Anything You Would Never Do at a Show Again?

[chefann]

I guess you do know why! LORD, what is wrong with people!! She could have kept those comments to herself and just not placed an order! Hope the show turns out okay and that the host gets lots of outside orders.

Some people think that the world needs to hear every little thought that pops into their head. They have no internal editor to determine if it's actually appropriate or not.

 

[kam]

Yep, that's happened to me too! Asked a host for the chicken for making the jerk chicken nachos, and there she goes, reaching into her freezer!! Then, there was a mad dash to cook it all before the show was ready to start. Of course, I take most of the blame for that, because if my host coaching skills had of been up to par, this would not have happened!!

This happened for me with BACON AND CHICKEN for the Chicken Club Brunch Ring. And I know we discussed it on the phone since the conversation went like this:
I told her she neeed to have the Bacon and Chicken cooked before I got there. Then she yelled "Cooked??? Cooked??? You don't COOK bacon! You FRY it." So I told her however she cooked it so it wasn't RAW when I got there, I didn't care. So she explained to me AGAIN that you don't cook bacon, you fry it. So I told her, yes, please have the bacon fried and the Chicken cooked before I got there. (Geez.)

So you would think she would have remembered! Then I asked for the chicken and bacon right before the show to get things set up and she didn't even know if she had any chicken in the house! Good thing she had some frozen, so we cooked it up!

I don't know how any other degree of host coaching would have helped...Except I now go over ALL ingredients AS SOON as I get to the house, so if any are missing, the host can find a way to get the item. lol

 

[KellyTheChef]

All of these ingredient mishaps is EXACTLY why I bring the ingredients and they reimburse me at close. Makes my life MUCH easier and less stressful!

 

[nikked]

In defense of Phyllo DoughIn defense of Phyllo Dough...I love it!!!!

The trick that I have learned is to dampen a TPC kitchen towel (or two...my DH and I usually do the asparagus spears together, so we each take a stack). The TPC towels are the perfect size and don't produce fuzzies. Lay the towel over the stack of phyllo dough, and go to town. As long as you don't let the sheets dry out, they work perfectly (almost) every time. I had a roommate at one time who was Greek and taught me how to make Baklavah (sp?)...I learned the towel trick from her. Hmmm...need to find that recipe!!!

Give it a try...I find that the little bit of extra effort that Phyllo Dough requires is well worth the unbelievably flaky results! Ever had Baklavah (sp?)?...now, that's work! But it's not the Phyllo Dough that makes it hard...it's everything else involved!!!

HTH...SIID!!!

 

[kam]

All of these ingredient mishaps is EXACTLY why I bring the ingredients and they reimburse me at close. Makes my life MUCH easier and less stressful!

I have been on the fence with this - and I agree that it would eliminate SO many issues! But my stores s*ck around here for having things in stock - so I could see myself running around from store to store trying to find an ingredient. Can I tell you how many times our plum tomatoes have fruit flys or are mushy!!?? Or the Crescent rolls all have expired dates on them-hello?? Unfortunately, I could go on and on.

So that holds me back. Then there are the times I have weeknight or Friday night shows that I need to go to right from work!!

 

[cwinter474]

Kelly, wondering if you ever have an issue with the host wanting to pay you back? How do you word it to them. I have been thinking about this and I really think it is the way to go.

 

[KellyTheChef]

Kelly, wondering if you ever have an issue with the host wanting to pay you back? How do you word it to them. I have been thinking about this and I really think it is the way to go.

In my host coaching, I just mention it matter of factly....this is something I do as a bonus to my hosts, and to help alleviate stress for me (tell them about hosts who have purchased the wrong items and then we are winging the recipe with incorrect stuff). Then, I tell them ahead of time that when we close out their show, I will settle up with them then. That way, if they want to put it on their debit card or something, I just add it to their total order.

I also have them pay me for their postage if their show does not hit $1,000.

Just recently, I had a host who I think was really tight on money. She called me the day before her show and asked what the ingredients were, so if she had them on hand could we use her stuff. It ended up that she provided the chicken (for Chicken Enchilada Ring) and the sour cream.

I have found that if you just word it like "this is the way I do business and this is how I handle it" they just take it in stride. When I first started doing it, I sounded wishy-washy and got a lot of flack from them. Once I took control, I have had no problems!

 

[PChefPEI]

Re: In defense of Phyllo Dough

In defense of Phyllo Dough...I love it!!!!

