Sarah Dwyer of Chouquette

New Packaging

2012-01-19T09:05:00.000-05:00

The Philadelphia Chocolate and Candy Show is head in Atlantic City twice a year, January and July/August. Valentine's Day was the focus for much of the show, especially packaging. Lots of candy hearts! Two categories of exhibitors - companies who make things for candy makers and candy/chocolates makers themselves.

Checking out packaging suppliers was my main goal, but I wanted to taste and price other chocolate wholesalers, too. I need packaging for my chocolates when they are away from me - like in a retail store. I have resisted the boxes with plastic windows, but I finally found some that I think are very pretty. And not crazy expensive, not an easy task.

I am very pleased with the result! The ribbon is a one-off for a birthday gift, I will use my pink or brown satin. I'll keep looking for this one from the wholesale ribbon people!

Now I have to add these to the website, which is www.chouquette.us. And to etsy http://www.etsy.com/shop/ChouquetteShop.

Go shopping!

How to Say Sugar

2012-01-18T16:34:00.000-05:00

Sugar, Sucre, Zucker, Azucar, Suiker. But when you heat it to 160 degrees Celsius, it is hot in any language. So hot that it even burns through two sets of gloves. Sugar blisters hurt. really. Then as soon as they start to heal, get back under a heat lamp with more molten sugar and those blisters get blisters. Before you know it, you are impersonating the Michael Jackson band-aids on all fingers look. The worst blisters are the ones near knuckles, since they don't get a chance to heal before they crack and bleed, and bandages will not stay on them. Then since the sugar is so hot, my hands sweat under the rubber gloves and the bandages get soaked and slide off. Gross. I won't post more photos of my blisters, I promise.

Chef D's Sugar Pieces

Most classmates are making something similar to the chef's creations, a poured colored sugar base, with a backdrop and then flowers to decorate it.

Poured Sugar and Early Petal Attempts

Poured sugar is easy, heat sugar, water and glucose to 150 degrees, color it and at 155 degrees, pour it into the mold. Molds can be anything - for rectangles, squares and triangles, we use steel bars; for circles, we use cake and tart molds. Or go to the hardware store and find something flexible that will withstand heat. My first poured sugar turned out nicely, I mixed some red and white and was happy with the effect. But after that, things went awry. Pulled sugar uses a different recipe, heat the sugar cubes, white, smaller amount of glucose, add coloring and tartaric acid before pouring out on the Silpat. Wait for the edges to start hardening, flick those edges in until a solid mass forms. Move the mass around to cool parts of the marbles, folding in half over and over (similar to kneading bread). When the sugar is dead (cool enough not to ooze out of its shape), starting pulling, folding back on itself, and pulling out again, until it makes a cracking noise. I use different parts of my hand and switch from left to right often, so I don't get 'hot spots' or 'pre-blisters.' Don't pull too much, or too early, or the sugar will crystalize and it hits the trash can. Or try the microwave, but don't hold your breath. Start another batch of sugar, just in case. Work with small pieces, keeping everything under a heat lamp set to 80 degrees (about 175 degrees fahrenheit). Separate a small section from the mass, then pull leaves, petals, and ribbons. It sounds vague, but I don't know any other way to explain the 'pulling part.' It is very specific motion, but it cannot be explained in words, I just watch, and try to recreate it. It is like trying to learn how to ski by watching Bode Miller fly downhill.

My first attempts at white petals are very thick and extremely irregular.

I had a grand plan of making a tree after reading a French fairy tale about the Bee and the Orange Tree. A long gory story with a shipwrecked princess and prince, ogres eating their own children, and a magic wand that gets lost after the princess turns herself into a bee and the prince into an orange tree. I love the imagery and thought an orange tree would be a great thing to make out of sugar. An umbrella shaped tree, with little oranges and lots of tiny green leaves, large oranges at the base and a honey bee at the top of the tree, with a ribbon around the edge of the base to look like a fence. I can see it im my head, but there have been production issues.

At one practice I was able to make a orange tree stump with oranges and blossoms, and then the next class, I tried a tall tree, but the pulled sugar branches were so brittle that as I added pieces, I broke two off the structure, and the trunk started to lean dangerously, then broke into three pieces. I wanted to cry, but made a nice pile of oranges and blossoms with a very pretty ribbon for height. Of course, now I want to try something else, but it is too late to make too drastic of a change. I'd really like to make a Dutch still life with the oranges and blossoms in a Delft-looking bowl. I just don't know if I have the time to get this to work in the time constraints of the final sugar exam next week. I am happy with my oranges, and blossoms, and the ribbon, but I need to figure out the composition. The chefs are not that impressed with my work, I am not sure if it is because it is different or if it just isn't good. I really wish I had thought of the bowl idea before my last practice. Still Life Idea

I also went to Europain, a huge trade show with a Sugar competition, where I got some great photos of sugar creations, and I can see that the European decorations are very different from what I like. They seem stuck in the 1980s, and some of the color combinations are very odd.

Etsy site is now open!

2012-01-16T12:16:00.001-05:00

Check out my new postings on etsy.com, the place for vintage and handmade products.

Chouquette Shop

Jeannie's No-Cake Birthday Concoction

2011-04-07T11:50:00.003-04:00

I hate when people say that they don't like cake. Or brownies, or chocolate, or caramel. Really, how can you not like caramel? It never did anything to you, unless you lost a tooth on it. But how can a person not like anything caramel? It is like saying you don't like butter. Uggg.

So imagine going to pastry school for a year, practicing how to make all of the above for another year. Thinking that you are going to make all the cakes for everyone you know for their birthday. Planning extravagant decorations and delicious icing combinations.

First, your mother says she doesn't want a cake, chocolate mousse is more her style.

Then, your nephew announces he doesn't like cake, so you make chocolate chip cookies in the shape of his name.

Then your other nephew declares he doesn't want a cake or even cupcakes, but says you can make him some brownies. So you do that.

So the next birthday is your sister's, and you start thinking of a crazy chocolate cake maybe with some gold leaf, and spun sugar. And then she starts saying that she doesn't even want to have a birthday dinner. What are you going to do?

Make a No-Cake Birthday Cake with a little of everything that she loves:

Cadbury Mini Eggs - check

Ganache Frosting - check

Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream - check

Crispy Chocolate Chip Cookies - check

Layer of Salted Caramel - check

Chocolate Chip Mocha Brownies - check

It looks a little something like this after the demolition.

Don't ask me about the Napoleon I am making today. Please, someone, ask me for a cake - vanilla with chocolate icing, maybe?

My latest TV Appearance

2011-03-18T17:24:00.000-04:00

Watch me make caramel sauce with JC Hayward and Howard Bernstein of WUSA Channel 9 News at Noon.

Link to YouTube Video

Watch to the end to see the hilarious look on my face when I think the show is over!

Breakfast at Stephanie's

2011-03-15T21:41:00.000-04:00

The story behind the chocolate:

In my 20's, I worked as a secretary for a stockbroker, unfortunately, not as glamourous as it sounds. My deskmate was a funny brunette, with a shockingly loud voice. We shared phone lines, and helped each other out if we needed a break. We 'backed each other up', which meant only one of us could take the day off, and one of us had to cover the phones while the other was at lunch, in a meeting, or even in the restroom!

We planned the office Halloween party, I dressed as a naughty Catholic school girl, with requisite hickey and pigtails, and Steph kitted herself out in a very elegant Holly Golightly dress, making her own pillbox hat out of a I Can't Believe It's Not Butter tub. The next morning we woke with massive hangovers and called to fight over who could call in sick. As usual, I won and stayed in bed with a damp washcloth on my forehead, and Stephanie made herself a strong pot of coffee, filled a mug halfway, and completed the mixture with Bailey's Irish Cream.

So in her honor, and her little dog too, and St Patrick's Day, I have made my newest chocolate:

Breakfast at Stephanie's --

Bailey's Irish Cream and coffee caramel covered in semi-sweet chocolate. Creamy, chocolaty with just a jolt of loud coffee.

The twelve chocolates of christmas

2010-12-17T01:05:00.001-05:00

Twelve chocolates - i bet they won't make it 12 days of christmas. I don't even know when those days are, but i think something chocolate should be included.

Chouquette Pop-Up Shop December 18th 2-4 PM

2010-12-15T11:32:00.000-05:00

Happy Holidays! Are you looking for last minute gifts for your coworkers? Do you need that perfect little something for a hostess gift? Do you crave chocolate at 2:00 in the afternoon? If so, come by Chouquette's Tasting and Pop-Up Shop in between that last minute shopping spree or before stopping off at a holiday party on Saturday afternoon...

Artisan Chocolates, Caramels, Cookies, and Cupcakes

Chocolates and Chocolate Covered Caramels $1.50

* Square - Salted Caramel,

* Round - Balsamic Caramel,

* Column - Mint Chocolate Ganache,

* Red Column - Maker's Mark and Gingerbread Spice,

* Crown - Caramelized White Chocolate Crunch,

* Rock - Crushed Crepes, Dark Chocolate Ganache, Praline Paste, Covered in 58% Dark Chocolate and Praline Pieces

* Chocolate Candied Grapefruit Peel

Java Chip Cookies $1.00

Red Velvet Cupcakes $2.50

Macarons $2.00

Brownie Cakes $2.00

Assorted Boxes Available and Special Orders Welcomed

Saturday December 18th 2-4 pm

Jane E. Lawton Community Recreation Center (Leland Center)

4301 Willow Lane

Chevy Chase, MD 20815

Shop will be in the Community Room - past the front desk and to the right.

Thank you for supporting Chouquette!

Please share this invitation with family, friends, and co-workers.

Photos available on Chouquette's Facebook page and Etsy Shop - links below.

Link to Chouquette on Facebook

Chouquette Shop on Etsy

A Little Press For My Scary Cake

2010-11-09T21:48:00.000-05:00

Although I had never made anything similar, when asked to make a coffin-shaped cake for Going-Away party on Halloween, I said yes, and figured it out. The invitation was Victorian in style, black and silver.

