A heat wave blew right into town last week… and so our goal was to try and make napoleon slices (millefeuille in French) as fast as possible and then escape the warmth of the kitchen! Last week, we rolled out the last of the puff dough onto a sheet, docked it, and left it in t...
We made three different products today, but most of it was just assembly. Chef began by doing a demo of making frangipane, a nut-based pastry cream. Equal amounts of fat (she used half butter, half shortening), sugar and ground nuts (half ground hazelnuts, half almond paste) w...
The last class of the course featured Swiss rolls (also called jelly rolls) which are a thin layer of sponge cake spread with a filling and rolled into a cylinder. We immersed 16 eggs in warm water briefly to get them up to room temperature. Chef gave us a tip that vinegar hel...
We’re in the same lab for this one as for Basic. Our very chatty “German-trained” instructor has been in the business for almost 30 years, starting when she was 14. During the roll call, she made it a point to comment on almost everyone’s names. I assume she’s been in Toronto ...
For the next six weeks, I will be taking “Art of Pastry”. Details here.Week 1: Puff doughWeek 2: Apple strudel, turnovers and palmiersWeek 3: Napoleon slicesWeek 4: Chocolate truffle tart and chocolate mousse tartletsWeek 5: Apple galetteWeek 6: Key lime tart and crème brûlée ...
I had been eagerly anticipating this class, in which we were to make Black Forest cake. Unfortunately, the heat of the ovens combined with the forecasted high of 32°C made the baking lab quite uncomfortable. First, we made devil’s food cake. Shortening, sugar and salt were cre...
Spritz cookies are a traditional butter cookie made with a cookie press or pastry bag. We began by creaming together shortening, butter, icing sugar, salt, vanilla and lemon zest until it was a uniform colour and consistency, making sure to scrape down the side of the bowl. At...
