Culinary School - Q3 Week 4

Week: 4 Day: 1

Objective:
Chocolate Pot de Crème
Baked Crème Brulee
Flan
Panna Cotta
Tres Leches Cake
Chocolate Soufflé

Specialty Equipment:
Bain Marie

Mixing methods:
Egg Custards

Additional Information:
It is important to not over whip egg whites for the soufflés.
Outcome & Critique:
Pot de Crème, Crème Brulee, Flan, Panna Cotta, and Tres Leches Cakes all baked and ready for refrigeration for final prep tomorrow. Chocolate Souffles baked. Ours had little bits of unincorporated egg whites all through it. It tasted ok but not great. The other team’s looked more smooth and pretty but collapsed right away. It tasted ok but I would have not ordered either of them in a restaurant.

What could I have done different:
If I were making the soufflés, I would have been careful about the incorporation of the egg whites to the chocolate mixture.

Week: 4 Day: 2

Today’s Objective:
Chantilly Cream
Chocolate Angel Food Cake
Decorating Caramel
Practical Quiz – Genoise

Specialty Equipment:
Torch

Mixing Methods:
Whipping heavy cream for Chantilly Cream

Assembly Instructions:
Ice Tres Leches Cake with Chantilly Cream, Decorate with meringues and Fresh Strawberries. Unmold Flan & Panna Cotta, Torch Crème Brulee, Garnish Pot de Crème.

Additional Information:
Due to a gas leak in the kitchens we were not able to do any cooking tonight.

Outcome & Critique:
My Panna Cotta was very stiff. I think this was due to me not cutting down the amount of gelatin sheets used when preparing the mixture. I liked the texture of it, but can see that it would have been better slightly less firm. The Flan was very good. I did think it could have used a little more cinnamon but it was yummy. The Crème Brulee was slightly over cooked but still tasted delicious. Our Pot de Crème didn’t quite set completely. It was almost like a thick drinking hot chocolate that I had once in Italy. The texture of the cake in the Tres Leches Cake was very coarse. I didn’t like it very much, but I am not a fan of Tres Leches cake.

What could I have done differently:
I think learning to tell doneness is going to be key. This comes with experience, and that takes time. It think that Chef having us look at and taste each groups products it will help us become more proficient at determining doneness.

I can’t believe that the mid-term is already next week. I don’t feel like I am prepared for that. Both my sister and my roommate have requested that I teach them how to make crème brulee.


Chocolate Pot de Creme




Creme Brulee




Toffee Caramel Flan




Tres Leches Cake




Vanilla Bean Panna Cotta
























Until next week,

Ciao!

Culinary School - Q3 Week 3

Homework Assignment
Name of Meringue Procedure Ingredients Usages

Swiss - Warm egg whites to 100°F with sugar then whip Egg whites and sugar
Uses - Buttercream, mousse, baked

French (Common) - Whip egg whites with sugar, fold in remaining sugar Egg whites and sugar
Uses - Soufflé, cake ingredient

Italian - Hot sugar syrup poured into whipped egg whites Egg whites, sugar, corn syrup Uses - Buttercream, mousse, baked

Week: 3 Day: 1

Objective:
Frozen Orange Soufflé
Chocolate Mousse Cake
Chocolate Mousse
Italian Meringue
Swiss Meringue
Common Meringue
Chocolate Genoise
Ganache truffles

Specialty Equipment:
Warming Box for drying meringues

Mixing methods:
Whipped egg whites

Additional Information:
When whipping egg whites you need to be sure that everything you use is clean and free from any fats. The presence of fat will affect the egg whites.

Assemble Chocolate Mousse Cake and refrigerate.

Outcome & Critique:
We accidentally made yellow Genoise instead of chocolate. The batter was over-whipped and was quite flat.

What could I have done different:
I was not the person working on the Genoise. I always read recipes through completely before starting.

Week: 3 Day: 2

Today’s Objective:
Form truffles
Laminate Croissant dough and bake
Make glazed Orange Peel

Specialty Equipment:
None today

Mixing Methods:
Rolling croissant dough

Assembly Instructions:
Roll truffle Ganache and coat with cocoa powder or powdered sugar.

Additional Information:
Be careful with letting the orange peel go too long in the simple syrup. It will be tough.

