, Chilean Avocado Importers Association, Mexican Hass Avocado Importers Association.

Taking advantage of seasonal differences from the various regions, and the fact that the Hass avocado is the only avocado variety that is grown and harvested all year round, the United States has been seeing year round supply of fresh Hass Avocados. In fact, in 2006 it was estimated that over 1 billion pounds of Fresh Hass Avocados entered the market from all suppliers who are members of the HAB.

Avocados will mature on the tree, but will not ripen until it’s picked. The dark pebbly green skin of the Hass avocado turns a purplish-black as it ripens.

With the smooth, silky texture with a rich, creamy, nutty flavor, it’s no wonder the Hass avocado is the most popular avocado variety. The Fresh Hass Avocado is versatile as it can be halved, sliced, diced. It can be grilled, baked, fried or served as it. Fresh avocados can be found in appetizers to desserts, even beverages.

The HAB created the first produce intranet – avoHQ.com. The purpose is to link global producers and importers of Hass avocados to exchange critical crop and marketing information. This enables a steady supply of Fresh Hass Avocados tio the market as producers and importers are better able to estimate the right market timing to pick and import the avocado.

Visit our Newest Market Place Vendors.

If items on your shopping list include specialty foods of all kinds, beverages, kitchenware, uniforms, services, gifts and more, please remember the Market Place sponsors who support Chef2Chef.net. They make all this possible. Thank you, from the team at Chef2Chef.

VermontButcherBlock Handmade butcher blocks, prof. cutting boards, decorative cheese/sushi boards & wine racks. Personal/Corp. logo laser engraving too!

At our campus in Hyde Park, New York, we don’t just have master chefs; we have the most Certified Master Chefs of any culinary college.    Inquire now!

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At our campus in Hyde Park, New York, we don’t just have master chefs; we have the most Certified Master Chefs of any culinary college on our outstanding faculty. We don’t just have alumni; we have a network of more than 37,000 graduates, many of them leaders in the food industry. We don’t just offer hands-on experience; students spend over 1,300 hours in the kitchen or bakeshop, more than at almost any other culinary school.

A CIA bachelor’s or associate degree in culinary arts or baking and pastry arts is an unmatched credential that will open doors to an endless number of exciting career opportunities for you.

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Today's Recipe: Tiny Tostadas of Smoky Chicken Tinga with Avocado and Aged Cheese

It's rare to pass a restaurant, snack shop or street stall in the Central Mexican town of Puebla without detecting the alluring aroma of shredded pork with smoky chipotle chile, tomato and sweet onion. Tinga they call it, and they spoon it into soft tacos or crusty rolls. I like to serve tinga piled onto crispy tortillas (tostadas, tostaditas or totopos, they call them), then top it with the typical Pueblan avocado and cheese. Tingas are often made with chicken, and occasionally I go further afield, to shredded smoked fish or quail. They're the perfect accompaniment to a well-made margarita.

24 small tostadas, enough for 6 to 8 guests 

Ingredients:

3/4 cup Chipotle-Cascabel Salsa
1/2 of a 15-ounce can whole tomatoes, with half the can's juice
1 tablespoon vinegar, preferably cider vinegar
1 small white onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
2 cups (loosely packed) coarsely shredded, cooked chicken (I'd either poach, grill or broil a large chicken breast or buy a small rotisserie chicken to shred)
Salt, about 1/2 teaspoon
24 good-size corn tortillas chips, preferably homemade thick ones
1 small ripe avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into 1/8-inch pieces
3 to 4 tablespoons finely grated Mexican queso añejo, Parmesan or Romano Chopped cilantro, for garnish

Preparation:

Combine the salsa, tomatoes with their juice and the vinegar in a blender or food processor and puree. In a large skillet, cook the onion in the oil over medium heat until crisp-tender and just beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Press the salsa mixture through a medium-mesh strainer into the skillet. Simmer, stirring regularly until quite thick, about 5 minutes. Stir in the chicken, cool, then taste and season with salt.

Arrange the chips on one or more serving platters. Top each with a heaping tablespoon of the chicken tinga, a few pieces of avocado, a sprinkling of cheese and cilantro, and they're ready to pass around.

Recipe from Chef Rick Bayless

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