The Science Behind the Myths

"It is not enough to know the principles, one needs to know how to manipulate"
~Dictionaire de Trevoux, in the first edition of Chemical Manipulation (1827)

For me, there is no baking without science. I cannot imagine being able to bake efficiently without understanding why I am doing these things. Obviously, plenty of the worlds best pastry chefs have minimal knowledge of the precise science of egg protein interactions in creme anglaise; the tempering eggs method that results in a perfectly smooth cream could have been discovered through trial and error, but if you just know the basis of the chemical reactions, it becomes much more simple.

Today in class we finished with a demo on Austrian Dumplings, the base of which is similar to pate a choux. As the chef placed the dumplings in boiling water he asked, and how do we know when they're done? Of course, the generally agreed upon answer was "when they float to the surface." Not true!!
Some background: pate a choux (in this case dumplings) and egg based pastries (such as quiche) puff up due to mechanical leavening. Eggs contain a lot of water (90% in whites, and 50% in yolks), when heated this water turns to steam and is trapped under the coagulated outer layer and pushes it up. The starch contained in the flour is insoluble when cold, but in hot water, it absorbs water (aka swelling). The density of starch is greater than water (why it falls to the bottom), and while throughout cooking the density of the dumpling (or gnocchi, or what have you) decreases, it never becomes lighter than water. So why does it rise? Water vapor forms bubbles that cling to the irregular surface and cause it to rise (take a cooked gnocchi, roll it around on a cutting board to "pop" the bubbles and it will again sink-even though it is fully cooked). Buoyancy occurs regardless of interior temperature, watch a small gnocchi and large both rise around the same time with drastically different temperatures. So, if you make your dumplings at a precise size, in a precise water temperature, these actions may occur at the same time (rising and fully cooked), but if not they may pop up well before they are in fact done. Further, the answer to why they come to the surface in the first place was "steam," in reference to the same steam that causes the dumplings to puff up. Again, not true.
I never know what to do in these situations! So, to be safe I don't say a thing. I'm not about to be known as "that girl" who thinks she knows everything, or insists on correcting less then pertinent information. But, still it bothers me. So to make myself feel a bit better about the mass mis-information relayed in class today, I'm writing up the truth in the hope that for perhaps a few people, this old myth can be dispelled.

More Pate a Choux and Plating

Paris-Brest

Profiterols

Swans

Today we worked again with pate a choux, the most difficult aspect of this dough for me is the pipping. It's an interesting "dough." It actually falls somewhere a dough and a batter. You cook the flour with butter and water, which tenderizes gluten proteins preventing them from developing elasticity, swells, and gelates the starch which turns the original batter to a dough, which you dry out in the pan. Then mixing in a stand mixer (or by hand), eggs are added which thins it to a near batter and allows air pockets to form. This dough is leavened by mechanical mechanisms, aka, steam which is trapped by the firm exterior, resulting in a hollow pastry. The moisture ratios vary depending on how much you dry it out in the pan, the humidity in the air, and the size and amount of eggs added. Once you figure out the best ratio, the dough is easy. Pipping into various shapes however, is not as easy! I'm doing fine, but could most definitely improve.

We also started learning basic plating, something I love! Though it was minimal, it was interesting. I really appreciate strong plating at a restaurant, and it seems like its often overlooked and under-rated so I was glad that attention was given in class not only to large volume situations, but fine dining as well. I'm excited to get into more advanced techniques-pour chocolate in the center of the plate was a bit anti-climatic for me.

I met with a career advisor today about a part time job. Hopefully I can start working soon! I could obviously use the extra cash flow, but more important is developing a resume since mine is not particularly strong in the pastry world. As well as gaining more experience. Right now I'm mostly looking at specialty shops and a few restaurants, while right now it feels like working would be overload, I think I should be able to handle it as I continue to get more comfortable. Then again, it only gets harder from here! We'll see how it all goes...

While I hate to make this claim too early, it would appear our class is getting along really well! The level 2 pastry students are often bickering about other classmates in the locker room, since there are two women's, not everyone is in the same place at the same time. These girls say quite mean things to one another, and I'm surprised by the cruel comments they make about one another. So far, everyone in our class is getting along quite well! I'm hoping it stays this way.

On a last note, I just got my practical exam score: 95%! Not a terrible start at all.

