Valentine's Day 2016

Last year there were 6 lucky couples in Atlanta that had arranged for a personal chef to come cook dinner for them in their homes on Valentine’s Day.  And I helped arranged each one of them.  So, around 3 pm, all the chefs and I met outside WholeFoods, so they could pick up last minute needed ingredients (vanilla bean gelato anyone?) and let me tell you, that was a planning mistake!  We couldn’t even find parking available at the Whole Foods on West Paces Ferry, and the whole place was a zoo!  There was literally a live band playing music inside the Whole Foods, I suppose to keep stressed shoppers a little bit calmer?   The place was chaos.  No gelato, no scallops, and shelves empty of your basic ingredients.  I still can’t figure out why everyone was in Whole Foods Valentine’s Day, but I am guessing many people planned a romantic evening in, and then were as surprised as I was to see the crowds in the middle of the afternoon!

This year, we’re planning better, and we’ll have all our needed ingredients on hand come Valentine’s Day afternoon.  In fact, we’re working all month to get everything ready.  This week, our head pastry chef is working on making the black sesame bonbons from scratch.   Our Guayaquil chocolate already came in (from Ecuador!), so we can get to work at our Prep Kitchen in Atlanta.

Hiring a personal chef for Valentine’s Day isn’t the cheapest option, but it will allow you to escape the madness that ensues around a busy, food-crazy city like Atlanta.  Our team of personal chefs has already created a wonderful menu (don’t worry, you still have options to choose from!) with you in mind, that will leave you with an amazing Valentine’s Day memory.  Passion fruit in the dessert, to remind you of the passion in your romance; chocolate, well we all know why you have to have chocolate on Valentine’s Day J  This year we’ll be brining champagne glasses for a pre-dessert toast.  Don’t drink alcohol, no worries, we’ll swap it out for a sparkling cider.  Valentine’s Day doesn’t have to be stressful or chaotic, it can peaceful and relaxing at home, with a great dinner prepared just for the two of you.

 

What should you expect?  Your chef for the evening will arrive about 2 ½ hours before your scheduled dinner time to start getting everything ready.  They’ll set your table with candles, hand-made menus, and have everything looking great for dinner time.  In the kitchen, they’ll be busy getting all the food ready.  Your kitchen will smell wonderful, and best part, you won’t have to be in there cooking and cleaning yourself!  At your scheduled dinner time, dinner will be served to you course by course, each course cleared before the next.

Why is it hard to maintain a healthy weight?

The answer to this question lies in the history of mankind. Long ago when human being used to live in caves, it was essential for them to eat as much they could, so they could store energy (fat) in order to survive. They never knew when or what their next meal would be. They had to spend a lot of time hunting (exercising) and going after their next meal. So, to eat a lot and get fat was a survival tactic, especially during the winter months when food was scarce. Also, most of what our ancestors ate was a diet based of protein (meat and nuts), vegetables, seeds, and fruits. A much better diet than what most people usually have today. 

Once humans learned about agriculture, they spent less time running or working for their food. Still, agriculture was a very hard job. Today, most of our jobs are not physically demanded and food is everywhere with easy access. We no longer need store energy during the winter months in order to survive, but still our biology has not changed since the Stone Age. Our bodies still wants to store fat because it was made that way to survive, but we don’t spend enough energy anymore running after food (exercising) in order to keep a stable balance diet. People that live in big cities such as,  Atlanta and the cities surrounding, such as Marietta, Kennesaw, Dunwoody, Buckhead, Vinings, Brookhaven, Decatur and Alpharetta, they are always in a hurry eating fast food or big proportion restaurant meals. With easy access to food and less exercise we are bound to increase our weight.  

So, what should we do then? Essentially, we should try to live like our ancestors did. Eat a balance diet and exercise. Our bodies were made for survival. It wants to store fat and that is normal. It is part of our nature. We just need to make sure we put in our exercise as well. To maintain a healthy weight it is not rocket science, it is a change of habit. This habit should not be hard to change because we did it throughout most of our existence, only in the past one-hundred-fifty years that it has changed. Atlanta Personal Chef Service is also here to help. We provide healthy delicious meals to our clients in the right proportions. We can’t do the exercise for you, but we sure can help you in the eating healthy part. Give us a try and we will prove to you how delicious meals can be healthy and desirable.  

How and Where to Buy Fresh Fish in Atlanta

As personal chefs here in Atlanta, we’re cooking fish on a weekly basis--if not more frequently. Its uber-important that we serve fresh and tasty fish to our clients. If you’re going to pay more for fish, make sure you get a great tasting fish by following these simple tips for purchasing fish.

First, only buy fish from a store that sells a high-volume of fish, thus helping to ensure that no fish stays on their shelves longer than a day or two maximum. When you approach the fish counter, it should, in no instance, smell like a briny waterfront. We recommend purchasing fish at Whole Foods, which has various locations around Atlanta. There are plenty of other suitable stores in the area as well, just make sure they are receiving fresh shipments daily.

When selecting the actual fish, it too should have no discernible fishy odor. Second, take a look at the eyes. If the eyes are cloudy looking, the fish has been sitting too long and should not be purchased. Make sure the skin of the fish looks bright and shiny--it should look a bit metallic. If the skin has lost its luster, don’t purchase it. Lastly, look for red gills, and move away from any fish with dark red or reddish brown gills, which indicates an old fish.

When selecting a fillet the fish should be moist, with a watery coating, but nothing that looks white or milky. This is a signal to steer clear. Also, touch the fillet to test for firmness and resilience. Your fingerprint should disappear on a good fillet. Of course, your fillet shouldn’t smell weird or fishy either.

Atlanta Personal Chef Service cooks fish frequently for both weekday meals and for dinner parties. Since we have a working relationship with the area Whole Foods, we always order our seafood in advance to ensure fresh fish, and enough of it. We special order the best cuts of the fish for fillets, so our servings are uniform, will cook evenly, and will look beautiful on the plate. You can easily pay well over $20 per pound for fresh fish, so make sure you know how to pick what will be the tastiest and freshest option. Fish is so versatile and so tasty, we hope this article provides you with the guidance you need to enjoy that fresh fish fillet!
Pictured below is seared halibut in a beurre blanc sauce served over homemade ravioli, which was served at a recent dinner party. For more information on our dinner party or weekly meal services, click here.

Seared Halibut served over Haricot Verts and Shrimp Ravioli