The trick that I have learned is to dampen a TPC kitchen towel (or two...my DH and I usually do the asparagus spears together, so we each take a stack). The TPC towels are the perfect size and don't produce fuzzies. Lay the towel over the stack of phyllo dough, and go to town. As long as you don't let the sheets dry out, they work perfectly (almost) every time. I had a roommate at one time who was Greek and taught me how to make Baklavah (sp?)...I learned the towel trick from her. Hmmm...need to find that recipe!!!

Give it a try...I find that the little bit of extra effort that Phyllo Dough requires is well worth the unbelievably flaky results! Ever had Baklavah (sp?)?...now, that's work! But it's not the Phyllo Dough that makes it hard...it's everything else involved!!!

HTH...SIID!!!

Yes, you are right, when the dough is kept moist, it does handle better, but it's still time consuming (in my opinion). But, please, when you find your recipe for Baklavah, I would love it if you would post. They are sooooo delicious!!!

 

[KellyTheChef]

This recipe is for Baklava BARS...similar in taste, and WAY EASIER!! Now, it does NOT replace baklava, but if you want the taste without the hours of work, these are super! I got tons of compliments on these! I think I got them off of the Betty Crocker website....



Here are the baklava bars. It only called for 8 of the 12 phylo shells to be used. I decided to crumble up 8 and add to the filling part, then crumble the remaining 4 on the top before baking the second time. I also decreased the amount of chopped walnuts to 1 cup.




Baklava Bars (Cookie Mix)


292 Ratings
53 Reviews
Prize-Winning Recipe 2007! Love classic Baklava? Fall in love with an easy way to get the same Greek signature flavors using cookie mix and crushed fillo shells.

Prep Time:25 min
Start to Finish:2 hr 50 min
Makes:24 bars


Cookie Base
1 pouch (1 lb 1.5 oz) Betty Crocker® sugar cookie mix
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 teaspoon grated lemon peel
1 egg
Filling
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
8 frozen mini fillo shells (from 2.1-oz package)
Glaze
1/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons butter or margarine, softened
1 tablespoon packed brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla
Garnish
5 tablespoons honey


1. Heat oven to 350°F. Spray bottom only of 13x9-inch pan with cooking spray.
2. In large bowl, stir cookie base ingredients until soft dough forms. Press dough in bottom of pan. Bake 15 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in medium bowl, stir walnuts, granulated sugar, 1/4 cup butter, 1 teaspoon cinnamon and the salt with fork until mixture is well mixed and crumbly.
4. Sprinkle nut mixture evenly over partially baked base. With hands, crumble frozen fillo shells evenly over nut mixture. Bake 18 to 20 minutes longer or until golden brown.
5. Meanwhile, in small microwavable bowl, microwave 1/3 cup honey, 2 tablespoons butter, the brown sugar, lemon juice and 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon uncovered on High 1 minute or until bubbly. Stir in vanilla.
6. Drizzle honey mixture evenly over fillo. Cool completely, about 2 hours.
7. For bars, cut into 6 rows by 4 rows. Before serving, drizzle 1/2 teaspoon honey over each bar. Store covered at room temperature.
High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): In step 2, bake crust 17 minutes.



Nutrition Information:

1 Serving: Calories 250 (Calories from Fat 130); Total Fat 14g (Saturated Fat 5g, Trans Fat 1g); Cholesterol 25mg; Sodium 115mg; Total Carbohydrate 29g (Dietary Fiber 0g, Sugars 21g); Protein 2g Percent Daily Value*: Vitamin A 4%; Vitamin C 0%; Calcium 0%; Iron 4% Exchanges: 2 Other Carbohydrate; 0 Vegetable; 1/2 High-Fat Meat; 2 Fat Carbohydrate Choices: 2
*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.

 

[cwinter474]

Newbie bump

 

[teresah551393]

