Day 56 - Practical

Yesterday and today I worked on my practical. I had to turn in what you see above. From left to right are: Macaroons, Lemon Bars, Eclairs, Opera Cake, Florentines

This was the last day of Basic Patisserie Techniques. Tomorrow we have a cleanup day and then next week is a week off for spring break. After spring break I'll start my next class which is Viennoiserie and Laminate Dough.

Day 48 - Practical

Today was my practical and I had to make Madeleines, Florentines, and Macaroons. I got my score today, which was a first for getting it so fast. Unfortunately, I got an 89, and I didn't expect that at all. For some reason, the Chef graded me hard and the Madeleins and the Florentines. My Madeleins looked the same as my friends but the Chef said mine were rough textured. She gave me no explanation other than maybe I scaled it wrong. Nope, I scaled the ingredients exactly right. On the Florentines, the Chef said the needed to baked more. My Macaroons were just fine. Oh well, I'll have to do better on my Opera Cake next week.

Day 45 - Florentines and Batens Marechaux

Yesterday and today I worked on Florentines (top of pan) and Batens Marechaux (bottom of pan). The above picture was taken on Monday and they are not complete yet. I baked the Florentines a little to much, making them too dark. The Florentines are a kind of like pralines made with almonds. The Batens Marechaux is like a meringue almond cookie.

On Tuesday I worked on tempering the chocolate then topping the Florentines and Batens Marechaux (see picture above).

On my practical last Friday, I got a 96. Not as good as the 100 the week before, but I'll take it.