Outcome & Critique:
I loved the frozen orange soufflé. I thought it turned out really delicious. The Chocolate Mousse Cake was good but REALLY rich. The layer of Genoise on the bottom was paper thin.

The Truffles turned out quite sticky and I had a hard time shaping them because my hands seemed very hot. The Ganache kept melting in my hands. But, they were yummy.

We made some plain croissants, some filled with almond cream, some filled with chocolate and some filled with bacon. I thought they were a little too brown but Chef said they were fine. I really liked the way they tasted.

What could I have done differently:
I would have tried not to over fold the Genoise mixture before baking. It made the cake turn out paper thin, and kept an eye on the croissants so they didn’t over brown. I try to help my teammates but one of them resists my assistance and as a result over cooks things.

Classic Chocolate Mousse Cake
with Truffle garnish

Chocolate Mousse Cake

Frozen Orange Souffle

Until next week,

Ciao!

Culinary School - Q3 Week 2

Introduction to Pastry Arts

Vocabulary Week 2

Angel Food: A type of sponge cake
Chiffon: A light fluffy cake
Crumb coat: A light coating of icing to seal the crumbs on a cake
Flavorings: Vanilla, chocolate, fruit.
High Ratio: Cake: a creamed-fat cake that has a two-stage mixing method
Moisteners: Milk, juice, water
Specific Gravity: the weight of an ingredient or a mixture in relation to the weight of water
Tenderizers: Sugars, fats, egg yolks
Two Stage: liquids are added in two stages
Butter Cake: Butter cakes, also known as creaming-method cakes, begin with softened butter or shortening creamed to incorporate air cells
Creaming Method Cake: begin with softened butter or shortening creamed to incorporate air cells
Driers: Flours, starches, milk solids.
Genoise: A classic European style cake
Leaveners: Baking soda, baking powder, baking ammonia.
Ribbon Stage: The stage eggs are whipped to when they leave a ribbon in the bowl off the mixer whisks
Spongecake: Made by whipping egg yolks and whites. Gently folding flour into yolk mixture and then folding in the whipped whites.
Tougheners: Flour, milk, eggs, anything containing protein.

Objective:

Bake Spongecake
Bake Carrot Cake
Make Carrot twists
Make Cream Cheese Icing
Make Raspberry Ganache
Make Cocoa Gelee
Start Croissant Dough

Specialty Equipment:
Stand Mixer

Mixing methods:
Using dough hook for croissant dough.

Additional Information:
You need to be careful to not over whip the egg whites for the sponge cake. They can get too stiff in an instant!

Outcome & Critique:
Even though my egg whites were almost too stiff, I used them in my sponge cake anyway. The cake turned out well.

What could I have done different:
I would be careful to really keep an eye on the egg whites to make sure I don’t over whip them.

Week: 2 Day: 2

Today’s Objective:
Ice and assemble Carrot cake
Fill and assemble Yule log
Laminate Croissant dough
Make leaves and berries with fondant

Specialty Equipment:
Glazing racks

Mixing Methods:
Kneading coloring into fondant.

The Croissant dough requires rolling out but the butter needs to be cold so that it doesn’t squish out during the laminating process.
Assembly Instructions:
Brush simple syrup on sponge cake, spread with ganache, cut ¼” slice of cake and stack to make rolling easier. Roll tightly using parchment to help roll. Coat with ganache, then coat with cocoa gelee. Make a diagonal cut from each end of roll to look like branches. Garnish with leaves and berries. Dust with powdered sugar.

Additional Information:
Stacked cakes need to be leveled before icing.

Outcome & Critique:
I was pleased with the Yule log, however, I am not a fan of the raspberry ganache. When I make a Yule log at home, I usually use a butter cream or whipped cream for the filling.

I liked our carrot cake. It was a different recipe than the other group used but I liked ours better. I thought our cake looked like a Dale Chihuly art piece.

What could I have done differently:
I don’t think I would have done anything differently. I was pleased with our products.

I did have a bit of a meltdown tonight. Some of my classmates have been treating me really disrespectfully. But Chef held me aside after class and talked to me about it. I am glad that she is aware of things that go on in class. I felt a lot better after talking with her.

Carrot Cake

Carrot Cake Decorations

Chihuly Art

Yule Log

Yule Log

Until next week,
Ciao!