I will never again go all out to try to make up for a simple mistake I might make in the pre-show phase. I once sent out all the invitations for a show, 50 of them, however, I forgot to put the show information on them!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so humiliated, I apologized profusely, and as soon as she called me to tell me about the mistake I got another batch of invites, 52 this time, ready and at the post office in 1 1/2 hours. I told her she could choose a free spice, and each guest that came could get $2 off their shipping. At her show, I forgot her free paring knife she won from the show she booked from. A friend of hers put in an order on my website, but did it as an individual order, I had no idea this person was to be a guest of this show. The host was angry that her friends order wouldn't count towards her sales, she insisted that her friend put the order in correctly. Then it still gets worse.......The whole show, she reminded me of my mistake with the invites, treated me as hired help, I had to stand off the dining area while they all sat around the table and ate, was not included in any conversation, couldn't talk to them while they ate. Then she also had a friend who was invited to order from a bridal registry but wanted this host to get credit for it. I tried to explain to them that you can't really do that but they wanted to anyway. They did the gift order but wanted me to call the bride or consultant of the registry and tell them to take that item off the reg. but I did put my foot down there and said no, that was up to you. So, that's right, I let them steal an order from another consultant, I am ashamed! Sorry it it was any of you. Then at closing, she was about $30 away from the next level but we had to close, she said okay, we closed and submitted then called me to ask if there was anything we could do about that because she felt I cheated her out of $20 in free product and another half price item. I have learned to say no to certain things, I will not let someone walk on me again. I will never go over the top to make up for a simple mistake again, I will say I am so sorry and go on!!!!!!!! The customer is always right only goes so far! Not a recipe disaster but it is my " what I will never do again".

 

[raebates]

If it makes you feel any better, if it were my customer's registry I wouldn't feel like you stole an order. You were just serving your host well.

 

[chefsteph07]

I will never again go all out to try to make up for a simple mistake I might make in the pre-show phase. I once sent out all the invitations for a show, 50 of them, however, I forgot to put the show information on them!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so humiliated, I apologized profusely, and as soon as she called me to tell me about the mistake I got another batch of invites, 52 this time, ready and at the post office in 1 1/2 hours. I told her she could choose a free spice, and each guest that came could get $2 off their shipping. At her show, I forgot her free paring knife she won from the show she booked from. A friend of hers put in an order on my website, but did it as an individual order, I had no idea this person was to be a guest of this show. The host was angry that her friends order wouldn't count towards her sales, she insisted that her friend put the order in correctly. Then it still gets worse.......The whole show, she reminded me of my mistake with the invites, treated me as hired help, I had to stand off the dining area while they all sat around the table and ate, was not included in any conversation, couldn't talk to them while they ate. Then she also had a friend who was invited to order from a bridal registry but wanted this host to get credit for it. I tried to explain to them that you can't really do that but they wanted to anyway. They did the gift order but wanted me to call the bride or consultant of the registry and tell them to take that item off the reg. but I did put my foot down there and said no, that was up to you. So, that's right, I let them steal an order from another consultant, I am ashamed! Sorry it it was any of you. Then at closing, she was about $30 away from the next level but we had to close, she said okay, we closed and submitted then called me to ask if there was anything we could do about that because she felt I cheated her out of $20 in free product and another half price item. I have learned to say no to certain things, I will not let someone walk on me again. I will never go over the top to make up for a simple mistake again, I will say I am so sorry and go on!!!!!!!! The customer is always right only goes so far! Not a recipe disaster but it is my " what I will never do again".

That is a horrible story...I"m so sorry you had to go through that.

 

[Chef Bobby]

Not being offensive here so please don't take it personal. Its just I travel for work so when I'm on the East coast I always say "back in my country" for example, in Connecticut they call it a "pocket book" on the west coast its a purse or bag. I say FREEWAY and they say HIGHWAY. Here we say "you are all done" there they say "all set". In a fast food restaurant, here it is "for here or to go" on the East coast they say "to stay or to go". I could go on, and some of its not nice so I will stop here.
Tammy

Sorry I know you arent being offensive and I don't take it as that but I also think that it varies state to state beyond coastal differences. Where in NY I would always say and here for here or to go I've never heard or said to stay or to go. I get the freeway highway thing too but I knew a girl in college who was from Delaware and she called it a freeway too and it's still the east coast. I was born and raised in NY on the east coast. My sister also was but now lives in CA. so I always hear about the differences from her. I just found your post to be enlightening and funny as well.[/QUOTE]

Last year at conference I sat at a table with two ladies and they laughed everytime I said something. I wasn't trying to be funny.

 

[teresah551393]

If it makes you feel any better, if it were my customer's registry I wouldn't feel like you stole an order. You were just serving your host well.

Thanks, but I will really never allow someone to do that again! I didn't think it was fair to the bride b/c she lost out on show total or to the consultant who lost out on the comm. sale.

Even after all thos invites and free gifts, she only had 4 people attend and it was about $270 in sales, no bookings. Live and learn I guess! I went on, I am over it, learned from and wrote her off. Some other consultant can have her!

 

[pampchefsarah]

Never try to use the Pineapple Wedger on an over-ripe pineapple. UGH! So embarrassing, and made the tool look useless.

