Pastry Update #5

It’s been five cakes and six lessons since Pastry Update #4, and it has been an exciting three weeks!  From our first experiences with poured glazes to the infamous Croquembouche, these were definitely lessons that I will not soon forget.

Leçon 11

Mousse cakes have become pretty standard, and it is exciting to not be intimidated by them anymore.  In this lesson, we learned yet another: the Délice Caramel.  It consists of a coffee-flavored lady finger base with a caramel mousse and a pear mousse.  Chef Eric also taught us how to make an exceptionally delicious reduced caramel sauce for the plated dessert, and showed us the best ways to make two-toned chocolate décor.

Chef Eric's Caramel Mousse Cake with two-toned chocolate
cigarettes

Chef's plated dessert -- the caramel sauce is so good!

The practical didn’t go as well for me as the previous few had.  I over-baked my lady fingers a little, which led to the entire cake having some problems.  Caramel mousse leaked out of the bottom, my “cartuchière” wasn’t even (the outside ring of cake), and I didn’t have time to make any chocolate décor.  It was a bit of a nightmare, but my caramel sauce was delicious, and my mousses were well-done.  Even so, I will definitely be practicing this one at home in the coming weeks.

My plated dessert.  My lady fingers are over-baked, so they
cracked during construction, and I didn't have time for chocolate

My big Caramel Mousse Cake -- the caramel mousse leaked
out of the bottom of my cake...sad day.

Layers from bottom to top: Coffee lady fingers, caramel mousse
with pieces of pears, coffee lady fingers, pear mousse

Leçon 12

The Marquise au Chocolat was our first time working with poured glaze.  It is also said to be the most difficult cake in our entire program to cover because of the nature of its especially quick-setting glaze, so the Chef assured us that if we could successfully tackle this one, we would be fine with glaze all the way through Superior.  The cake itself consists of milk chocolate mousse and a crispy praline layer.

One of Chef Herve's Marquises au Chocolat.  This one is
surrounded by heart-shaped macarons

Another of Chef Herve's Marquises -- surrounded by chocolate
fans and dusted with gold dust

Chef Herve's plated dessert

Chef Herve's last Marquise au Chocolat, with which he demonstrated
how to wrap the side in chocolate, rather than glaze it.

My practical was smooth.  I didn’t run into issues with the chocolate mousse that many of my classmates did, which left me thankful.  While the cake was setting, I had time to try the two-toned chocolate cigarettes that Chef Eric had showed us in the previous lesson, and it was fun to finally give those a shot.  Glazing the cake wasn’t too bad.  I didn’t get the entire side, but the Chef showed me how to cover the exposed mousse without leaving the side too choppy. My plated dessert, on the other hand, was kind of embarrassing.  I literally threw it together in one minute, and it looked pretty sad.

My Marquise au Chocolat, with gold dust and my first two-toned
chocolate cigarettes

My embarrassing plated dessert.  Better than nothing, but
definitely not something I'm particularly proud of

My first cigarettes:  I let the white set a little too much, so they
cracked.  For the most part, it worked, though!

Leçons 13 and 14

As part of his demo, Chef Eric showed us how to make
ribbons and flowers out of sugar

Of all the lessons in Intermediate Pastry, all the chocolate tempering and mousse cakes and plated desserts, this one is the most famous.  It is the most anticipated and the most feared.  It presents the most likely possibility of blisters and burns.  This lesson is Croquembouche.

Chef Eric's Croquembouche

Croquembouche (sometimes called “Croque en Bouche”) is the traditional French wedding cake.  (“Wedding Pastry” is maybe a better term, as it isn’t a cake by any definition.)  It is a tall, hollow cone built of round puff pastries that are filled with Grand Marnier cream and dipped in caramel.  The cone sits on a base made of “Nougatine”, a crunchy concoction of slivered almonds and caramel.  Many times, a Croquembouche is decorated with sugar ribbons or birds, flowers, royal icing, and angel hair caramel. Since we have yet to officially work with pulled or blown sugar, we were tasked with building a Croquembouche on a nougatine base and decorating it with royal icing.  Chef Eric used approximately 80 choux in his demo, but we were only required to use 50 (an announcement which was accompanied by an evil Chef Eric laugh).

The lesson was split into two days and had four parts: two three-hour demos in one day, then two three-hour practicals the next.  This meant that we would have five hours of work time to make this pastry happen.

My Croquembouche -- not bad!