The 12x18 cake was devil's food (appropriately), with coffee flavor, soft caramel, vanilla buttercream covered with chocolate fondant. Putting the fondant on the cake was terrifying, I have never covered a cake that large, so I had to MacGuyver it together and cover my mistakes with a large fondant ruffle around the edge. I have a die-cutting machine (called a Cricut Cake) that I used to make the white flourishes, which I then covered in silver luster dust (like eyeshadow, but food safe). Around the edges, I stamped silver cobwebs and spiders.

The guests of honor seemed very happy with the cake, and the reviews were positive. I have already been contacted by one of the party-goers for another cake.

Here is the link to the article:
Chouquette Coffin Cake

Treats for a rainy day.

2010-10-06T15:58:00.001-04:00

Mmmmmmm. Oatmeal raisin cookies warm from the oven. Perfect day for things flavored with cinnamon and cardamom. Just a little job, but who's counting?

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FWD:Happy hour treats.

2010-09-16T21:54:00.001-04:00

A dozen macarons for kathleen. vanilla w caramelized white choc. coffee w dark choc ganache. strawberry with vanilla cream. cocoa w cinnamon cayenne ganache. available for all friends who treat @ happy hour.

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Happy hour treats.

2010-09-16T21:41:00.001-04:00

Lemon mac shells

2010-09-07T14:37:00.001-04:00

Lemon macarons ready to be filled with very tart lemon cream. Sweet sour and delicious. wish i had some with me at the tax office in baltimore. Sales tax is confusing - tax on one cookie, no tax on a dozen cookies. I am not kidding. Eat more cookies.

Chocolate chunk cookies with cinnamon and cayenne pepper

2010-09-03T10:06:00.001-04:00

I guess this is like a mexican hot chocolate cookie. it has a nice kick and needs a glass of milk to wash down bc it is so fudgy.

Libby

2010-08-26T07:51:00.003-04:00

These two paintings reminded me of my grandmother: in her 1920's gear, and how she thought she looked at the beach.

From the Beaux Arts Musee in Lyon - January 2010

It's about time.

2010-08-17T19:39:00.001-04:00

Ha! Now boys havta wear spanx too. Ingenious.

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Clean tupperware club.

2010-08-14T11:10:00.001-04:00

New concoction - chewy coffee chip Brownies. perfect for breakfast dessert. amy licked the cupcake wrapper. and paid for my breakfast in return. still working on cappuccino frosting.

My new obsession.

2010-08-10T20:02:00.001-04:00

Well maybe my new crush, Thomas Keller. Working through the dessert chapter. Yum........

My TV Appearance

2010-08-05T23:49:00.001-04:00

WOW! It was so much fun, here is the link to the cooking segment on Channel 9 WUSA.

Me on YouTube

My segment starts 40 seconds into the video.

For Jack M. who didn't want a birthday cake.

2010-08-03T18:32:00.001-04:00

Happy Birthday. Big smiles when these were glimpsed in the oven. Now i just have to find a way to get candles to stand up in them.

Phew. Just one minute. Bumped by Obama talk.

2010-07-30T13:21:00.001-04:00

At least i didnt spill chocolate on my dress until after the broadcast. thanks Channel 9. Next Food Network Star, here I come.

Im no food stylist but i think the set looks good.

2010-07-30T12:03:00.001-04:00

Now if i could get lypo and botox in the next 20 minutes. or maybe just a manicure? see you on tv!!!

Gross or yummy? kitchen sink brownies.

2010-07-29T17:32:00.001-04:00

Super chocolate brownies with heath bars, peppermint patties, walnuts, marshmallows and topped with potato chips. crazy good. might cure a hangover if i add a little bacon.

Boston Cream Pie Cake

2010-07-21T10:56:00.000-04:00

My sister's friend asked me to make a cake for her family's summer birthday party - 12 people have birthday's this season, so they celebrate everyone's together. We brainstormed about flavors that all the birthday boys and girls would like and she decided on Boston Cream Pie, which is really a cake, that was originally baked in a pie pan. I think that is the story. I made a Golden Cake (yellow cake) and cut it into three layers, covered each layer with Pastry Cream (Custard), frosted the cake with chocolate buttercream, and poured dark chocolate ganache over the whole thing and stuck cookies along the outside edge.

I am not sure if other bakers feel this way, but it was weird to send a cake off knowing that I wouldn't even be able to take a bite of it. I tasted all the pieces, and made a tiny cake from the scraps to be sure that everything was good, but it just wasn't the same as having a piece of the cake. I guess I will just have to get myself invited to all events that my desserts are going to attend, so I don't feel so left out.

Magic Macarons

2010-06-20T22:12:00.002-04:00

Plain macaron shells with dark chocolate ganache. Tiny but powerful, like Mary Lou Retton. These are much less likely to be featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated or the Wheaties box.

U.S. Open Cupcakes.

2010-06-17T00:25:00.001-04:00

Chocolate cupcakes with buttercream icing and white chocolate 'golf ball' covered with nonpareils. Grass technique needs a little work, but they are really cute. $2.50 each.

Homemade strawberry jam

2010-06-15T22:56:00.001-04:00

I made jam! One jar is strawberry/raspberry. The other is straw/rasp with black pepper and balsamic vinegar. i am dying to taste them, but also want to save them like a depression-era housewife. Next I will be washing aluminium foil and reusing coffee grounds, if this trend continues.

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Chouquette mania!

2010-06-15T00:53:00.001-04:00

Chouquettes (sugar puffs) for everyone! I have two tastings, and a meeting tomorrow so I made a LARGE recipe. i do think they look like little cabbages.

Ready for shrek 4 in 3D!!

2010-06-06T16:38:00.001-04:00

Chocolate mousse cakes with caramel surprise.

2010-06-05T18:25:00.001-04:00

Dessert for tonight. nice and light for a hot summer night. soft sponge cake, thin layer of caramel, cookie crisps, topped with airy chocolate mousse and tiny sugar sprinkles.

Parisienne macarons with caramelized white chocolate filling.

2010-06-03T18:47:00.001-04:00

Look at those 'Feet'! ( Rise between bottom and top of cookie - sign of good macaron) Take that Laduree.

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It's official.

2010-05-21T20:01:00.001-04:00

Chouquette is incorporated.

Regina's Peonies

2010-05-19T12:08:00.001-04:00

i love these flowers. they greet me every morning as i run out for more dessert supplies. they are so showy and remind me of my senior prom dress - which might not be a good thing, but i dont hold it against the peonies.

Tasting room. rocking reston town center. woooo.

2010-05-15T23:07:00.001-04:00

Newest chocolate concoction before enrobing

2010-05-13T13:48:00.001-04:00

Dark chocolate covering caramelized white choc ganache, almond crisp, and popping sugar. i love the combo. once i have five recipes perfected, i will start offering them for sale. need packaging ideas.

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Pleated shorts are IN????

2010-05-12T09:01:00.001-04:00

Bringing back memories of high school summers spent on a dock on the severn river listening to songs they play on oldies radio now. oh, 1988, i cant wait to revisit at my 20th reunion next month. now if i can just find my guess jeans with the ankle zipper and my units belt.

New birthday cake

2010-05-09T10:37:00.001-04:00

Switched to chocolate buttercream.

My grandmother's 90th birthday cake

2010-05-09T00:19:00.001-04:00

Sponge cake, bavarian cream, strawberries, buttercream, with homemade fondant rose and plaque. i hope she likes it. it is similar to a french 'fraisier' cake.

My first paying job - Cupcakes for first communion

2010-05-08T11:56:00.000-04:00

All vanilla cake. half with vanilla buttercream. other half chocolate buttercream w blue dots.

New york post home delivery.

2010-05-07T08:38:00.001-04:00

How steph stays informed about world events.

True love.

2010-05-06T22:16:00.001-04:00

Miller lite night with steph. just need some drunk texts to make the night complete.

Strawberries and sauteed pineapples with my blt for lunch.

2010-04-28T12:15:00.001-04:00

Working on my designs for 'Berry Plate' orders.

Jeannie's Rent Payment

2010-04-27T12:15:00.001-04:00

Dark chocolate filled with lghtly salted caramel and crunchy cereal pieces. i have eaten all the rejects and left the pretty ones for jeannie and the boys. hopefully they dont like dark choc.

Hairstyles of the lowly pastry assistant.

2010-04-24T18:02:00.001-04:00

This is how high and tight i have to style my hair to fit under my toque (kitchen hat). my only break from 3 pm to midnight is when i sneak to the ladies room to fix this do and happily rest my feet while i blog. almost 6. gotta put my smile on for the customers peering in like zoo visitors. miss all of you. day off tomorrow!!!!!!! please call.

Memories of my 'Hood

2010-04-24T12:54:00.000-04:00

My favorite blogger - David Lebovitz - just wrote a post about my neighborhood market, Barbes. I have to iron my uniform and get ready for work, but please read it, and think of me hunting down the cheapest fingerling potatoes and munching on a hot 'brique' after my shopping is done. I miss Paris.

David Lebovitz's Blog

His recipes are great, I have been making the salted caramels lately, and they are highly appreciated by everyone at Meadow Lane. His Paris memoir is worth a read, especially before a trip to France.

Mon nouveau chapeau. (my new hat)

2010-04-23T17:54:00.002-04:00

Of course i got chocolate on my new work hat before i even put it on my head. also i forget i have it on and bump into shelves with it. i think it is very sexy. especially with my sweaty head inside. dont be jealous -- I just made chocolate covered grapes.

amy hackett is a very bad influence.

2010-04-08T11:40:00.001-04:00

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Hello washington dc.

2010-04-07T18:24:00.001-04:00

Just a little something from paris.

2010-04-07T15:19:00.001-04:00

Homeward bound.

Au revoir for now

2010-03-25T13:39:00.000-04:00

Sorry I haven't blogged in a while, I have had guests and exams and graduation to celebrate. Off to Berlin tonight, then Prague, Vienna, and Venice. I have been taking notes and photos, so I will have lots of interesting things to share.

I have some photos from the sugar exam on facebook, here is the link for those of you who haven't seen them yet. The sugar oranges are mine. I have some good stories to tell about those days of hell, trust me!

Back in the US on April 7. And MIGHT have an interview at my dream restaurant.