The Dangers of being "Sugar Forward"

Eclairs; vanilla-rum, chocolate, coffee.
Our lead chef has referenced on several occasions how he feels about sugar. He's very for it. In fact, he has even come up with a descriptor; "sugar forward." The amount of sugar that may be consumed during the 300 minutes of class a day is astounding. Personally, I never have more than a bite at the end. This morning when I walked into the locker room a whole group of girls were standing in a circle comparing how much weight they had gained. One said "In two months I've gained 20 pounds, my boyfriend isn't happy!" Others expressed their sympathy, agreeing it was near impossible not to gain weight (excluding an absurd metabolism). The men of course, don't seem to share the problem. Luckily, the more I bake and see what goes into the pastries, the less I want to eat it...Especially when something calls for 500g butter, and 12 eggs. umm, what? We'll see how this goes once we hit bread/chocolate...

I'm excited to get into Pastry 2 (July), since thats when we actually get to be a bit more creative, have more options with how we flavor and decorate things. I'm especially looking forward to the menu planning (dessert tasting), and trying to find ways to incorporate a bit of Molecular Gastronomy into it, if thats allowed of course...

Monday: Paris-Brest, Profiteroles, Cynges. So far so good. Making pate a choux isn't so hard, but the shaping takes some practice! I'm slowly getting it!

Its not REALLY like Top Chef

Today we had our first exam! The written went fine, they graded while we worked on our practical. Got an A-, which I'm fairly happy with, I lost points when I wasn't as explicit as apparently necessary...next time! Then, there was the practical. They told us that the first one should result in finishing early for some. Not so much. The deadline was 1:30pm, about half of us made it, the earliest time being 1:29. We finished at 1:30. Not a second to spare.
Lets start at 9:15, we find out we're making Baked Fruit Tart, Banana Cream, and Gingersnaps. My first thought, was oh! easy! Wrong. The fruit tart, yes, the banana cream, not so much. For both, pastry cream, a starch bound custard as the base is required. Like all custards, this one is a bit tricky. Starch is added as a stabilizer, but because egg contains alpha-amylase you have to vigorously whisk it for two minutes while boiling, otherwise your thick cream more resembles simple syrup and tastes starchy. This is after successfully tempering the eggs. After rolling out my tart doughs (I hate rolling out tart doughs), I made the pastry cream. Due to time restrictions I was also attempting to get my ingredients for ginger snaps prepped. I step away two seconds and my milk is about to boil over! It's supposed to boil, but not that much! I saved it, but not without a bit of spilling and a look from the head chef to indicate he had noticed this. Dangit. Oh well. I finish it, and it looked perfect. RELIEF. For the banana cream the pastry cream is whipped and rum is added. I added too much rum, on purpose. I noticed it helps disguise any mistakes a bit (not that there were any to my knowledge), and I think it tastes much better. The chef agreed, during my evaluation he noted my pastry cream tasted really good! Then, when taking my tartlets out of the tart liners one breaks! There are four, we need to present four. The chef looks at me and says, it happens, move on. So I did. Still, frustrated! Then after pipping decore on my tarts someone slid theirs a bit to close in the fridge and messed them up on one! AH! At least that wasn't my fault! Everything else luckily went smoothly. At the end I was 80% satisfied, though given the time restriction, I don't know that I could have done much better.
Time for the evaluation, I'm nervous. Overall, very strong apparently, just minor decore things and my Brisee was tender, but not quite flaky enough. I hate brisee, it's impossible! You have to cut in the butter and manage to keep small pieces of butter intact so that when you roll they "smear" and when baked melt, create steam and cause the tart to be flaky. All while adding very, very, little water and managing not to overwork! I'm getting better, but I think it's one of the harder things to do. I don't know my score for this, but it seems to have gone well. Other groups didn't finish on time, had under baked products, custards didn't set, and things that are far worse than my errors. I know I can't expect perfection right away, and I'm getting better at being OK with this, I'm working along side people who have been in the field for years, or who already went through culinary school, and I'm generally on par with them, and occasionally better. But, I don't always feel my products are my personal best.
Despite the fact that I haven't eaten all day (had to work through lunch), and my back and feet ache incredibly I feel great! I feel accomplished just getting that done! And now that I know what to expect, I know how I can improve for the next exam (next week!).
So whats up next? Pate a choux! Which I've only ever used to make chicken and dumplings from Keller's Ad Hoc. In the locker room a girl in Pastry 2 just laughed when we said we start that tomorrow, and said "good luck." We'll see what she means...We're also making Eclairs, while interesting I actually don't like them (too sweet!). We also have new partners, hopefully we'll mesh as well as my current partner and I did. My new partner has been through culinary and is incredibly fast, so I'm quite excited to work with her! So now, on to studying leavening mechanisms and previewing recipes (we wouldn't dream we would get the night off would we?!)