The first half of my practical was not great.  In theory, we were supposed to complete the choux (empty puff pastries), cream, and nougatine base and triangles.  Of these three tasks, I messed up two: my choux were too big (which meant I yielded exactly 50 of them), and my nougatine was too dark.  Working with the nougatine was pretty tough: in order to shape it, it had to be almost too hot for human hands to tolerate.  With mine being pretty dark, it was less pliable than usual, which meant it had to be even hotter to be flexible enough to mold.  After about 40 minutes of wrestling with it, I decided that my only feasible option was to just get out what I could, and worry about attractiveness later.  In the first 2.5 hours, time wasn’t an issue, but by the time we were to go to the basement for a lunch break, I wanted to just stay upstairs and re-do everything.  Not having this as an option, I was pretty disappointed in my work, and I was pretty sure that there was no way I could turn it around for the better.  It was comforting to know, though, that I wasn’t the only student with big choux.  We would get through this together.

It's actually kind of cute!

After the lunch break, our task was to fill the choux, make the caramel, dip them, build the Croquembouche, and decorate it.  I was determined to not mess anything else up, and to somehow make my fail-Croquembouche attractive.  Dipping the filled choux in caramel was pretty comical.  I was hyper-aware of my fingers’ proximity to the burning-hot caramel and was sure not to burn myself, but the kitchen was a chorus of “Ah!”s and “Ouch”es and muttered cuss words as students dipped their fingers with their choux.  

With my choux dipped, I was on to the construction, determined to make this thing look right.  Building it wasn’t bad; the big choux actually didn’t pose too much of an issue and my cone was only a tiny bit crooked.  When the decoration was done, I stepped back and took a good look at the thing.  I was pleased to see that it actually wasn’t as bad as I anticipated it would be.  In my critique, Chef Eric even assured me that the nougatine wasn’t burned.  He broke off a piece and made me eat it, and I was amazed that he was actually correct, and it was delicious.  Imagine that!  At the end of the day, I only went home with one burn – an imprint of the baking tray’s corner on my palm.  Oops.

They were too big for our cake boxes, so most of us wrapped
our Croquembouches in plastic wrap and carried them home

The little royal icing flowers really helped
brighten this thing up.  The color of my
caramel is also nice

Ready to walk home!

My only burn of the day.  I was lucky!

Leçon 15

Whew!  Croquembouche is done, and now we’re on to another mousse cake: the Pacific.  Pacific consists of a very light sponge cake, strawberry mousse, and lemon mousse, and it is decorated with colorful cigarette décor and a swirly design on the side.  The demo was fun and the cake was light and refreshing – perfect for summer in Iowa.

Chef Eric's plated Pacific

Chef Eric's large Pacific with cigarette paste decorations and
candied lemon zests

My practical went great!  The timing was good and I only had one major problem: I over-mixed my sponge cake a little, making its edges dry.  The edges are cut off and discarded anyway, but I was still concerned about fixing that issue.  Decorating with the cigarette paste was fun, and I really enjoyed the tiny Pacific for the plated dessert.  Overall: a success!

My little plated dessert -- what a cute little guy!

My big Pacific -- the piping isn't great, but I'm really happy
with the designs on the side and top

A successful practical!

Leçon 16

In our most recent lesson, we learned the Opéra, a richly delicious six-layer cake that I loved in France.  It is built out of sponge cake soaked in coffee syrup, coffee buttercream, dark chocolate ganache, and another poured glaze.  In the demo, Chef Eric also showed us a chocolate tart, which was quick and easy.  It is too rich for my taste, but my chocolate-loving friends couldn’t get enough.  In the practical, we were to make a full-sized Opéra with a piped chocolate border and chocolate décor, and a plated dessert.

Chef Eric's plated Opera -- I LOVE this design!

Chef's Opera (not sure why the photo is sideways -
sorry about that)

The simple but nice chocolate tart

The practical was great!  My sponge cake, which was the same recipe as the one I over-mixed in the previous lesson, was a lot better.  It was great to have more experience pouring glaze, and I had plenty of time to temper chocolate.  My piping wasn’t great, even though I practiced (time to practice some more!) but it wasn’t awful.  My goal for the day was to use a treble clef in the design without it looking campy, and I think I succeeded in that.  Chef Arnaud (the new pastry chef) really loved it.

My plated Opera.  I don't love the chocolate swirls in the
front there, but Chef Arnaud liked them

Goal to use a treble clef -- accomplished

My large Opera cake

Layers from bottom to top: Sponge cake with coffee syrup,
coffee buttercream, sponge cake with coffee syrup, dark
chocolate ganache, sponge cake with coffee syrup, thin layer
of coffee buttercream, poured glaze

Only six more lessons before our final exam!  Eek!