Chocolate Frustrations

2010-02-27T01:00:00.000-05:00

From before the chocolate exam, wow, I was frustrated!

Yesterday was our last conference - the session where the chef usually reads an essay on the production of flour, sugar or chocolate, which we hold an exact translation for in our notebooks. Instead, Chef D asked us a few questions about tartaric acid, and other chemicals using in pastry, and got to work on a chocolate vase in preparation for his chocolate showpiece on Friday. He asked us if we wanted to see his "Bible" and of course we begged, and he brought out a beautiful book by Stephane Leroux, it is only $439.93. Chef D said he kept it on his bedside table for a year. It is beautiful, and the techniques are innovative - chopping different chocolates in the food processor and gluing them together with cocoa butter grout to make a granite vase. I was a little shocked to see the showpieces that the chefs have made in the professional sessions (like pastry graduate school), I thought they had designed them, but they are just copies. I have to admit that I was disappointed, later the chef did Stephane credit for the granite idea. I have been trying so hard to think of an original idea for my chocolate box, of course I have looked on the internet and in books for inspiration, but I wouldn't copy someone's idea exactly. It just irritates me.

I bought the book at the best culinary bookstore - Le Library Gourmand, near Les Halles, and the cooking supply stores. It was 150 euros, but worth every penny. I did use it as inspiration for my chocolate exam, but I promise, I didn't copy it.

Here are the chocolate boxes that the chef made.

Snow!

2010-02-26T04:05:00.000-05:00

I forgot to post this two weeks ago, but decided to bring it back from blog-limbo.

Ok, it was no Snowmeggedon, Snowcopolypse, or my favorite name of the Mid-Atlantic storm, Snowtorious BIG, but Paris has been getting some flurries. Not enough to close anything down, but enough to have a little snowball fight outside of school and get some pretty pictures.

Happy Birthday to Me

2010-02-25T02:28:00.001-05:00

38th Birthday Checklist

1 - Eat three chocolate chip cookies for breakfast

2 - Watch Chef D make fruit jellies, marshmallows, jam and caramels

Read Steps 3-22 by clicking Read More below.

3 - Have a Pierre Herme pain au chocolat for lunch
4 - Make fruit jellies, jam and caramels in class
5 - Pick up wine, cheese, pancetta and bread for appetizers
6 - Friends arrive to make Sarah's Steakhouse Birthday Dinner

7 - Dine on steak with bacon, onions and rocquefort cheese, mashed potatoes, and the best caesar salad with a few bottles of wine

8 - Open bottle of champagne and almost shoot out window with cork

9 - Wait for birthday Skype calls, and yell into computer about state of sobriety
10 - Pinky swear to forgotten promise after fourth bottle of champagne

11 - Feast on birthday macarons - all 12 Pierre Herme flavors, including rose and truffle

13 - Have tonic water fight while cleaning red wine off sofa

14 - Finish off last bottle of wine (that was 8, in case you were counting)

15 - Fall asleep on sofa, wake up in bed

16 - Wake up with headache, go to class to watch Chef D make sugar magic

17 - Regret 8th bottle of wine
18 - Take nap on table in student lounge
19 - Drink 4 hot chocolates with extra sugar to wake up
20 - Make poured sugar creations

21 - Drag home and fall into bed
22 - Be grateful for good friends and that birthdays only come once a year

Blister Fascination

2010-02-24T13:15:00.001-05:00

This is what I SHOULD be doing:

Memorizing this and 5 other recipes for my written exam tomorrow. As well as sugar temps, wheat production and chocolate making. Click Read More to Read what I am doing.

This is what I AM doing:

Taking "artistic" photos of the sugar-pulling induced blister on my right thumb. Please don't show the children. Very scary.

And eating my favorite potato chips, I love that they use "Mature" Cheddar, the photo makes me feel very young, like I am sneaking into a R-rated movie at age 13.

Disappointing Dinner at Le Doyen

2010-02-23T04:23:00.001-05:00

Sarah and Chef D.

Not so Fat Tuesday. I don't even know where to begin for our last class dinner at the three Michelin starred Le Doyen, located in a beautiful old building next to the Petit Palais off the Champs Elysees, but I will start at the so-called "Open Bar." The bartender poured my glass of champagne perfectly and handed it to me on a little gold platter, and I was thinking, this is going to be an extraordinary dinner. Smoked salmon on toast and a fois gras cube graced the table, I likedthe salmon, but didn't try the fois gras, since it had a weird looking jelly on top, and I prefer warm fois gras, so it melts on my tongue, and doesn't coat my mouth with what feels like cold grease. After my first glass, the bartender informed us that we could have other drinks, but the champagne was finished, after only a 30 minute cocktail 'hour.'

Next the Mise en Bouche – certainly not amusing – since I tasted two bites and didn't bother with the rest - curdled mushroom cream over a meat (veal?) jello with a foam of something tasteless. Eww. Next the marinated scallops with another foam and yuzu cream. This might have been better if it had been served at room temperature, but the yuzu cream was frozen to the bowl, so I had to scrape it off the bottom.

I understand that restaurants do not always pay that much attention to large parties, there were probably 60 of us in the room, Superior Cuisine and Pastry join together for the class dinner, and our two chefs – Chef D for pastry (but of course) and Chef C for cuisine. The food is prepared in advance so the dishes arrive at the same time, but that doesn't excuse cold food. The main course of chicken breast with truffles (or plain black mushrooms by taste) on smoked rice was perfectly cooked, nicely seasoned but barely warm. I ate almost all of it, since I hadn't eaten more than two bites of the other courses. Pre-dessert came – another foamy dish of granny smith apple sorbet and mushy cooked apples underneath. It was an odd combination of tastes and textures. I was hoping for a great dessert, but the chocolate tartelette with orange caramel and nut-flavored ice cream was good but boring. I think people enjoyed the petits fours (tiny tarts, raspberry macaron, and financiers) more than the rest of the meal.

We were supposed to have different wines paired with each course, like we did for our class dinner for Intermediate, but the same Bordeaux was served throughout the meal. The service was mostly attentive, but my wine glass was empty for the main course, and I had to drink water (tragedy). I think the entirely beige and brown meal just wasn't up to my expectations of a three-star restaurant, and the fabulous setting increased my hopes of a devastatingly delicious meal. I also don't get the fascination with adding foams to almost every course. I highly recommend Le Petit Bordelais for a special dinner in Paris. See my post here.

I had a nice chat with Chef D, his English is very good, he told me about working in New York and Los Angeles for a while in the 80s. And he might be able to help me out with an internship in Washington with some of his contacts. He made fun of my neighborhood, telling me that French people don't live there. So I am the only blonde in Barbes? And the only one not cheering for Algeria in the football games? I like my market, the proximity to Tati, my bakery (for one more day) and my daily viewing of the cute policemen patrolling the metro.

Coming Home? April 7!

2010-02-21T07:22:00.001-05:00

Ah, so when I couldn't get a work visa, I decided to come home (duh) but forgot to change my ticket. Rookie mistake, but I called today, and US Air changed my ticket without charging me a thing! Seriously. Not one penny. Not one mile, and the mileage needed is now 15,000 miles more. Thank you USAir!

I will miss Easter and my sister's birthday, but I feel good knowing that I have a departure date. Now I need to get going on internship, I have no idea how to rewrite my resume to include Pastry, it is very financial services oriented. I would like to work at Citronelle with the amazing Michel Richard, and when I told Chef D, his eyes lit up because he worked with him in the 80's! So, maybe, just maybe, I will get an internship with a famous French chef without the hassles of a French visa.

Chef D has a website - http://www.jf-deguignet.com/crbst_0_en.html

So, April 7th is the date of my return. I can't wait to get started. I am dreading packing up 9 months of stuff.

Thanks Mom!

2010-02-18T03:04:00.000-05:00

Just 38 short years ago, I was born. I am excited to be spending the first day of this year in Paris, going to school learning how to make fruit jellies, eating chocolate chip cookies that Rebecca made for me, doing French laundry, and thinking of my friends and family that make this life so happy. Thank you for all the supportive emails, and birthday wishes.

Mom, thanks for not sending me back to Africa. Thanks for always making me a homemade birthday cake, thanks for letting me lick the beaters and thanks for supporting this dream. Jeannie, thanks for being the older sister I wanted to be exactly like, including the chocolate chip cookie recipe t-shirt. Thanks to Tommy for keeping "a good little f-er" in line, and eating almost anything I ever made. Thanks to John for many birthday dinners, and widening my culinary horizons. Thanks to all my friends who make my birthdays fun and full of laughter. I love you all.

Chocolate Factory Tour

2010-02-16T10:42:00.000-05:00

Barry-Callebaut Chocolate welcomed the Superior Pastry class with a tour of the factory, a visit to the laboratory and time in the boutique. After donning lovely caps and jackets, we entered the factory floor (no photos allowed) and learned step-by-step the process of turning cacao beans into my favorite substance. I wish I could send the smell of the factory via the internet, but trust me, it was heaven!

Watching the chocolate beans become little pistoles (buttons) or batons (sticks for making chocolate croissants), all of us wanted to snatch a piece or twenty off the assembly line, but we all managed to control ourselves. Until, we explored the laboratory, where one can create a customized chocolate blend: fruity, acidic, bitter, etc. Many pastry chefs have done so, and we were able to sample their concoctions - the milk chocolate blend I am holding was my favorite: strong cacao taste with a creamy finish - like a blend of the best part of dark and milk chocolate. Just a delicious day.

Tonight - we have our last Class Dinner at Le Doyen - a three-star (that's as high as it gets for the Michelin Guide).

Chocolate Exam is OVER!

2010-02-15T13:52:00.000-05:00

Here is my final creation, after many changes to my design, I went with the lotus? like flower with red centers and dusted with silver.

Roussillon

2010-02-08T17:50:00.001-05:00

The colored clay of Roussillon makes the houses beautiful colors - red, orange, yellow, peach. It just seems very Mediterranean. One house had the ceramic cicadas displayed on the wall, just like the little ones I bought in Avignon.