Culinary School - Q3 Week 1

MONDAY/TUESDAY CLASS
Intro to Pastry Technique and Artistry

Recipes:
Fresh Berry Tart
Sweet Tart Dough
Pastry Cream Filling (Cornstarch Thickener)
Tart Glaze
Prepped Berries & Fruit
Poached Pear & Frangipane Tart
Spiced Poached Pears
Frangipane
Crème Anglaise
Fresh Peach Puff Pastries
Almond Cream

On Monday night we made the dough, the pastry cream, the creme anglaise, the almond cream, and poached the pears.

I was responsible for the Creme Anglaise, the Poached Pears, and the Frangipane.



On Tuesday night we built and baked everything. 

I assembled the Pear and Frangipane Tart, the Peach Puff Pastries, and I made a Pear Sorbet from the poaching liquid.  I made whipped cream by hand for the Peach Puff Pastries

Fruit Tart



Peach Puff Pastry




Whole Pear Frangipane Tart




Pear and Frangipane Tart
with Pear Sorbet












Recipes for next week
Carrot Cake
Cream Cheese Icing
Dried Carrot Crisps (use Banana Twists recipe)

Yule Log (Buche de Noel)
Vanilla Spongecake
Simple Syrup (as needed)
Raspberry Ganache
Cocoa Gelee

Parisian Croissant Dough


THURSDAY CLASS
Food and Beverage Operations

UGH!  What is there to say about this class.  Other than, WHAT WAS I THINKING?

The instructor is a "non-chef".  But, he has been in the industry for about 30 years. The class will cover everything for running a food and beverage establishment.  Our first homework assignment is to read two chapters of our textbook and come up with eight questions and answers for each chapter.  He will use our questions for the mid-term and finals.

Restaurant Review - Pampas, Palo Alto

On Sunday night a group of us went to Pampas Restaurant in Palo Alto to celebrate a birthday.

 
 Pampas is a Brazillian Churascaria.  I had the rodizio.  That is the "meat buffet".  The servers come around carrying skewers of different meats and carve you off a hunk.  The rodizio is priced at $44. That includes all the meat you can eat, plus the unlimited side bar that consists of salads, pastas, cheeses, vegetables, and a bunch of other stuff. 

This is a list of the meats.

Picanha traditional Brazilian cut of top sirloin seasoned with rock salt and olive oil
Cordeiro leg of lamb marinated with garlic and mint
Costela de Cordeiro lamb chop marinated with garlic and ginger
Lombo pork loin with coriander adobo
Medalhão com Alho tenderloin filet seasoned with garlic and herbs
Medalhão com Queijo tenderloin filet with parmesan
Maminha tri–tip seasoned with rock salt and olive oil
Frango chicken thighs marinated with smoked paprika and lemon
Frango Picante chicken legs marinated with garlic, chili peppers, and vinegar
Linguiça house-made Brazilian pork sausage
Abacaxi slow-roasted pineapple
Peru turkey breast wrapped in smoked bacon
Fraldinha skirt steak with onion-herb marinade
Coração de Frango marinated chicken hearts (available upon request)

The meats were all delicious! My favorite was the Picanha.  So good!  And, I even ate a chicken heart! 

For dessert I had the Chocolate Torte. It was served with caramel ice cream and a toffee made with brazil nuts, and bacon.  Yummy!

The best part of the night was after dinner. We got to go into the kitchen and meet Chef Nikki Baverso.  She is the executive chef, at just 26 years old.  That's about the coolest thing ever!  She was so great explaining how things work and even said she would be happy to take some of us on for a stage!

Culinary School - Q3

Here it comes!  Q3 starts tomorrow!  I am really looking forward to Intro to Pastry!  I am not sure about Food and Beverage Ops.  I haven't been able to see the course online yet so I guess I will have to by the school tomorrow and see what is gonna been needed to be ready for Thursday night.  In the mean time, I need to get busy and the 10 recipes for this week written out.

Culinary School - Q2 Final Grades

Concepts and Theories of Culinary Techniques - 94.8% Total = A
Fundamentals of Classical Techniques - 103.11%  Total = A

So even though I am not happy about my percentage in Concepts, it is still an A and I will take it!

We have this week off for break, but I will return next week for Q3 - Intro to Pastry and Food and Beverage Operations.

Until next week,
Ciao!

P.S. Ed, the Class ass has failed Fundamentals for the third time!  Hahahahahaha!