Otherwise, one of my favorite phrases, after all IS "I'm a Pampered Chef, not a Perfect Chef!"

Teresah, I don't think you let her walk all over you. I bet she would have been freakishly demanding even if there hadn't been that initial mistake.

 

[chefHLM]

A few things I will never again do at a show LOL
1.) I will not let guests make me feel pressured during checkout! When you have a show of 19 people, yes it takes a bit to check them out! When they are in line like a herd of cattle it can be nerve wracking and NO ONE gets the customer service they deserve! Now I have everyone put their order forms somewhere outside the room where I am checking everyone out and pull from the bottom and call them in one at a time.
2.) I will never again let the way I feel a show went determine how the show actually went and rush through checkout to hurry and get home to have a beer! LOL
I had a show that was an hour away, there were screaming kids running all over, taking my tools (which by the way my demo was on a coffee table!), I had to basically scream to have anyone hear me and I rushed out without asking anyone if they would book a show!
I talked to the host about a week later when her order was shipped and she told me that everyone at the show thought it was the best show they had ever been to and I was the best Consultant they had come across.
Feeling like an idiot now!
3.) I won't hesitate to ask a host to move her stuff off of a table in a tiny studio apartment so that I won't spill a batter bowl full of eggs all over her carpet! LOL I need room to work!

 

[pcsharon1]

Thanks, but I will really never allow someone to do that again! I didn't think it was fair to the bride b/c she lost out on show total or to the consultant who lost out on the comm. sale.

Even after all thos invites and free gifts, she only had 4 people attend and it was about $270 in sales, no bookings. Live and learn I guess! I went on, I am over it, learned from and wrote her off. Some other consultant can have her!

I had my first wedding registry set up and when I was talking to the girl - she cuts my hair - about how her shower went she was very apologetic that no one ordered from her registry ...........but went on to say that she did get a lot of PC stuff because one of the people invited to her shower has a SIL that sold PC and she just went to the registry and wrote everything down and got everyone to order from her SIL. One order I could understand, but everybody. I was annoyed at that one.

 

[pamperedharriet]

I had my first wedding registry set up and when I was talking to the girl - she cuts my hair - about how her shower went she was very apologetic that no one ordered from her registry ...........but went on to say that she did get a lot of PC stuff because one of the people invited to her shower has a SIL that sold PC and she just went to the registry and wrote everything down and got everyone to order from her SIL. One order I could understand, but everybody. I was annoyed at that one.

I would be annoyed too at that one. I know we don't have territories, etc but to me that is wrong. One item maybe. I would never go to some one else's registry and pull items to sell to someone else.

 

[baychef]

THe show stopper recipe from a few years ago with the chocolate cups. You make them with ballons, dip in chocolate, let harden and pop the ballon. Hostess bought cheap cheap cheap ballons, the chocolate wasn't very warm and they were popping left and right - chocolate went everywhere!

Not funny for you, but I am chuckling. Yes, I LOVED these, but the recipe was in the summer and people just don't cool their houses down sometimes! Mine were melting before I could get the (melting) ice cream in them!

I will never make 2 recipes or Tuxedo brownies at a party again. I will never make anything that needs to go in the oven in the summer.

I will never have a "Survivor challenge" involving the QC paring knife vs the A/P/C/S to see who can peel, slice and core an apple quicker. Did not realize that the gentleman was so competative that he would cut his hand bad enough for stitches.

Will always take the time to stir the chocolate morsels being melted in the micro cooker every 30 seconds. The smell of burnt chocolate and melting plastic is not good!!

Can imagine the shock at some of these stories, but I am getting a kick out of them. I am thinking of taking some for my next meeting!

 

[baychef]

I will never again go all out to try to make up for a simple mistake I might make in the pre-show phase. I once sent out all the invitations for a show, 50 of them, however, I forgot to put the show information on them!!!!!!!!!!!!! I was so humiliated, I apologized profusely, and as soon as she called me to tell me about the mistake I got another batch of invites, 52 this time, ready and at the post office in 1 1/2 hours. I told her she could choose a free spice, and each guest that came could get $2 off their shipping. At her show, I forgot her free paring knife she won from the show she booked from. A friend of hers put in an order on my website, but did it as an individual order, I had no idea this person was to be a guest of this show. The host was angry that her friends order wouldn't count towards her sales, she insisted that her friend put the order in correctly. Then it still gets worse.......The whole show, she reminded me of my mistake with the invites, treated me as hired help, I had to stand off the dining area while they all sat around the table and ate, was not included in any conversation, couldn't talk to them while they ate.