Since Roussillon was even more deserted than Gordes, I took a peek inside the tiny church at the top of the hill, the creche was still on display and they had used traditional french dolls, it was very sweet. My photo looks like they are running from a fire, but I promise they are headed to see the baby in the manger.

The public bathroom in Roussillon was a technological wonder! Even though it took us 5 minutes to figure out, it might be my favorite bathroom in France. As soon as I entered, it locked with a button press - which is important, not because someone would walk in, but because the lights go out if the door isn't locked. There was an ample supply of toilet paper. And the sink was marvelous! I stuck my hands under the soap sign, and it dispensed a perfect amount of soap, then the water ran down - it was even warm - then the hand dryer. All I had to do was move my hands from left to right. Miracle!

Random window shots in Roussillon:

It was a quick trip mostly for photo ops, and we got back on the road to Marseilles. An easy drive and an easy find of the hotel - just a few blocks from the Vieux Port (old port). Not even hungry, we snacked on some bread and leftovers from the picnic, but left the marinated garlic and tomato caviar in the car. Not the best idea for getting our Hertz deposit back, much like the skunk-killing episode in Tahoe, but no vampires came near us for days.

Ready to climb into my sleep sack in Marseilles. The hotel was not dirty, I just sleep better knowing that I am in clean sheets - I brought my own squishy pillow too.

Chocolate Creations

2010-02-08T13:24:00.001-05:00

A sad day for Chef D, France has outlawed 'cold spray' - at first I thought the translator said France outlawed Coldplay, wasn't even phased, since the government here mandates that one song out of three on the radio must be French. I assume it is for environmental reasons, it might have been canned freon for all I know. Chef D admitted that he has some hidden in the kitchen for us to use for our chocolate final. Cold spray is used by many chefs during competitions building chocolate sculptures - the 'glue' chocolate would take too long to solidify and would melt in the area in contact with human hands - our body temperature is too hot. So I am sorry environmentalists, I will be using some cold spray during my chocolate exam. I wonder if it is the same stuff athletes use? Interesting. I will check the label when Chef D unlocks the treasure.

We are starting to learn the basics of chocolate building which we will use to create a centerpiece for the exam. We will use a chocolate box, 16 cm, and then we can decorate it any way we choose. Here are Chef D's creations, made with very little cold spray, and a few Chef D tears. I can't think of mother-to-be who would appreciate the baby bottle cartoon character, but the French are different. They even hate Coldplay.

Here are the ones we made in class following the Santa example. Can anyone guess which one is mine?

Driving Driving Driving Driving

2010-02-07T17:58:00.000-05:00

After the aborted mission to find the mountain towns the day before, we hit the patisserie next to the hotel for breakfast and headed to the train station to buy a real map, The pastry shop was tiny, but really good - the quiche was great (I think it was Lorraine, but I can't remember at this point) and the chocolates were labeled "Chocolatherapie." The bakery window faced the street and the old delivery bike was just underneath, how cool would it be to have your hot bread delivered by a cute boy on a bike? A few circles around the train station parking lot later, we complete the map mission and decided upon three towns: Carpentras, Gordes and Rousillon. Carpentras because it is their market day, Gordes because it is supposed to be one of the prettiest towns, and Rousillion because it is made entirely of red clay.

The Carpentras market was huge - I think over 350 stalls of stuff, but they wound around the town streets in no apparent order. We wanted to find the truffle market, but got so caught up in the interesting stuff - definitely hit this market if you are looking for cheap Frederick's of Hollywood knock-offs or the very sexy nightwear of adult footie pajamas. I took the photo, and the vender started yelling at me, "Pas des photos!" Seriously, don't take a photo of these for what possible reason? Because I might want to copy them and he has a patent on the ugliest pajamas ever? I told him I deleted it, but guess what? HA, here it is!

The prettiest bakery/gift shop was just around the corner, and I wanted to move in and live there, in the back of the shop, gorging myself on confiture (marmalade) of clementines until my skin turned orange. And then I would move on the pastries, chocolates and amazing tea selection. Jouvaud has a blog - in French - but the pictures are so pretty, check it out Maison Jouvaud and their website too - Maison Jouvard. IF I ever get to have my own shop, it will be very similar, I just felt at home there, the service was great, the displays were clever, and the merchandise was beautiful. Everything in the shop was for sale - even the mirror in the bathroom. I could write a whole blog post on this place. But I won't today. We had tea and a canelle, I bought a scoop like the olive sellers use, but without the holes, only 10 euros, and they gift-wrapped it beautifully.

We shared some Florentines - almonds in caramel on top of dark chocolate, and went back to the crazy market and stocked up on a rotisserie chicken, bread, apples, more cookies - macarons - and some supplies - a badly needed wine opener and another set of cookies I couldn't resist from the supermarket. The macarons are different in Provence, much bigger, more almond-tasting, and cone shaped. I like them better than the fancy-shmancy Parisian sandwich shaped one. I ate them all, so I don't have a close-up photo, so peek at the macaron baker's cart as best you can.

The Macaron Man and the Paella Guy

We navigated to Gordes, named one of the most beautiful villages in France, but I think I saw 5 of those signs, so it might not such a huge accolade. The home of many painters, and the Marquis de Sade, it is now the summer homes of movie stars and politicians, and the author of a Year in Provence, Peter Mayle, lives in a nearby village.

The Creepy View of the Marquis de Sade's Palace, rumor has it that many a villager disappeared through this very entrance.

In the summer, it must be packed with tourists, but it was almost deserted, and we could barely find a place to use the bathroom - luckily we needed a glass of wine too, so made a pit stop at a little cafe in the town square. Gordes was the home of a strong Resistance group during WWII, and the cemetary had a special area for those who died fighting the German occupation. Our picnic on the gorge was spectacular, a business man stopped and wished us "Bon Appetit."

I feel as though I have seen this landscape painted by Cezanne, but I can't find out for certain. Please tell me if you recognize it. We thought about going to the lavender museum, and another place where some old huts (bories) showed how people lived a bunch of years ago, but decided to go to Roussillon instead. The drive through the valley and up the hills reminded me of driving in Spain with Leslie (was that 10 years ago already?)

Next stops: Roussillon and Marseilles.

Marzipan Animal Collection

2010-02-01T16:20:00.000-05:00

Preview of an upcoming blog post - see my photos on facebook even if you are not a member.

Scary, cute, and weird marzipan animals - Le Cordon Bleu style.

Sur le Pont Avignon

2010-01-30T19:25:00.002-05:00

Driving in France can be very expensive -- diesel gas costs about 1.20 euros per liter (about 4 liters per gallon and mulitply by 1.4 to get almost $7 per gallon!) Luckily, our little Ford Fiesta got good mileage - or should I say "kilometerage"? Filling it up was a little weird though, the gas line was very loose and I could see the ground when I placed the fuel nozzle. I also had difficulty with the controls, I never figured out how to turn off the back windshield wiper, and finally one the last day, Rebecca discovered how to lock the doors from the inside, which would have been helpful in Avignon. Don't forget to Read More.

From Lyon to Avignon is about a 2 hour drive, and I am pretty sure I got caught by a speed camera going through a tunnel in Lyon, so we were careful to keep to the limits after that. Through the countryside, eerie fog hung in the hills, looking like the set of a horror movie, so I was happy when we arrived in Avignon. Avignon is a walled city, home of 5 or 6 French pope's, who at the time were more like kings - they had their own armies, currency, and other courts sent princes to serve at the popes' pleasure. It is also a university town, and in the summer hosts a huge theatre festival. Finding parking around the corner from our hotel was a nice treat - that continued our streak! The hotel Bouquet was great, the owners couldn't be nicer - marking a map of nice places to see and where not to eat for us. Each room has a theme, not overdone, and we had the Indian room, funky Buddhas on the bedspread and dancers on the wallhangings, but I am almost positive that the other decoration was South American. What a step up from Lyon - the room sported two double beds, a full bathroom with soap, warm water and clean towels - combinations not found in all French toilets.

We walked around the nearly deserted town for a bit that night and found a restaurant that just served wine and cheese, I had a warm chevre (mild goat's cheese) with garlic and caramelized onions, roasted potato wedges, a green salad and crusty bread with a perfect glass of white wine to aid my sleep.

After a chat with the hotel owner, who suggested a tour of the town across the river, we headed to Villeneuve les Avignon for the market and to check out the monastery. After a weird detour down a one-way street to view some farmhouses, we reversed after the road turned to dirt, and only had to pass one other car that was driving the opposite was. The market was just what you would expect in Provence: olives, marinated garlic (we were worried that Hertz would charge us extra for the stink), wine, pottery, pastries, bread, sausages, and every kind of meat, fish and produce imaginable. We started with a degustation - tasting - of Gabriel's cheese and bought a slice of each, the same cheese really, but aged three different lengths of time, my favorite was the 18 month old. The marinated garlic is amazing, not bitter, and the same producer offered tomato caviar, similar to a tapenade, it tasted like summer in a dish.

After a nice conversation (en francaise, oui) with the potter, I learned about the traditional pieces, the sausage bowl - for the whole pig, the olive oil pitcher and the little cicadas for knife rests. I wanted to buy everything! Not much luck with the cookie guy, but I pointed to a ginger cookie and he gave me the one that was burnt around one edge, which kinda annoyed me until I tasted it, and wanted to go back for more. Instead we bought a great sourdough baguette (pain au levain) and headed up to the old monastery.

Another great parking spot, and we sat in the car, munching on our treats, getting odd looks from the locals, especially since we forgot a knife, and had to rip the sausages apart with our teeth.

The monastery had served as a prison for "bad" priests so there were cells with little windows to pass food to the inmates. The chapel was a little worse for wear, but the collapsed part made it seem more beautiful with the blue sky above. I forgot already which pope is interred there, but it is a big deal - maybe a Clement? During WWII, an American or British parachuter fell into the courtyard, got stuck somehow and the town hid him for a few days until he could rejoin his unit. But the best part were the frescoes in the abbot's chapel. There were no guard ropes, so I was able to get as close as I wanted to see the details. Matteo Giovanetti worked on the pope's palace in Avignon, and probably painted these around the same time.