A Cultural Experience

My time here in Ottawa hasn’t only been a really great educational experience, but it has turned into a beautifully fulfilling and varied cultural experience.  At school, we get a (literal) taste of French culture, and I often find it funny how the English vocabulary of our chefs reflects the French language (phrases like, “He needs a little more time to bake,” "I needs to wait," and “I know it’s done when it’s as cold than my hands”).  But the cultural experience has expanded well past France, through my friends from all over the world.  Let’s start with the most obvious:

Canadian

When in Canada, do as the Canadians do.  I’ve tried to really fit in with my Canadian classmates to the point where they don’t see me as someone from another country, and I think I’ve really succeeded.  Even though our cultures are pretty similar, there are also distinct differences.  One, of course, is the Canadian accent.  Most of my friends have insisted that they don’t have one and that they can’t hear an accent in me, but I can feel myself slowly speaking like a Canadian.  Though my “O” only really comes out in the word “Sorry” (the usual Canadian substitute for “excuse me” or “pardon me”), I hear my accent more strongly in words with a soft “a,” like “package” or “accident.”  It’ll be interesting to see if my absorbed accent sticks around after returning home!

Grilled Chicken on Whole Wheat -- my favorite from Harvey's!

First time trying Poutine

Since moving here, we’ve tried things that are distinctly Canadian, like Poutine and Harvey’s (I’m convinced it’s the BEST burger chain in the world), local beers and Beaver Tails.  A couple weeks ago, though, Chad and I had the ultimate Canadian cultural experience: a live hockey game!  Ottawa has its own team, the Ottawa Senators, and for my birthday last May Chad gave me a coupon redeemable for a regular-season game.  We played the Carolina Hurricanes, and it was such a blast!  Our seats were great, we each got a free hot dog and big coke, we sat by an old lady who loved hockey (and wisely advised that I not keep my coat on the floor or it would get covered in beer), the announcer was bilingual, the mascot had a hotdog gun, they had two Zambonis, and they sang both the Canadian (which was sung in half-English and half-French) and the US national anthems.  It was so fun, and there was a great, addictive, Canadian energy in the arena that will be hard to forget.  We walked out of the arena into a blizzard, which just added to the entire experience.

We found the live organ that was playing the cheers!

What an exciting hockey game!

So excited to go inside for the game!

Sparty, the mascot, had a real hot dog gun!

Chinese

The center of the table spins, so we could grab more of
anything we wanted...and boy did we have choices!

One thing I have definitely learned since moving to Canada is the fact that “Chinese” food in the US is nothing like actual Chinese food.  I understood that Panda Express isn’t exactly authentic, but now I know that neither are the places that really claim to be.  For the Chinese New Year last weekend, a few of my friends invited us out for a real Chinese dinner to celebrate.  We went to a place called “May’s Garden,” where the chef is from Beijing and the food was the best that Jason (one of my friends from China) has found in town.  The menu was in Chinese and English, but Jenny (another friend from China) just laughed at it and assured us that the translations weren’t that great.  Jason ended up ordering for all of us (with Dina, Chad, and I not understanding a single word), and the feast was on its way.  The table was so functional, I couldn’t get over it.  There was a large glass turntable in the center where our server would set the food.  If we wanted more of anything, we just rotated the center and dished up ourselves – how smart!  The food began to come, and Jason and Jenny would tell us all about Chinese New Year traditions and meals at home.  

A Chinese New Year tradition: a steamed bass eaten right off
of his bones.  He was really tasty!

Cindy, who is from Taiwan, explained how her traditions are a little different.  It was a great learning experience, and I couldn’t believe how incredible the food was.  We had a beef soup, really soft tofu in spicy red sauce, delicious dumplings filled with ground meat and onions, sizzling peppered beef, Peking Duck (thin slices of duck wrapped in thin tortillas with green onions and special sauce), a bass that was steamed fresh (like, he was alive when we walked into the restaurant) for us, and for dessert: sticky rice balls filled with black sesame filling.  Everything was so delicious, and Chad and I succeeded in not having to ask for a fork.  We even ate the fish with chopsticks, which we picked right off the bones.  Jenny taught me how to say “Thank you,” and I finally got the courage to say it to our server while paying.  The conversation was lighthearted and enlightening, and the food was incredible.  What a great cultural experience!

Ukrainian

Remember the Pierogi Night post?  It was an awesome night, and a great glimpse into Ukrainian and Russian culture.

Indian

My friend Tanvi is from India, and before moving to Canada she lived in Indiana and New York City.  It is always so fun to hang out with her and chat, because the conversation usually turns to the differences between the US and Canada and the US and India.  One day, I mentioned that I had never tried Indian food, and she about fell over.  She promptly invited Chad and I to join her at her favorite Indian restaurant here in town: Haveli.  I was kind of nervous, since I am such a wimp with spicy food, but she assured me that there would be no problem there.

Wow – what an awesome meal!  Indian food is amazing, and I only tried one thing that was way too spicy for me.  Tanvi explained all the dishes to us (it was a buffet) and when and how they are usually eaten.  She showed me how to eat with my hands by pinching pieces of food with a piece of thin, bubbly naan bread.  Chad and I each found something that we really loved on the buffet, and we left stuffed.

