The Last Cakes (Pastry Update)

This past week we tackled two more lessons: the last cakes (and tarts) in the entire program.  It is strange to think that all of the cakes are done, but I can’t say that I’ll miss having so much cake around the apartment after classes.

Leçon 103

I had been looking forward to this one since I was the Demo Assistant for this same lesson last term.  The reason: a paint gun.  Lesson 103 consists of a cake and a tart: the Tarte aux Abricots et Crème Brûlée à la Pistache, Strussel aux Pistaches (Apricot and Pistachio Tart with Pistachio Streusel) and the Venessa (a cake with a layer of chocolate cake and a layer of vanilla crème brûlée, all encased in dark chocolate mousse and a chocolate glaze).  The tart is topped with pistachio crème brûlée that is sprayed with green chocolate using an industrial-grade paint gun.  Exciting!  As always, we were required to do everything Chef Hervé showed us:  a big version and a plated version of each.

Chef's plated Vanessa

Chef's tarts:  Look how green they are after using the paint gun!

Chef's big Vanessa

We learned this chocolate technique, and I LOVE it -- it looks
like a rock (for lack of a better term)

The practical was really great!  I was excited to make some bubble sugar décor, as the stuff is unpredictable and geometrically repetitive – right up my aesthetic alley.  Both cakes turned out nicely, and the Chef really loved my plating for the mini tart.  And just like that, I was done learning tarts in school!

My plated tart.  I was surprised by how much the Chef really
loved the chocolate design that stands up on the plate

My plated Vanessa

My tart:  The coulis makes it soggy on top...oops!

My big Vanessa.  The arrows didn't turn out as nicely as
I had hoped, but they're not terrible 

Surprise!

This little guy is packed with flavor.  It's definitely one of the tastiest
things we have made so far.

Leçon 104

Lesson 104 was the last lesson of cakes.  Again, we learned two:  the Nid d’Abeille (“Bee’s Nest” in English, it’s a honey mousse cake with a layer of almond dacquoise and a layer of strawberry and topped with crispy honey-and-almond triangles) and the Feuille d’Automne (“Autumn Leaf” in English, a cake with three layers of crispy almond meringue and three layers of dark chocolate mousse wrapped in dark chocolate and topped with dark chocolate ruffles).  This lesson made me feel like I was in high school Math again: For two terms we have been drilled on chocolate tempering, and the Feuille d’Automne is enrobed in untempered chocolate.  It was just like in Math:  we learn the long way, then learn the shortcut.  It was a great technique to learn, and a good (and kind of funny) way to end our time with cakes.  Along with these two recipes, Chef Hervé also demonstrated how to serve a dessert in a glass; a staple on most restaurant dessert menus.

Chef's Autumn Leaf (Left) and Bee's Nest (right)

Chef's dessert in a glass.  Those pink things on top are called
"Crispearls," and they have a slight strawberry taste

The practical was awesome.  It went smoothly and quickly without any dilemmas.  Most of the class breezed through both cakes and were mostly finished when we took our break after two and a half hours.  I was anxious to plate my Nid d’Abeille in a glass (I sketched nine different designs and asked Chad to help me calculate the dimensions for an ellipse of cake if I wanted it to sit on a bias inside the cylindrical glass), but was still unsure of what I was going to present.  I decided right before class, and it turned out really well.  The Chef was proud of my efficiency and execution, and commented that I have good ideas.  We ended my cake experience on a really positive note!

My last cakes (until the exam)!

My Bee's Nest.  Those things on top may look a little strange,
but I assure you they are very delicious.  Kind of crunchy on
top with a cake-y bottom, and they taste like almonds with the
sweetness of honey.

This technique uses un-tempered chocolate, a taboo until we
learned this cake.  It was a lot of fun, and I am surprisingly
good at it!

My Bee's Nest in a glass.  I wanted to experiment
with colored bubble sugar, and it worked out nicely,
I'd say.

I couldn't resist the Crispearls -- they were too
cute not to use!

He was so happy with my performance that Chef drew this guy on
my Student Evaluation Journal: a chef smoking a cigarette
telling me "Good Job."  He affectionately named him "Mean Chef."

Positive comments from the Chef two weeks in
a row -- I hope this continues!
(This one says, "Nice presentation, Nice ideas,
good execution.")

This (upcoming) week is going to be great:  Tomorrow we learn fruit and vegetable carving from world-renown Chef Armando Baisas, then it’s on to Chocolate Showpieces.  Wish me luck!