Various Cakes

This week we were introduced to some different styles of cakes. The cakes required a couple days of preparation with the exception of one. The Tiramisu and the Charlotte Royal contained mousse fillings that required over-night set-up. We had a much needed 3-day weekend which meant a shorter school week. We all needed a little breather :) 

Tuesday: 5.31.11

Today we made a Tiramisu. Tiramisu translates to "pick me up" in Italian. Our Tiramisu consisted of a lady finger ribbon and sponge base that encased a wonderful Coffee flavored Mascarpone Mousse. We made the components and assembled the Tiramisu but we held it over-night so that the mousse could set up. 

We also made a Jaconde Sponge cake that was made into a very thin layer and filled with raspberry jam. We then rolled it up (kind of like a Jelly Roll) and cut them into thin slices and lined a small bowl with the slices. We then held it over night so that we could use it to assemble our Charlotte Royal the next day. 

Wednesday: 6.1.11

Today we assembled our Charlotte Royal. We filled our Charlotte Royal Shells (I guess that's what you can call it) with a Raspberry Mousse. Again, we needed to hold it over night so that the mousse could set up. 

On the other hand, we presented our Tiramisu today and I was happy with the outcome of mine. All we had to do to finish it was dust the top with cocoa powder. We were supposed to make chocolate curls for the top but we ran out of time somehow. Chef said that everything looked pretty good with the exception of the height of my ladyfingers. She said to try keeping them the same lengths. I agree with her however it was difficult because when I was piping them, it was hard to get them to stay within the line. I'm not sure "why", but I'll get better at it!

Here is my Tiramisu. Jeff liked it. His family liked it. I did not like it. I guess I just don't do well with soggy cake and the fact that the ladyfingers were soggy with coffee just through me off a bit. 

Tiramisu

Thursday: 6.2.11

Today was a fun day. We made a Jelly Roll Sponge Cake, French Buttercream and Chocolate Ganache to make a HUGE "HO HO". Actually, it's a Chocolate Roulade Cake (originating from the French word "rouler" which means "to roll"). I thought it was really tasty, however the sponge cake wasn't to my liking. Other than that, the buttercream was great. It tasted like chocolate milk. Evangeline (my awesome partner for the week) and I had some problems with our French Buttercream. The French Buttercream requires the addition of a simple syrup that must be heated to 240F. Well, our thermometers only went to 220F and our candy thermometers didn't submerge completely into the mixture which left us trying to "eye-ball" it to the soft ball stage. We messed up the first time and had to redo our simple syrup but in the end it came out perfect (in my opinion). That's what school is for, right? To learn. I'm glad I learned how to use the soft ball method that way I don't always have to depend on a thermometer. 

Well, here is the cake!

Chocolate Roulade Cake

I sent this photo to Jeff and he said it looked like sushi! 

Today, we also un-molded our Charlotte Royal. 

Charlotte Royal (Raspberry)

I was pretty happy with myself that I sealed up the mold enough so that my mousse didn't leak. It did leak in a few spots but overall, I feel I did a good job. Room for improvement- always!

Slice of Charlotte Royal (Raspberry)

Friday: 6.3.11

Today was day one of our first practical. For our practical we need to make a Gateaux St. Honore and a Tiramisu. I managed to be able to assemble my Tiramisu on day one and also make my base, cream puffs and pastry cream for my Gateaux St. Honore. I had a couple mishaps. I forgot to dust my ladyfinger sponge with powdered sugar and  I think I may have pulled my cream puffs and base from the oven two early. They are hollow, which is needed, but the color may be a little to light. We will see on Monday. 

I had such a good weekend. I am sad to see it go. I stayed home all day yesterday without leaving my house. I brought home Charlie, our doggy, to spend the weekend with me. Jeff and I have decided that we need to learn how to cook for ourselves so we have started a project to learn how to cook one new item each week. I'd like to blog our dishes on here as well so here is what we made this week! We made Chicken Teriyaki and served it with steamed rice and steamed broccoli. The chicken was good but a little  to lengthy to make. The recipe required us to lightly fry the chicken then cook it in the Teriyaki sauce. We need recipes a little simpler since we always seam to be so busy!

Teriyaki Chicken, Steamed Rice and Steamed Broccoli

Now to get my head "in the game" from my last day of my practicals tomorrow. EEK!

With love,

Adriana