Overall, I’ve been learning so much about the world and its many many cultures.  I’m so glad I came to Canada.  Chad and I are up next to have a gathering of our friends for an “American Night”…we’ll see what we come up with!

Winterlude

We’ve all heard about winter in Canada.  We’ve seen South Park episodes and heard jokes about it on TV.  I’m here to tell you that winter in Canada is exactly what I expected it to be.

In the park for Winterlude

Winter here is a lot like winter in Iowa.  It’s cold and windy and it snows a lot.  It lasts a little longer up here than at home.  The biggest difference is that at home, it snows 20” and it won’t snow again for a few weeks, and here it lightly snows almost every day, and it just piles up slowly.  At night, we can hear a notorious duo going down the street: a dump truck and his friend the snow blower, who fills him up before they go dump the snow in the river and start over.

Although the winter up here is pretty long and cold and snowy, it doesn’t get the Canadians down.  In fact, the city of Ottawa has a famous festival every winter called “Winterlude,” during which people come from all over Canada to help celebrate the season.  Winterlude just ended, and it was a lot of fun!  One of the downtown parks is full of huge ice sculptures (done as part of a worldwide contest), and Chad and I went to check it out one afternoon.  The ice was amazing, and the park also had hot cocoa stands and a “BeaverTails” hut and educational stations where we learned all about the Northern Lights.  Fun, right?

My favorite ice sculpture in the Winterlude park

Checking out the ice sculpture art

Ottawa’s winter is also home to the famous Rideau Canal Skateway.  It’s exactly what its name implies: when the canal that runs through the city freezes completely, skate rental stands pop up on the ice and it’s open for skating.  We went one weekend afternoon during Winterlude, and it was packed!  There had to have been hundreds of people having a great time on the ice.

We decided not to rent skates (because I was scared of how uneven the ice is), but instead to walk a portion of the frozen canal.  Each kilometer is marked with a sign (the open a 7.5 km stretch for skating, making it the world’s largest skating rink), so we walked to the 2km sign and back.  On our way, we stopped for our first Beaver Tail, with young children zooming past us like professional hockey players.

We decided on a Nutella Beaver Tail, and it was kind of like a funnel cake.  Super delicious and definitely addictive, I wanted another one for hours after leaving the canal.

A Beaver Tails hut right on the ice!

Yum!  Like a beaver-tail-shaped funnel cake drenched in
Nutella!

Winter here is definitely cold (I’ve worn snow pants on my walk to school to stay warm), but it is far from miserable.  So, even if we have a “White Easter” this year, I won’t be disappointed.  After all, I did always wish to have snow on my birthday (May 3) – maybe we will!

Cupcake Creations

Some of the Chefs' cupcakes after the Demo finished

A few weeks ago, I volunteered to assist in another of Le Cordon Bleu’s weekend “Short Courses,” single-day classes that are attended by the public.  The topic of the class: Cupcake Creations.  I was kind of surprised that this class existed, knowing full well that French chefs don’t generally appreciate cupcakes (a 100% North American dessert), and I was excited to see how they would go about decorating them.  My job for the day was to help direct attendees to their seats, and to assist them in their practical class.

After the Demo

It was a good day.  The demo was hilarious. I sat with some fellow student helpers in the back of the class, and it was often all we could do not to giggle out loud.  We could tell that Chef Hervé and Chef Eric weren’t really in their element, and that they clearly Googled “cupcake decoration” as the source of many of the techniques.  They showed us two flavors of cake: Red Velvet and Pound Cake, then proceeded to decorate them with marshmallows and candies and shaved coconut and Oreos.  There were beehive cupcakes and Cookie Monster cupcakes and cupcakes that looked like flowers.  Though we thought it was funny, the paying customers seemed to really enjoy the class.

When the demonstration was finished, Dina and I helped carry boxes and boxes of supplies and candies to the practical kitchen, then helped Chef Eric set up stations of decorations and tools.  The students arrived and the class had begun!  They each made a dozen cupcakes, then had free reign to decorate them as they pleased.  We were at their full disposal for help, extra ingredients, and technical advice.  I’ve always enjoyed being in a teaching environment, and I really enjoyed myself. 

Oreo sunflowers with lady bugs!

To my relief, most of the students had a pretty hard time with the techniques demonstrated by the chefs (they got their money’s worth, for sure!), and really needed our help.  I did everything from helping with the correct ways to pipe drop flowers and properly color marzipan to making little marzipan bees for a lady who was behind on time. 

When everyone had finished and left, we cleaned the kitchen and searched high and low for everyone’s muffin tins.  Overall, it was a really great day, and a relaxing and fun way to spend a Saturday morning.