Off the Palais du Pape, huge, cold and mostly bare, with the most boring audio commentary I have ever heard. One room (no photos allowed) was painted with a forest scene - men fishing in a pond, catching birds in the most amazing green colored trees and foliage. The floor tiles were pictured with birds, fish etc in odd shades of green and orange. I am sad to say that I was less than impressed with the Palace, but maybe because I enjoyed the monastery already and two religious buildings in one day is pushing my limit. A quick stroll outside in the wind, and we were at the Pont d'Avignon, a bridge with an interesting story, I won't bore you with it, read here if you want.

Without a map, we tried to drive to one of the mountain villages, after a detour into an office park, we bought black market gas, which made the Fiesta sound even more like a tractor, and traced our way back to Avignon, which might have been easier if our map had indicated one-way and pedestrian only streets. Excited to find our way, we passed a group of students, drunk and annoyed with having to get out of our way, who opened the rear driver's side door; concerned about our imminent car-jacking, kidnapping and subsequent sale into slavery, I recommended that Rebecca floor it and threw myself into the back seat to save the door. Two blocks away, we were already laughing, but we still couldn't figure out that damn door lock and used the automatic button on the key to keep ourselves safe from then on.

Hungry again, we decided on Epiece et Love (Spice and Love) run by the charming Marie. An interesting crowd hit the restaurant and we tried our best to eavesdrop on the extremely high French guy and his Japanese girlfriend, but they moved tables so we had to amuse ourselves. Cozy in a back room table and after a blackberry aperitif and a bottle of wine, we made up a story of Marie and her lover Claude, and laughed as made up her motto of: "Love, Life and Cuisine, oh and maybe some Alcohol too." I had a nice pate, beef stew and we split a chocolate mousse - one half white and the other dark chocolate drizzled with what could only be Hershey's syrup. On the walk home, a man in bear skin coat almost ran me over! I promise that was not a wine-induced sighting.

Next stops: Carpentras, Gordes, Roussillon, and some other town I can't recall right now.

Road Trip Recap

2010-01-29T07:44:00.003-05:00

Paul Bocuse Scallops

With 6 days off from school, R and I decided to hit the road and drive to Marseille, stopping at any town that was having a market or sounded cool. After waiting for 45 minutes at Hertz (said without the H in French) for our car, we set off in our snappy Ford Fiesta (Yes, Leslie it was a stick shift) into the Paris rush hour. The Boulevard de Peripherique is the Paris Beltway, and the A6 heading south, is called the Autoroute du Soleil - or Sun Highway. I drove carefully, avoiding the crazy moped drivers, out of Paris, and then we hit the highway towards Lyon. Hunger hit around 8 pm, so we stopped at an Aire (Rest Stop) for gas and supplies - the ham and cheese on Swedish bread hit the spot, although the Bolognese flavored chips were pretty bad. As always, I hit the candy aisle and found my favorite Ritter Sport chocolate bar to keep me going through the night and next day. More to read . . .

A Candy Wreath and Flower Tree in Lyon

With four tour books, but no real map save the little ones in Let's Go, we did OK, R called a hotel and we found it AND free parking nearby. Score one for the North Americans! Our hotel was on the third story of an old apartment building, a little sketchy, not scary. The room had one double bed, and an in-suite bath! Unfortunately, upon closer inspection, only held a shower and sink, no toilet - it was located down the hall. The room was clean, but weird, not one thing was the same color or pattern of anything else. After a concerted effort to figure out how to lock the door, we fell into bed and slept until 9.

I dreamed of sleeping in a Matisse painting instead

We loosely planned to walk around Lyon, go to the Musee Des Beaux Arts the next morning, and try to make a reservation at a Paul Bocuse restaurant. We walked around the town square for a while, but the pouring rain deterred us from too much sightseeing or shopping. The museum had the requisite French painters galore, Monet, Manet, Renoir - but not one Van Gogh (I know he was Dutch, but he painted in France for most of his life). The exhibition of more modern painters was a nice surprise - Picasso and Matisse were my favorites.

Afterwards, we headed to Le Sud, for our Paul Bocuse Lunch. His famous restaurant, l'Auberge du Pont de Collonges, and very famous truffle soup, was WAY out of our league, so we settled for one of his brasseries in Lyon. Le Sud focusses on sunny Southern French cuisine, we sat in the front patio area, warmed by heat lamps in the cold weather. We started with a little aperitif, I am not sure what was in it - Kir and a rose wine, maybe? Then, I had the Escargots en Persillade a la Provencale - with a tomato coulis, caramelized onions and Serrano ham - the snails were the best I have ever had, they were much larger and less chewy than the usual, and the sauce was too good not to sop up with the nice bread. A quick pot of wine, for just 11 euros, added nicely to the meal. For my main course, I had the Scallops with Risotto and probably 2 pounds of butter - the scallops were roasted perfectly -- crunchy caramel on the outside, and creamy on the inside. The risotto melted like butter, surrounded with a seafood bisque-tasting sauce. For dessert we shared a little slice of chocolate tart, simple, but with a saltier than usual crust, it wasn't too sweet or chocolately after such a big meal. The Paul Bocuse quote translates to: "When eating with friends, time doesn't count anymore."

Ecargots and Chocolate Tarte

I peeked into the kitchen on my way to the ladies' room, and at 2:30 it was spotless and ready for dinner service. I asked the waiter for souvenir menu and he nicely complied, but I wonder if he suspected it was me who stole the clean napkin from the next table?

The waiter looks suspicious?

Sated, we drove up to the top of Lyon to see the view from the church, but the rain and fog, didn't make for any good photos.

Off to Avignon to see the bridge and Pope's palace the next day.

"Hot" Restaurant Desserts

2010-01-28T05:26:00.000-05:00

If I ordered a hot dessert in a restaurant, I might expect something hot, but not at Le Cordon Bleu. We made a great plated dessert with phyllo, chocolate praline with feuillitine (crushed crepes), caramelized apricots, sugared pistachios and vanilla ice cream with apricot caramel sauce - not one of which was even warm. I promise, it tasted great, and would have been even better if the apricots and sauce had been hot. My plating needs a little work, but I am getting the idea of it.

The MOF (Best in France) Chef noticed my red clogs and said he loved them! And he even liked my dessert too.

Road Trip!

2010-01-20T19:31:00.002-05:00

I have 5 days off from school, so a classmate and I decided to take a Road Trip - we rented a car and will not have a real itinerary - we are headed south and would like to make it to Marseille, but we are not committed to any specific place.

I will tweet from the road, but I might not have too many blog posts. Just don't want anyone to worry about me!

Ole!

2010-01-19T04:00:00.000-05:00

Mercadito Latino, a Colombian store in my 'hood, welcomed our group out of the rain last Saturday. I have been begging my Mexican classmate to make me an authentic meal since last fall, and he finally gave in, so five of us trekked out after petits fours class with Chef C. We bought corn tortillas, fresh cheese, chips, crazy hot sauces, and of course, a bottle of tequila! Then off to the Franprix grocery store for the rest of the provisions: 25 tomatoes, 15 limes, beans, beef, hot dogs, and a big bunch of cilantro.

The Spread

Don't forget to read more.

Almost immediately my kitchen smelled great, it is small by American standards, but there were four of us in the kitchen without too much bumping. I played bartender for the first bit, beers and gin and tonics - D contributed a bottle of Gordon's and took over the minute dicing of the onions, garlic and tomatoes. R made the fresh salsa and did her best with the sad avocados for guacamole. E made spicy pork and beans, so creamy and comforting with fresh cheese on top. Then a fast saute of the meat for the tacos and we were ready to eat! The pictures don't do it justice, it was a real feast.

The Boys: D, E and S

After one plate, we were full, but kept going back for more. Then we made plates of nachos for dessert. No one ever seems to want anything sweet, with the exception of "cletilas" - an effervescent mixture of tequila, clementine juice and tonic with a large slice of lime. We played music from everyone's ipods, an eclectic mix of Johnny Cash, Beyonce, house music and the Cardigans.

The girls, Becs and me

I don't understand how, but I have neither playing cards or dice at my house, so we had to think of a game, and I remembered "Celebrity" a silly game, like Taboo and Charades and Password all mixed up. We are a diverse group, American, Canadian, Mexican, Tunisian and Indian, but we all seem to watch the same movies and TV shows, it was funny that Michael Jordan was added by two different players. We played for hours, adding our chefs to the mix and then ourselves, pretending to be Chef D, we just stuck out our lips, for Chef C, we rolled out pastry and for Chef JJ, we just said "Pistachio!" Then we switched to the international game of 'getting to know you' called "I Never." Some things you just wish you could blackout of your memory.

Around midnight, I went to bed to jeers of "Grandma", and the rest of them stayed up until 5 am, drinking and talking and pretending to be Superman in my window. I haven't heard anything from my neighbors, so I guess we weren't too loud. I have to say, I wasn't feeling great after the tequila, so I made some toast the next morning, and while I was making tea, I burned my favorite Poilane bread. I ate it anyway, it might be a new hangover cure - Poilane toast with butter and jelly.

The Cure for a Night of Tequila

WOW! Pistachio Cream in the Middle?

2010-01-18T08:11:00.000-05:00

Side View of My Pistachio Surprise

A chocolate pistachio surprise! Well, not much of a surprise since pistachio is in the name of the dessert, but it still works. The cake layers are macaron, like the trendy little Parisian sandwich cookies that are starting to catch on in the US. It is a simple batter - mainly stiff egg whites, powdered sugar and almond flour, piped into a spiral shape to make the top and bottom layer.

Chef D's Cakes - same ingredients, different looks

I do get more nervous than usual when Chef D is supervising the practical. He sees EVERYTHING. I just tell myself to breathe, since sometimes I forget to when he is around. Really, it sounds silly, and I am not usually nervous in the kitchen, but Chef D has a sixth sense for when anyone is making a mistake, and will say, "Sarah, what are you doing?" Imagine that in a French accent though, kinda like Pepe le Peu. Click Read More for the rest of the story.

