Chocolate work

Today was the first day of working with chocolate in Superior pâtisserie. I have been lucky with chocolate in the past, with the exception of my last final exam (writing in chocolate went horribly wrong), so I wasn't too worried about working with this medium again. In fact, I've been considering doing a small stage after graduation in chocolate if possible.

Bittersweet Chocolates with Burnt Caramel center, cacao bean mold

The caramel filling is extremely addictive--I took the extra filling home because it was so good). We used 1/2 a bean of vanilla as it intensifies the flavor of the caramel.

A few considerations when making chocolates in molds:
1) Obtain a very accurate thermometer! It will make a difference until you are an expert and can take an accurate temperature reading with your pinkie or tongue (not joking about the tongue, it was gross to see how this works the first time but apparently a common way to test the temperature, old school style. Basically you make a ribbon of chocolate with a spatula and let it drip down your tongue. Interesting, huh? FYI, they don't technically teach us this at school).

2) Work cleanly. Chocolate is a mess but once the chocolate gets on your utensils, clean it up or you'll be spending an hour cleaning you and your workspace. I was clean today but others had to spend a lot time cleaning.

3) Important! Examine and clean (or reclean) your molds before using them. My mold looked very clean but I should have wiped the inside of every crevice of the mold to obtain the shiniest result.

Amuse Bouche

Months have passed in this new world of cuisine. Where there was once 8 people in my class working towards the Grand Diplôme, there are now only 6. The program continues to be rigorous--the 3 months of Intermediate cuisine and pâtisserie were tough and the schedule as in The Basic term was mostly full of days in the kitchen, busily learning, cooking, baking--okay, all you foodies are probably envious, yes, it is really amazing when I step back and realize I go to school all day and practice my passion, and in Paris.

Many people have asked where I have traveled in europe while I've been living here. It's an absolutely great and valid question. The answer is Normandy (see the August posting) and only Normandy. While I know without a doubt that for myself I made the best choice in doing the Grand Diplôme, this program leaves absolutely no time for day or weekend trips. At the start of each term my follow Grand Diplôme friend and I scour the schedule and search for possible weekends that we can take a trip or maybe two. This term in Superior, we found just one shining weekend in March, 2 weeks before we are set to graduate. Well, you take what you can get and I will be off to Switzerland for a little snowboarding!

With all this scheduling nonesense, I have been absent from Macaroon Honey a bit too long. Going forward, I hope to provide you with a weekly amuse bouche or perhaps a petit four -- a petite bite of life here in Paris. Continue to enjoy and pass along this blog to other friends, hungry for more in life.

First course: Bûche de Noël
A bit of a look back now that it is February, but Bûche de Noël could still be found everywhere when I arrived back to Paris in late December, after a 5 week stay in the states. While my sister really wanted me to make an American yule log cake complete with a partially cut off branch, fork tines running through the "bark" and little meringue mushrooms growing off of it, it's just not what we are taught or what you can buy at the pâtisserie here in Paris. Here, they are expertly filled and covered with candy colors and shiny glazes. Okay, there are a few petite champignons here and there, I'll give you that.

View from a wonderful pâtisserie in the Marais (just outside of the St. Paul metro stop).