la tarte chocolat pralineChocolate-praline ganache and a thin layer of praline feuillantine in a sucree shell. There's a thin layer of chocolate glaze on top and the piped balls of ganache are dusted in cocoa powder. Too much shell for me and not enough ganache. But otherwise delicious.
la cathedrale saint-nazaireI took a walk to the cathedral today. The center of town is located at the top of a very steep hill. The cathedral sits just on the edge of this hill, overlooking the Midi Canal. I sat inside for a while inside because it was so cool and quiet.
...and in other newsIt was a fairly quiet day. We made caramel mille-feuilles (8 full sheet trays!) and I got to spread the pastry cream and whipped cream layers. We also finished glazing the Diamant Rouge cakes and the Caranougats. Natalie, the new girl, ruined a batch of creme anglaise. The bottom half of the pot was solid scrambled egg. Alexi poured out the top half that was still cream, then proceeded to puree the bottom part (burnt black parts and all), strain it and mix it back into the liquid. It looked better after that but it sure didn't taste right. Yuck, yuck, yuck. We also made lemon curd today. The eggs, sugar and lemon juice were cooked on top of the stove until thickened, then chilled to 60 degrees celsius. At that point, five pounds of softened butter were mixed in. Chef said that it was essential to wait until the curd was cooled slightly so that that butter wouldn't melt, but would become emulsified, like in a sauce. Emulsified butter=silky texture. Chef said that he could even pipe with it and it would hold it's shape. Maybe I'll try that on the sly tomorrow...
I would love to see the look on a customer's face if they realized the funny taste in their mouth was burnt ingredients. Maybe not at the level of Notre Dame, but that is a pristine looking cathedral.
ReplyDeleteLemon curd is delicious! I stopped going to Alice's Teacup in Manhattan because no one knew what it was. And now I'm holding a grudge. lol
ReplyDeletehah! that's funny. where do you go now instead? If you ever want a recipe for lemon curd let me know.
ReplyDeleteget their lemon curd recipe for me! it's delish, no??
ReplyDeleteI go to Rose House in queens... it's an asian ea house, but it's very western and fussy XD When you first walk in, the scent of roses is overpowering! They make rose tea that's pretty delicious.
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