We started with the macaron batter, piping the layers and some small cookie sized rounds as well. Then, onto the pistachio creme brulee, more like a pistachio creme anglais, but the pistachio paste we use has a bitter almond extract flavor, with a scary Grinch-like color. No problems with it, so I move on to the chocolate mousse, similar to the one we made for the Heavenly chocolate cake in Intermediate, and that one was a disaster - I made chocolate-flavored butter by accident, and Chef D was not impressed. The chocolate should be at 50 degrees Celsius, the whipped cream should be cold, but not too cold, and the eggs should be at room temperature. The chocolate must be warm enough so it won't seize when it hits the cold cream, which would make chocolate chip mousse instead. Chef D stood over my shoulder as I beat the some egg mixture into the chocolate - very fast, then add the lightened chocolate to the remaining eggs very gently, just until there are no streaks of chocolate or egg white visible. Then STOP! Add the mixture to a pastry bag and start making tall blobs of mousse around the edge of the macaron. Spread some mousse in the center, pipe the pistachio cream next, then cover with more chocolate mousse - this is the surprise - you can't see the pistachio until you cut into the cake.

Set the cake in the freezer and work on decorating the top macaron with a daisy design, and this is where I make my fatal mistake. My mousse is a little to soft to pipe, and I scrape my mistakes off twice, then come up with a decent petal design and start to clean up my station obsessively. I hear the chef say my name, and look up to see him pointing at my sleeve, and of course, there is a good amount of chocolate in my cuff, which is normally rolled up tightly, but the kitchen was cold, and I left them unrolled. I thought he was annoyed that I was dirty, but he then pointed to my cake, and I realized that the chocolate mousse in my sleeve was from the daisy design I had just finished. Seriously?

Another addition to the massive laundry pile

I move on to place the sad daisy top onto the bottom macaron, and get out the chocolate gun to lightly spray the entire cake. Decorate with dried apricots (or mandarin orange segments, if the apricot truck doesn't deliver) and some whole pistachios. Then I realize that my layers are misaligned a bit, and try to wiggle the top layer over to match the bottom, but it is frozen together, so I end up making a hole in the macaron with my finger instead.

I have to say, Chef D was pretty nice about the whole thing, and said the layers were nice, the daisy was OK before I dragged my sleeve through it, and that the chocolate spray was not bad either. This is much higher praise than I would have expected. I would make this again with a few modifications: use higher-quality pistachio paste, less chocolate mousse, or a lighter one, and thicker macaron layers for more crunch. Now I just need 10 people to eat this cake before I do. There are some workmen in the apartment downstairs, maybe I can pawn it off on them?

Monday Morning Breakfast

Turnabout is Fair Play

2010-01-16T04:41:00.000-05:00

Uh oh. Chef D is back from vacation. If you don't remember, Chef D is the one who expects perfection in the kitchen, and if you have ever seen a kitchen after I have been there, that is not exactly my style - Jeannie, feel free to comment here. I really try to work cleanly in the kitchen, some of my classmates are able to make a complete cake without a dirty utensil nearby. I have been trying to emulate them, but I just don't understand it. If I am making a mousse, I need one bowl for stiffly beaten egg whites, with a whisk, I have a bowl with a spoon over a bain marie for the chocolate, a bowl of egg yolks and sugar with a whisk, and I also have a bowl of whipped cream with a rubber scraper and skimmer to fold it all together. In addition, I need a pastry bag with a tip ready to load the mousse. Once I incorporate the ingredients, I have four bowls and assorted utensils dirty at my station, but I also need to pipe the mousse immediately so it doesn't solidify in the pastry bag, so I can either work cleanly: take my stuff to the sink and wash it OR pipe the mousse onto the macaron before it sets. I just pile all the bowls together, throw the spoons into them and hope it doesn't attract attention. Maybe I will start hiding them in the fridge? But Chef D is tricky, and he might start checking there as well. I really thought I was doing well last night, I was about to pipe my mousse with my dishes stacked neatly, when he came by, and stroked his finger across my station, and showed me the small amount of egg white that had fallen on the marble, as if it was the grossest thing he had ever seen. Now, it is not as if it is a safety issue, there are raw egg whites and egg yolks in a chocolate mousse, it just offends him that there might be a little mess anywhere in the kitchen. Click Read More to learn about Chef D's messes.

So imagine my glee when Chef D had a bad day in the demonstration kitchen! Oh yes, mwah mwah wah (that is an evil laugh). He let his cream boil over at the start of class, put the creme brulee in the wrong pastry bag, telling us to close our eyes as he squeezed it into the correct one and then let his chocolate glaze boil over. My favorite part was when he held a pastry bag of pistachio (bright green!) cream upside down to cut the tip, and half of it plopped out of the bag onto the floor. I wanted to laugh out loud, but that is not advisable in Chef D's kitchen, he would prefer silence, except for an occasional "Oui, Chef." He forgot to make one cake, and didn't have enough pistachio mixture to complete it, but he played that one down, and said it was just going to be chocolate mousse. At least he didn't throw anything.

Well, off to make some petits fours with Chef C this afternoon, then some classmates are coming over to cook Mexican food at chez moi.

I will post some photos of the Chocolate Pistachio Surprise later, I left my camera in my locker at school.

PS It takes me about an hour to write these posts, and it would help to get some feedback, write some comments, ask me some questions, give me some advice on how to get Chef D to ease up, or how to be a cleaner cook.

Buche de Mangue et Framboise

2010-01-15T04:45:00.000-05:00

My Buche de Noel 2009

What is a buche? (it should have the little pyramid symbol above the u, but I don't know how to do that on blogger) Buche means log, but since my French is so bad, when I say it, my neighbors wonder why I would be making a 'mouth cake of mango and raspberry'. Buche is pronounced with an 'ew' sound, and Bouche (mouth) sounds exactly the same to me, but is pronounced with a 'oo' sound. Luckily, my neighbors are used to my non-sensical French, and manage to translate it for themselves into something comprehensible.

In the US, we usually use a flat sponge cake, rolled with buttercream, and covered to look like a rustic piece of wood, bark made with a fork run through the frosting and decorated with meringue mushrooms. Maybe some spun caramel, if you follow Martha Stewart's or Julia Child's recipes. I made a Buche de Noel for Christmas dessert, it was a little hairy, as EVERY store in the greater Wynnewood, PA area was sold out of heavy cream, and making a whipped cream frosting is pretty difficult without whipped cream, so I made a mocha buttercream instead, and covered it with a chocolate ganache, made a diamond design with string, placing chocolate covered cocoa nibs in the intersections, and sprinkled it with rock sugar, and surrounded by sprigs of sugared rosemary. Making the meringue mushrooms was fun, even though I had to give up the oven for the appetizers, so the last batch was a little gooey, all the kids wanted to eat them before they went on the cake. Click Read More for the Mango Raspberry Mousse.

Buches are ubiquitous during the holidays in France - Buche de Noel - usually covered in chocolate, but it can be any flavor. Click here to see a slide show of the famous buches of 2009. Some patisseries use the rolled cake version, but most use a log-shaped mold, making the assembly much less prone to a broken cake - which will look square instead of round. The molds are bread-loaf shaped, with the rounded top at the bottom, and squared-off edges to hold the mold upright. I don't have a picture, but imagine the mango buche upside-down to get an idea.

Chef JJ's Buche

Chef JJ started the demonstration by preparing the 'creamy raspberry' - raspberry puree with sugar and potato starch, although we ask, there doesn't seem to be a reason for choosing potato starch over cornstarch, maybe just to show us if we are ever stranded on a desert island, making a pastry cream, and run out of cornstarch, we can pivot, use potato starch, and feed a cannibalistic tribe to save our lives. It is good to be ready for a survival situation. The creamy raspberry is the filling for the buche, and it takes a long time to set, so as Chef JJ took the tram to work, he thought of a new way to mold it. Instead of pouring it on a tray to freeze, cutting it to size, and trying to pull it off the tray without breaking it, he lined to mold with paper, ladled the mixture in, and froze it in the mold. Then it had time to set properly and would need much handling to place it on top of the mousse. Of course, being JJ, he made some other shapes, rounds, little rectangles and a blob, to play with later. The mango mousse is made like a pastry cream with mango puree instead of milk as the base, "lightened" with butter and whipped cream. A quick flat dacquoise serves as a middle layer and base of the buche. A simple crumble adds texture to the outside of the cake. The chef makes a few different shapes - the buche, some rounds, and also some cute petits fours. It is a great breakfast for the whole class, although I find some of the cakes much too busy - the mango mousse is a beautiful color, why cover it with crumble and crazy raspberry strips?

Same Ingredients - Different Look

I never like when a different chef supervises our practical - they always want us to do it their way, instead of what the demonstration chef showed us. I understand learning other methods, but it is frustrating when you know that you should do it one way, and the chef won't allow it. Chef C. (the hot chef) was adamant about not using Chef JJ's raspberry cream invention, and specifically telling me not to freeze the mixture, the fridge would be fine. I knew I should do it JJ's way, but my French is not good enough to explain to him. But I make the raspberry cream his way and keep going.

In the practical kitchen, I start on the mango mousse, the pastry cream method is difficult for me to perfect, I seem to over or under cook it every time. And, right on schedule, I overcooked it, with nasty lumps of congealed mango puree and eggs ruining the texture. Now that I am in Superior Patisserie, I know what to do: wait until the chef is out of the room, toss the whole thing in the trash, hide the evidence of the browned bits in the pot by dropping it under the water in the dishwasher's sink, with a quick "Desolee" (sorry) and get back to start separating the eggs to get the yolks ready for another batch. The second mousse turned out perfectly, but I was behind the rest of the class. Luckily, one of my friends helped me get back on track by beating two quantities of whipped cream (no mixer today) for both of us, so I could get to work on the dacquoise, whisking eggs whites by hand, just like in Basic Patisserie. Just 10 minutes in the oven, and into the fridge to cool.

My Buche

The assembly of the buche is not difficult, just getting all the pieces together takes time. I line the mold with plastic, pipe the mango mousse in the bottom and spread it up the sides, then check the raspberry cream and realize it is NOT set, and frowning in the hot chef's direction, I scrape it piece by piece into my mold. Pipe a little mango mousse on top, place a thin layer of dacquoise, another layer of mousse, then the base of dacquoise, smooshing it all down into the mold to have a smooth finish. Into the freezer to set, and get the decorations ready. Raspberries, mango, cookie crumble, pistachios. I ask the chef if he minds if I don't use all that crap, and just use raspberries for my decoration, I think he agrees, but he is a winker, and I am a little distracted by his ridiculous good looks. Before you get any romantic ideas, he is happily married, and I am pretty sure if he wasn't, he would be dating a young Brigitte Bardot look-a-like.