Had something very similar happen. The host and I worked different hours so closing her show was terrible (no e-mail on her part either). LONG story short, she and her daughter blew me into PC. She ended up giving the orders to a consultant that lived closer to her. I drove 90 miles ONE way to do this party. I had several conversations with HO and they were shocked that she gave this show to someone else. And the "free" item I offered them? They expected me to STILL give it to them even though I was not going to get credit for the show I did. I fell in love with our HO staff.

 

[rennea]

Had something very similar happen. The host and I worked different hours so closing her show was terrible (no e-mail on her part either). LONG story short, she and her daughter blew me into PC. She ended up giving the orders to a consultant that lived closer to her. I drove 90 miles ONE way to do this party. I had several conversations with HO and they were shocked that she gave this show to someone else. And the "free" item I offered them? They expected me to STILL give it to them even though I was not going to get credit for the show I did. I fell in love with our HO staff.

That's just crazy!!

 

[pampchefsarah]

I would make sure that I told the host to have everything in the fridge, I did one show where everything was frozen....Too way too long and was a mess. then there is the time I set my towel on fire oh well...don't want to do that again.

The day I got my Bamboo Towels I brought them to my show that night. A couple of days later I was tellling the host about using one to clean out the Smoky Barbecue Chicken Wing Sauce from my CBB, which turned it very red. I just threw it in with the rest of my laundry a few days later, and it has two small, barely noticeable stains, but otherwise looks brand new. I also pointed out how convenient the hoops are. She laughed, and said it sounds great, but until her girls are older (almost 2 and almost 1 - plus she has two school-age boys), she's too absent-minded to use cloth towels . . . and hinted about one catching fire on the stove!

 

[mrshamel3808]

Yep - this would be my "never again" too!

I had a host buy phyllo dough instead of puff pastry sheets for the strawberry amaretto pastry but i got lost on my way there so there was NO time to go to the store and get the pastry. NOT fun it was my first show too!

 

[avelissar]

Ok - here is the trick to working with Phylo dough.

Yes - use a damp towel and work quickly, so to avoid drying out.

Do not freak out when it tears on you! You will never be able to tell with the end product! Phylo is very thin and it is not unusual for it to tear - and yes, Greek ladies have the same issue! ( I am Greek :chef

Do not remove the plastic covering, until you are ready to use it. It drys out quickly.

That is all I can think of - and of course, practice!

Andrea

 

[avelissar]

Make sure you take a good look at the size of the chicken breast, before you put it in the DCB. My host purchased her chicken breasts from COSTCO, and they definetely needed more than 3-4 minutes per breast!

Talk about frustrating! Of course it was my own fault - I really should of paid for attention.

Andrea

 

[kdangel518]

Thats okay, I always get confused when Candadiens spell CATALOGUE! In my country we spell it catalog. There has been a few other words here that make me look to see where the person is from AND then it makes sense.

Not being offensive here so please don't take it personal. Its just I travel for work so when I'm on the East coast I always say "back in my country" for example, in Connecticut they call it a "pocket book" on the west coast its a purse or bag. I say FREEWAY and they say HIGHWAY. Munchkins are the little people in The Wizard of Oz, so when my coworkers were talking about eating "munchkins" I was appalled didn't know they meant donut holes. Here we say "you are all done" there they say "all set". In a fast food restaurant, here it is "for here or to go" on the East coast they say "to stay or to go". I could go on, and some of its not nice so I will stop here.
Tammy

Interesting. I've lived in MA my whole life, and I have never once heard anyone say this! Only "for here or to go?"

 

[DebbieJ]

Make sure you take a good look at the size of the chicken breast, before you put it in the DCB. My host purchased her chicken breasts from COSTCO, and they definetely needed more than 3-4 minutes per breast!

Talk about frustrating! Of course it was my own fault - I really should of paid for attention.

Andrea

That's why I always pound them flat with the meat tenderizer--and I get to show another tool!

 

[ivykeep]

I'd never, ever introduce a new product without working it a LOT at home first. When the ultimate mandoline came out, I tried it out at home, thought I had it down and then took it to a show and couldn't get it to work (the slide wasn't on the guide rails correctly). It taught me a lot about improvising (I didn't even mention I had a problem, just started demoing my knives to cover) as well as making sure I try things out more than once! And I now make sure to tell all my hosts and guests the story so that they know to call me if they can't figure something out.

Remember it's not a flaw, it's a "feature"

 

[raebates]

Or, of course, the ever-popular techie answer--user error.