The End of Tarts

Today was our last day with Tarts/Cookies! Which means, tomorrow we have our first written and practical exam. The first hour is written, with such questions as, name the three forms of meringues and how you would prepare each. To be followed by four hours to complete three random-issued recipes from the past three weeks. I'm not particularly nervous, it seems pretty straight forward. But of course I'd like to do well! We got our first evaluations, in which I received an A. I was honestly a bit surprised considering I thought I had done well, but I view "A" as perfect, and I most definitely was not! But I also imagine that they will become more particular as time passes. So I'm off to study, or rather memorize. Unfortunately the scientific aspect isn't really tested that much, but that means it should be easy right? We'll see...


Linzer Torte; with creme d'amandes and compote a la framboise


Quiche Lorraine with Lardon and Gruyere


Caramel Walnut Tart


"Quick" apple tarts

The Bakers on Vespas Guild

Saturday night in way-the-hell-out-there Brooklyn a brilliant idea of baking and vespas developed over shared zirh-spiced fish. Essentially the plan entails cute girls on pastel colored vespas delivering baked goods. Brilliant. Now we just need a name. How could this not be a good idea? Plus anything that results in my owning a green pastel vespa is pretty ideal. Perhaps Prospect & Co. has it's first venture?

In other news, I just sent out my application to NYU! I walked it in, and could potentially hear from them as early as two weeks! Though, more likely a month. I'm applying for spring admission, though toying with the idea of delaying until fall and working to gain a bit of experience before hand (plus, then I could be in LA for a bit-not that I don't just LOVE New York winters). Just thoughts at the moment.

In class we baked, shocking, more tarts! and cookies. Below, clockwise from the left: A ganach tart (literally ganach in a tart-VERY rich), Chocolate Bavarian Tart, AKA chocolate flavored creme anglaise in a shell, spritz cookies (I LOVE these), and clafoutis, which Danny, Christina, Alex and I ate after a home-made pizza making party.

Class is going well, routine now. We're almost done with tarts and cookies, we take an exam Thursday, and start puff pastry on Friday! Tomorrow is petit quick apple tarts and bourbon pecan shortbread cookies! Only two out of 24 weeks done and I can already see marked improvement, excited to see how the rest goes! Not so excited to make my own wedding cake...At least I've found another girl who equally dislikes cakes, we may be the only two.

And then...Some more tarts.

The last couple of days were routine. AKA tarts. Getting quite good, only downside being instances such as when the instructor mentions we are to make more Pate Sucree I have to hold back from audibly groaning. Tuesday we did a lot of prep work for the week, and since we have sanitation lessons, only made petit fruit tarts (above). They were a nice break from the huge tarts, I could actually give these away!



Today we shaped and fired some vanilla crescents, which were surprisingly hard to shape! Unfortunately we likely have to do these on our test, so I ought to get a bit better before our first unit exam (next Friday)



We also made a savory onion tart, with blue cheese, walnuts and tomatoes. I didn't like it. Partially, the blue cheese was overwhelming, but because it was tart dough I had textural issues. The flavor was fine (though a bit salty from the cheese), but contrasted with the flaky, buttery texture of the dough, it was slightly unpleasant to chew.

This brought up something interesting. The new chef informed us all that he expected us to eat some of what we made, which makes sense considering how else are we to evaluate it? But, he then said something along the lines of "if we don't want to eat what we made, why are we here?" I didn't mention the fact that for me, its the science and the process of baking I enjoy. Not the finished product. In fact, I want to eat what I make less than if someone else were to make it. It's not that I don't think its good, its just a different experience. When I bake, it's to bake. For others, or for practical purposes (bread usually). When I eat, I want to try something new, something I'm NOT good at (yet), or something I've never thought of. Its a food experience (my favorite!), entirely separate from a baking experience. The exception is group cooking, one of my favorite things is to cook with friends, then enjoy it as a meal, but again, a totally different experience. I also didn't mention that many pastry chefs that are interviewed say they don't particularly care for sweets (can you blame them?). I know I'm the odd one out in the class, the one where baking professionally isn't the goal, so I completely understand the emphasis on commercial baking. Still, it was a bit frustrating feeling as if my professional goals are less relevant. Luckily, while I'm not really a fan of the chefs at the moment (hopefully this will change), I do love everything else!

Probably my favorite product thus far: Homemade fig Newtons! (below)-made with a fig compote...so much better than the store bought variety!



Tomorrow we take our food handlers permit exam. I'm unconcerned regarding my ability to pass, but our raw score is incorporated into our grade, which I realize doesn't need to be great, but is still motivation!