The interior would have been even prettier if I had followed JJ's raspberry method

After waiting 30 minutes, we check our buches, and realize the freezer isn't working, the timer has gone off, we notify the chef, and he chides us for not checking sooner, we are in Superior, and should know better, well, that is what I think he said. We run the buches downstairs to the blast freezer, but now we are running late, I clean up my area while we wait 10 minutes for the mousse to set. Everyone stills seem set on adding all their decorations, but when I unmold my buche, I think it is so pretty and clean, that I almost don't want to add a thing. I notice a little bit of raspberry coming through the yellow mango, and a few airholes (Jeannie would call this a 'holiday' - the mousse went on vacation in that spot). I cover it with a little more mousse, smooth it very gently and pipe more mousse on top to glue the raspberries. I was very happy with the result. I am not sure what the chef thought, because the rest of the class went a little wild with decorations, but I stand by my design, even though the photo is crappy, I had to rush as the next class was lined up at the kitchen door to start their practical.

Yum!

Creole Tart?

2010-01-11T18:23:00.002-05:00

My Creole Tart with Toasted Coconut

I am a little confused by the name, "Creole Tart" for this dessert, I kinda understand the difference between Creole and Cajun, but why would a tart with coconut mousse, cake soaked with Malibu rum and topped with Italian meringue and fresh pineapple be called "Creole"? Please comment if you have any clue.
Click Read More to get the details.

Yum - Dessert for Breakfast

The demonstration by Chef JJ went beautifully - he made the Creole Tart and an Apple Clafoutis Tart. The Apple tart was delicious - just the thing for a cold winter's morning - it was still dark when I arrived at school at 8:30. I am not a huge fan of mousse with coconut flakes, I think mousses should always be smooth without any extra textures, so when I made mine, I toasted the coconut instead, and used it for decoration. Remember, the chefs never taste the desserts, so I didn't get caught making changes to the recipe. I haven't pawned off any of it to my unsuspecting neighbors, but I will tomorrow, just to empty out my cake tupperware for Thursday's practical. I think we are making a Yule log - probably pistachio-flavored. Chef JJ rarely lets one class go by without a little pistachio panache.

Chef JJ at work with the torch - one of his favorite kitchen tools

It is very quiet without the boys in the kitchen - they are all in the other group for practicals. Skip the rest of the paragraph if you are offended by R-rated language. One of the boys says "Motherfucker" constantly. Not in a mean way or directed at a person, just like someone else might say, "Darn, I added too much sugar," he will say, "Motherfucker, I put too much goddamn egg in that shit, motherfucker." To give you a better idea, he has a loud voice (louder than me, if you can believe that) and an Indian accent. For some reason, it just makes me laugh to hear him, and now I kinda miss it.

OK, back to the PG-rated portion of this post. We started with a pate sucree - simple sugar dough, pretty fragile though, so it took me two tries to get it in the tart ring, and even then, I had a little hole to patch - with Chef JJ's help. Then, we filled the rings with plastic and baking beans to keep the edges straight while it baked. Next, we made a quick pound cake (Genoise Savoie) for the interior of the tart. Coconut mousse was next - coconut puree, sugar and water to add to gelatin and whipped cream. I measured out my cream, and put the bowl with the whisk in the fridge to cool, so it would whip better, when Chef JJ told all of us to just add our cream to the bowl of the Kitchenaid mixer. I almost fell over - finally we get to use a machine! And I was the one who got to turn it on. It was a special day indeed. I

Here is Chef JJ's version of the Creole Tart

Chef JJ made the Italian meringue for all of us, that is standard, since it takes about 20 minutes in the huge mixer to be ready. I added the whipped cream to the coconut mixture right away, instead of waiting for the tart to be ready, so I was worried that it might congeal, so I just kept stirring it, and it worked out just fine, phew. After a few minutes in the blast freezer to cool, the tart is now ready to be assembled. I pipe coconut mousse into the ring, sprinkle some julienned pineapple, center the genoise, more mousse and then the meringue for the top, burned with the torch. Of course I added my own toasted coconut flakes for decoration, and a nice crunch. There wasn't quite enough meringue to do exactly what I wanted, but I think it turned out very nicely. Nice enough to earn a "pas mal" from the chef.

On a very happy note, the tub is now unclogged and I can take a much needed shower!

Thank You Huron South Dakota!

2010-01-09T18:49:00.002-05:00

I don't think I know anyone from Huron, South Dakota, but thank you!

Just 5 states to go - Missouri, Utah, Oklahoma, Alaska and Hawaii.

Baba Au Rhum

2010-01-08T17:49:00.086-05:00

My Baba Au Rhum - Before

How to describe Baba Au Rhum to someone who has never tasted it? Start with a thin rich yeast dough, bake it in a circle mold, drown it in orange juice, sugar syrup and Grand Marnier, stuff it with pastry cream, and plop a bunch of 'seasonal' berries on top. When it is warm with liquor, it is pretty good, but as soon as that cake hits the cold Paris air, it is like sucking the sponge left outside after washing my car last winter. OK. I might be taking a little bit of poetic license here, but I am not exaggerating the extent of the damage created by a very crowded metro ride home from school. Click "Read More" to see the train wreck.

My Baba Au Rhum - After

Do NOT even try to send this photo to www.cakewrecks.com

Oh! Phew, I just heard the bathtub gurgle! which means, I might not have to buy a plunger. Or call a French plumber - mon francais is not up to that conversation. I guess I could just point to the tub, though.

JJ's Red Velvet Baba

Sorry, back to the first day of class. Chef JJ was there, as happy as ever. Luckily, the translators are back - so my pathetic French is not an issue. There are more than 20 students in the class, some people from other Le Cordon Bleus, and some who caught up with me by taking the intensive Intermediate Pastry session while I was home playing Rukus with my nieces and nephews. So we are in one class for demonstrations, and split into two groups for hands-on kitchen practicals. I am happy that my friend Rebecca is in my practical group, as well as Mikako, from Japan. The demonstration was the afore-mentioned Baba Au Rhum, and Kugelhopf. Chef JJ is not a fan of rum, so he changes all the recipes to use another liquor, so technically, they were all Baba Au Grand Marnier. As usual, he makes the whole process look very easy, and even topped his Babas off with a candy apple red spray paint job made of white chocolate and cocoa butter with red food coloring. The basic Baba got the usual JJ treatment of fresh berries and pistachio dust. I am not sure he ever travels without an emergency stash of those green nuts, just in case he happens upon a little lost pastry, and can save it with his super pistachios.

JJ's Baby Babas and Perfect Baba with Pistachio Bits

Happy to be back in the kitchen, quieter this time, all girls in my group. My Baba turned out OK, with the exception of the pastry cream, which was so runny I couldn't use it, and borrowed a little from a classmate to complete my cake. Really, after making pastry cream this many times, you would think that I would be able to do it correctly! My mistake this time: I tried to chill it in a small bowl, instead of the usual tray to get it cold faster, then tried to freeze it, to no avail. If you are wondering, after I took a photo of the wrecked Baba Au Grand Marnier, I snagged a big spoonful of pastry cream and berries for dessert.

No, I didn't make the cheese souffle yet, it is on my list for the weekend. I was so surprised to see dinners by Joel Robouchon - "Chef of the Century" at my local Monop', I made a delicious salad for dinner instead - vinaigrette with a little creme fraiche, arugula, tomatoes, orange segments, hard-boiled egg, and croutons of stale baguette. It might sound a little odd, but it was a nice treat.

Be back soon to tell you all about my sugar-pulling woes.

First Day of Third and Final Session

2010-01-06T05:08:00.003-05:00

I can't believe it is finally here! I think I say that a lot. I went to Le Cordon Bleu on Monday to scope out the class list, drop off my kit and save myself a good locker. No class list, the class is much bigger this session, so the core of us from Intermediate will probably be scattered. I did get two good lockers - on the top, I didn't know that people came early to save lockers, so I was crammed under another person changing out of their sweaty kitchen clothes for the other sessions. It is easier to have two lockers, one for clothes and the other for my kit. I have my uniform ironed, my knifes are all clean and I bought new paper for my notebook. I even have new shoes - thanks Nick! I have been wanting red kitchen clogs for the longest time, and I was hoping when I saw the Zappo's box, that it was for me. I hope I am the only one with red clogs. Read about the rest of my day by clicking on the link below.

After class, I went to the little cafe around the corner from the school to have a quiche with some friends, then metroed to the Grand Palais to see the last day of the Renoir exhibit. I waited outside in the cold for about 30 minutes, witnessing at least three people (two Eastern European, one French) blatantly butt in line ahead of me, get yelled at by security but not even back down. The exhibit is coming to Los Angeles and then to Philadelphia, showing Renoir's break with Impressionism. I had no idea how Renoir inspired other artists, especially Picasso. An exhibit on the Byzantine and Ottoman empires in Turkey was also available, so I checked that out too. I don't know enough about history or read French well enough to get everything, but I enjoyed the jewelry, great amethyst earrings with pearls, and clothes, exquisitely worked caftans, in gold, green and hot pink abstract floral designs. The most interesting part was in the middle, the curators shone red light on the existing stairs, covered the walls with canvas printed with stone and mosaic work. Mystical music played and hovering over my head at the top, a dome. Each minute, a different Turkish dome interior was projected, some from mosques, some from churches, each more beautiful than the last.

I walked the Champs Elysee for a while, taking in the lights from all angles - including the middle of the road (don't worry, I was safe in the crosswalk). The blue lights on the trees are so much prettier than my video, but just come see for yourself one holiday season. Of course, I couldn't walk the Champs without buying something, so I found two books that I needed. Yes, they are in French. The first is from Laduree - they might have invented le macaron - the book comes in a pale green box lined with lavender tissue, and the book is pale green suede with gold edges. As elegant as Laduree.

