Friday, August 2, 2013

THE INTERNATIONAL GUESTS

were expected to arrive around noon.  I got to the Amish barn around 10:00 a.m.  Everything appeared to be an inter-generational smoothly-run hive of activity.  It was a marvel to behold. 
















These Amish women are adept at cooking for a crowd!


Two non-Amish women who work for Oasis were prepping the salads when I arrived, and they put me to work.  (I'll just tell you behind my hand, Reader Dear, the hard parts had already been done.  I tore up gorgeous fresh lettuce, already washed.  Scooped from bowls full of onions, cucumbers, tomatoes, and sweet peppers, all freshly sliced.  I had fun!) 



















Sixty salad plates were prepared, covered with Saran wrap, and put in the cooler.  Then someone brought me a jar full of red beet eggs.  This is a genuine Amish food, Dear Reader--hard boiled eggs marinating amongst pickled beets.  "These should be sliced," I was told.  "We'll put them on the salads at the very last minute."  Those little eggs were such beauties!  But then, so were the Amish children!

 Meanwhile, out in the yard those Amish children were anticipating offering drinks to the chefs upon their arrival. "What would you like, Meadow Tea or Lemonade?"  And the Amish women were steadily and calmly moving about the stoves.  Preparing Roast Beef.  Chicken Croquettes.  Succotash. Mashed potatoes and Gravy. Green beans with bacon. Fresh Baked Rolls.  Homemade Ice Cream.  Peach Pie.  All that food, and they seemed unflappable!


But me, as the clock moved closer and closer to noon, 
I was pondering all the things that could go wrong.
Suppose I were to drop a whole tray of salads?
(We'd already come up a little short on lettuce, and the Amish woman who lived there had run to her garden and gathered more greens, washed them, and carried them to me.)  

Teen-age girls were readying the bread baskets, the butter plates and dishes of jelly.  Oasis folks were working on the cheese plates.
Now it was noon.  Expected Time of Arrival.
A reporter and cameraman from the local paper had shown up.
Leroy (co-manager of Oasis) was giving them a run-down of the menu, with lots of garnishes thrown in!  (Eat lard, all you women!  It prevents wrinkles!)








Young Amish women were mashing the potatoes with
an Amish mixer.

Amish  boys were filling the glasses with ice.



And Leroy's sister was frying the chicken croquettes!


"She makes the best chicken croquettes in the county!" declared Leroy.


Thus everything was at the ready when the bus full of chefs pulled in!


......




Disembarking were:
From AUSTRIA, Rupert Schnait, Chef in Charge of Official Receptions
         CANADA, Timothy Wasylko, Chef to the Prime Minister of Canada
         PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CHINA, Men JianZhong and Liu Qiang, Chefs to the Great Hall of the People in Beijing
         DENMARK, Jesper Vollmer, Chef to Her Majesty Margrethe II, Queen of Denmark
         FINLAND, Isto Tahvanainen, Chef to the President of the Republic of Finland
         FRANCE, Bernard Vaussion, Chef to the President of the Republic of France
         GABON, Charles Ferrier Richardson, Chef to the President of the Gabonese Republic
         GERMANY, Ulrich Kerz, Chef to the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany
         INDIA, Machindra Kasture, Chef to the President of the Republic of India
         ITALY, Pietro Catzola and Giovanni Santangelo, Chefs to the President of the Italian Republic
         ISRAEL, Shalom Kadosh, Chef in Charge of Official Receptions
        MONACO, Christian Garcia, Chef to His Serene Highness Albert II, Soverign Prince of Monaco
        POLAND, Grzegorz Rzeszotarski, Chef to the President of the Republic of Poland
        SWEDEN, Magnua Rehback, Chef to His Majesty Carl XVI Gustaf, King of Sweden
        SRI LANKA, Anton Brinsley Rohan Fernandopulle, Chef in Charge of Official Receptions
        SWITZERLAND, Gregor Zimmermann, Chef in Charge of Official Receptions
        THAILAND, Norbert Kostner, Grand Chamberlain for His Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej, King of Thailand
        UNITED KINGDOM, Mark Flanagan, Chef to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
        UNITED STATES, Cristeta Comerford, White House Executive Chef
        UNITED NATIONS, Dan Lopez, Executive Chef for the Delegates' Dining Room

                        Ah, Reader Dear...These folks were about to be served a meal in a barn!



......
(More to come...food, you know,
  and otherwise)



4 comments:

LTF said...

WoW!! Just WOW!!!

Etta said...

Loving the courses!

gyjb50 said...

I am following this recent series of yours, and it's fascinating. What a unique experience for all involved. The menu looks scrumptious, but the chicken croquettes are what I would have loved to taste. It appears you were thoroughly enjoying yourself.

KTdid said...

Yes, gyjb, it was a very unique experience. It was an honor to meet all those distinguished chefs!
Hope to soon be able to finish my story! Q.