The second book is a basic cookbook, for all food, not just pastry! Each recipe is shown step by step (pas de pas), I love how they show the ingredients lined up before starting the recipe. I wish more cookbooks were designed like this. I haven't made anything from it yet, but I might try the cheese souffle tonight. Wish me luck!

Bon Jour Paris

2010-01-01T16:28:00.006-05:00

On-time from Philly to Paris

With the stricter security measures in place, I left at 1:30 for a 5:20 flight on Wednesday, but it was smoother than ever to get through Washington National, I checked my just-under-the-weight-limit bag, and zipped through security in less than 12 minutes. So I had about 3 hours to spare, chatting on my cell for more than 2 minutes, wirelessly downloading books for my kindle, grabbing my last American meal for a few months at Five Guys, and eavesdropped on all the conversations in English, things I can't do in Paris.

There is more to the story - click the Read More text below!

The flight was quick, I had a nice nap and a good conversation with the archeologist sitting next to me on her way to surprise her French boyfriend for New Year's Eve. She was shocked that I even tasted the airline dessert, German chocolate cake, but it was the best thing on the tray. I read a few New Yorkers (thanks, Regina), and she confessed to being intimidated by my reading material, but she was deep into The Elegance of the Hedgehog, a book I have tried without moving past the first 20 pages.

I am embarrassed to admit this next part, but what the heck, as Jack would say. As I got off the plane, I hurried to immigration, to beat the rest of the passengers, but after a panicked check of my purse realized that I didn't have my passport. I ran back, sweating in my winter gear, begged the passengers in line to cut in front of them, and a French TSA agent retrieved it from the seat back pocket where it had fallen. I do always travel with a photocopy of it, but I really didn't want to spend the day sorting it out. I had managed to smuggle an entire bottle of Diet Coke with Lime, which DOES taste different from Coca-cola Lite with Lime. I have priorities.

The Girls at the Party

I dropped off my bags at my apartment, and met my landlord's friends who were taking advantage of my 6-week vacancy. It was nice to see the old place before I headed out for New Year's Eve with Rebecca, she was making bread for a party at the "favella" - the slum apartment where 6 or 10 culinary students live. The accommodations might be dicey - mattresses on the floor, tiny spiral staircases and ceilings so low that even I bumped my head coming out of the bathroom - but the food was spectacular. New England clam chowder was the best starter and the main course was beef and mashed potatoes loaded with huge chunks of truffles. The two pieces of meat were cooked slowly for hours, making them almost melt in my mouth, and when I asked what they were, the answer was beef cheeks and tongue. The tongue was a little mushy for my palate, but I liked the flavor. If you see beef or veal cheeks on a menu, order them -- if cooked correctly, they taste better than filet mignon.

Photo Shoot

Rebecca and I had planned to leave the party for the congregation at the Eiffel Tower, but we didn't finish dinner until almost 11, and then when the hosts showed us the view from the roof, we decided we couldn't possibly improve it by leaving. At 12:59, we counted down the last minute of 2009, in Spanish, of all languages, it was the mother tongue of most of the guests. As we got to dos, uno, then Bonne Annee (back to French), the bells of Notre Dame chimed, the Eiffel Tower sparkled, fireworks popped from all angles, and I could see Sacre Couer shining up on the hill. We added our own special effects: photo flashes, champagne corks popping and yelling Happy New Year in any language. The rooftops were deserted, it seemed as we were the only Parisians celebrating last night.

French Gingerbread Cookies - I decorated the green tree

After we climbed back through the window, happy to be safe from the cold and the sloping 6th story roof, we had dessert - Tiramisu and tequila shots! After decorating christmas cookies, a Charlie's Angels photo shoot, some salsa or meringue dancing and an 80's hairband power ballad sing-a-long, Rebecca and I headed to the metro around 4 am, which although free earlier in the night, was now closed with a long line of revelers waiting in vain for taxis. Just as we were trudging back to the party to call a cab, Rebecca tried one more cab at a stop light. He agreed to take us home for 20 euros, about double the usual fare, but we were happy to pay, and at another red light, a girl banged on the window for him to take her home as well - reminiscent of a zombie movie. We found out later that the metro had been closed because of too much traffic from the Eiffel Tower and Champs Elysees areas and the police set off tear gas to clear the crowds.

A good sleep later, and breakfast made by Rebecca - scrambled eggs with bacon and onions with bacon studded brioche, I finally made it back to my own neighborhood around 6 pm, passing the happiest-looking homeless man in my metro - snuggled in his blankets, smoking, and finishing off the last of his bottle of champagne. Only in Paris.

Here are my pathetic provisions from the corner store, almost nothing is open for the next few days.

Snow!

2009-12-20T16:17:00.002-05:00

Jeannie and I trekked to Safeway for some provisions, it was fun to see how much we could buy without breaking our backs carrying it home.

Sledding at Columbia Country Club after a great brunch with Stuart and Beth. Note: Do not try to sled if you bruise your tailbone, it is not fun.

My sad macarons

2009-12-17T15:48:00.002-05:00

All but 4 cracked, but they taste great.

Grinch-flavored Macarons

Ok, they are really chocolate macarons with pistachio buttercream, not that pretty, but they do taste good. Macarons are deceptively difficult to make.

Out with Amy

2009-12-16T23:09:00.001-05:00

Just nother wednesday night.

Failure #1.

2009-12-16T19:15:00.001-05:00

First unsuccessful attempt at pulled sugar.

New boots.

2009-12-14T19:03:00.001-05:00

These would have been perfect 'Vouz' boots in the early nineties. no vouz-goo can stick to these!

I made the cupcake of the day.

2009-12-13T11:23:00.001-05:00

Chocolate with chocolate mousse, chocolate ganache glaze and peppermint candy topping. Not bad, I think. i didnt come up with the idea just executed it.

Guess what store this is?

2009-12-12T20:26:00.001-05:00

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Happy boys.

2009-12-12T19:59:00.001-05:00

Basketball net for Christmas.

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I got an internship!

2009-12-12T07:07:00.001-05:00

And a tee-shirt!

Now THIS is a beautiful Buche de Noel

2009-12-11T18:29:00.000-05:00

http://tmagazine.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/11/now-serving-alexis-mabilles-christmas-cake/

This view makes sitting in traffic bearable.

2009-12-09T11:08:00.000-05:00

Maybe DC should contract with the lighting company for the eiffel tower. the washington monument could use some bling and bedazzling.

Another craving satisfied.

2009-12-07T16:02:00.001-05:00

South street cheesesteak for lunch yesterday with my brother from philly. He was impressed. Paris needs one of these desperately ~ they love mcdo, why not a cheesesteak?

The cookie jeannie and i were 'sharing.'

2009-12-07T14:29:00.000-05:00

She ate the whole thing while i waited for our drinks. the crumbs were free though.

My sister is being very patient with my mess.

2009-12-05T02:16:00.001-05:00

This is her dining room while i am making desserts for two holiday parties.

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Georgetown Cupcake

2009-12-03T11:43:00.001-05:00

Before

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The Chicken Wine in the US!

2009-12-02T19:51:00.002-05:00

Yes! The cheap "chicken wine" is available at Wegman's and other fine stores. It is $6 there, so my price of 3 Euros is about on track -- BUT -- my wine has a cork and the US version has a screw-top!

In the background, I am making some little cookies for a party on Saturday night at my mom's tennis club.

Six months of no new clothes is officially over.

2009-12-01T18:22:00.000-05:00

At least i bought american!

2009-11-23T17:40:00.000-05:00

One thing i dont miss when i am in paris. rainy monday night traffic in bethesda.

OK, This is Ridiculous!

2009-11-22T05:34:00.002-05:00

I know the French are kinda crazy when it comes to fashion, but this is insane.

Pants are Illegal in Paris!

Six States Left!

2009-11-21T05:39:00.002-05:00

Thanks for forwarding my blog around to get all 50 states.

Just need

Alaska, Hawaii, Missouri, Oklahoma, South Dakota, and Utah

So if you know anyone in those states (obviously, I don't), please send them a link to my blog.

I feel like my nephews did when they were searching for all the state quarters from both mints!

2009-11-20T23:07:00.001-05:00

Hello miller lite.

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My welcoming Committee

2009-11-20T05:12:00.003-05:00

Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jig!

Surprise! I was walking through the airport in Washington on my way to baggage claim, when two crazy girls jumped out from behind the information screen, yelling "Welcome Home!" Luckily, I knew them to be my friends, Leslie and Amy. Even more lucky, my ride home hadn't shown up yet (I took an earlier connecting flight), so we headed to a local bar for some much appreciated wine - no French chicken wine - but still good!

Then my mom, sister and nephews arrived and I broke out the treats I lugged from Paris - 4 baguettes, and ziplocks full of madeleines and shortbread cookies I had stowed in my freezer this summer. No worse for wear, the madeleines especially were better than I thought they would taste.

I will be home until December 29th! Then back to Paris for the final session (January to March) and my internship (March to June).

Visitor Update

2009-11-12T05:06:00.002-05:00

Thanks to my New Mexico visitor, whoever you are!

Just need visitors from these last few states:

New Hampshire, Indiana, Utah, Missouri, South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Oklahoma, Alaska and Hawaii.

I have had 663 unique visitors to my blog since I started in April, so I am confident that someone knows a person in all of these states. Help me out!

Officially Two-Thirds Done!

2009-11-11T04:24:00.006-05:00

It's official! I graduated from Intermediate Patisserie last Thursday. My favorite Chef JJ on the left and the very attractive Chef Caals on the right.

For my final exam, I made a Vanilla and Wild Strawberry Treasure, this photo is from when I made for the first time in class. No photos allowed during the exam. It is a dacquoise base, wild strawberry mousse interior with berries hidden inside, then a layer of chiboust cream, burned with a torch and decorated with strawberries. Even though we call it the "Boob Cake." I did hold off from putting a sliced berry on the very top for the sake of propriety!

For the technical portion of the exam, we all had to write "Opera" with chocolate on a cardboard square. Here are some photos of my practicing, it was a sad waste of very good chocolate.