JeanneCake

What a wonderful blog! Thank you for taking the time; looking forward to the next installment.

Me too. I was at the New England Mobile Book Fair a week ago, and I can do some serious damage there. But this time, I had to struggle to even find something I was remotely interested in. And so I didn't get anything

Wow this sounds good! I've never seen something like this; do you think you could take a photo so we can see it?

I've only ever used this recipe to spread in a pan and let set up overnight, and cut into squares or shapes. I saw a marshmallow twist pop on Facebook and I want to replicate it. It looked as if the marshmallow was piped in straight rows on a silpat (alternating colors or flavors) and then when set, twisted around a lollipop stick. The rows were an even thickness, which makes me think that they used a large, open tip (e.g., an Ateco 8 or 9 maybe) to pipe them Is it really just that easy? It is so sticky after beating it, that I cannot imagine being able to wrestle it into a pastry bag and then piping it out. Has anyone done this? Is there something different you have to do to the recipe, or will it work to pipe without any adjustments? ETA: correct typos

Where did you find yours? The European website listed some US retailers but the listed ones in MA (Circle Furniture) don't stock it This is a much better solution than the mechanic's stool.

I need to find a US distributor for this marvelous looking stool! I was considering buying an adjustable mechanic's stool for use in the kitchen (when we are embroidering on a cake, which can sometimes take hours, this would be a godsend) but now I want this.

A long time ago (in a galaxy far far away... ok sorry); I bought some Kitchen Aid silicone muffin "things" that had a detachable metal frame so you could put it in the oven without having to put the thing on a sheet pan. It was useless. Anything I baked in it seemed to me to take on the faintest odor of silicone and the metal frame made it harder to move in and out of the oven, so I stopped using it for baking and started using it for holding the petals of the gum paste flowers I make. Then when I moved my kitchen, I tossed them out because they took up more room than they were worth. I wonder if this is supposed to be some sort of cookie sheet type thing; but I would not advise using it like that if the rubber stuff is that stretchy and trampoline-like in the middle! The metal frame may preclude using it in the microwave. Maybe use it for your lollipops? Kind of like perpetual parchment paper?

@tigerwoman - How did you store/transport/present the pops? I'm a little concerned about storing them when they're filled (upside-down maybe? use the lids and garnish onsite?). I'd like to be able to offer something "trendy" (because anything on a stick seems hot right now) but I don't want to worry about transporting these (could I put them on their sides in a fish tub for transporting?) Maybe the freeze pop bags would be better?

Please tell the sufganiyot ladies from the supermarket that theirs looks FAR better than anything I could get at Dunkin' Donuts (a local coffee and donut chain in the Northeast USA). Far, far better!

Everyone's always looking for something new and different for their special event; and I've seen these push pops at JB Prince; wondering if any of you have used them on your menu or had them at a party... what did you think? What did the guests think? what works best in them (less messy looking)?

I love Maida Heatter's books -all of them - and make things from them often. So when people ask about the Chocolate Cheesecake Brownies, or Oreo Pound Cake or Pecan Bars, I give them one of her books, with my comments on the recipe on a post it note. For novices, I would want to give something comprehensive but not intimidating; a gift certificate and then perhaps a list of books that they might enjoy. If they are really just breaking into cooking, they might not know what to buy and having someone suggest anything by Jacques Pepin would be a help to them; as opposed to buying a Rachel Ray book for anyone other than a teenager. I have nothing against Rachel Ray; my son got one of her for-kids cookbooks when he was 11 and it was perfect for him at the time. Now he doesn't touch it but he looks at my Julia Child Way to Cook...

First and second ones; you want the buttercream at rm temp before you start to beat it otherwise it gets grainy and can separate when rebeaten. One of my chef instructors used to melt a small amount of buttercream (to a very very soft stage) in the microwave before she rebeat the rm temp buttercream in the bowl (using the mixer paddle).

I like the second one (white with red leaf pattern). How big is the gold ribbon (wide satin ribbon? thin string?) What about printing the label in red with white lettering for contrast?

Working from an ounces perspective, the original recipe calls for 29.3 ounces of corn syrup; if you keep dividing that in half, then a half original recipe would call for 14.65 ounces to 3 pounds of white chocolate; then for 1 and a half pounds of choc it would be 7.3 ounces; for 3/4 pound of choc it would be 3.75 (rounded up a little) then half of that would call for 1.8 ounces of corn syrup; so you might have used a little too much corn syrup. Welcome to eGullet!

And if the pieces need to be shaved or cut down, I've found a rasp or microplane works beautifully. Just work over the trash bin to collect the "sawdust" ETA: even a cheese grater will work in a pinch

I remember looking up from the recipe book and just staring ... the others in the kitchen (who have been with me for years) had never seen The Look before and this person immediately stopped talking and looked horrified. I waited a few seconds (which I'm sure seemed like an eternity) and then continued with my explanation of why and how the recipes are different and when we use each. What I wanted to do was say exactly what ScoopKW was thinking: you will do it this way because I am the chef and owner and this is how I am telling you to do it. This was only about 6 weeks ago. I know that there's no joy in dishwashing and cleaning, breaking down boxes and taking out the trash when you think you should be doing what everyone else in the kitchen is doing but there it is.

I'm paying the going rate; I agree on the peanuts/monkeys! This person actually wanted a little more than the going rate based on experience, however pastry experience was non-existent and I pointed that out. I suspect this could be the reason for the not caring attitude. The response I get sometimes is priceless - we have two different types of lemon curd that we make based on what we are going to do with it (add to buttercream or whipped cream or the tart filling); I started to go over the recipes and explain the difference and was interrupted by "why don't I make it the way my family makes it and you can see how it is". That was my first clue that this was not going to end well.....

God, I need to find a way to clone PastryGirl, ScoopKW and the rest of you! In four years I've only had three people fit that description work for me and you can bet that I am doing everything I can to keep my current assistant happy, and growing as a pastry chef. This is the second time I've hired someone with years of experience; the first one didn't work out because the commute was too long for her. Thanks for your input, I feel better!

I agree with the general consensus regarding my employee and knew by Halloween that my choices were to put up with it until New Year's and limit my exposure (having them do washing and delivering) in order to minimize the mistakes until I could take advantage of the slow time and just not bring them back; I found out quite casually over Thanksgiving that my biggest account finds this person "odd" and "weird" and not in a good way either. What I am curious to know is how do others handle it when a mistake is made? If you are the employee, do you tell the chef or wait for them to find out (depending on the situation, I understand - in a restaurant things are different than in a catering kitchen, retail grocery or bakery); if you really screwed things up do you stay past your shift to make it right or just figure the next person will do it? Some of this is dependent on the kind of person you are and whether the job is at a large organization with lots of staff; or a small business like mine where the buck stops at me - if it doesn't get done, I stay to do it because it's my name on the line. I'm thinking I'm too naive in my perspective that everyone cares about the work they do and wants to do it right. What I've found over the years is that people who worked in a large organization don't realize that burning a pan of macadamia nuts means that someone just lost $30, plus what you are being paid (you were paid to do it twice - wrong the first time and right the second). They tend to not realize what the mistake costs.

Problematic since hiring, which was two months ago. There won't be that many hours available in the new year because things are just slow at that time so the problem will go away; the other kitchen staff is aware and I hear about it. The staff member just doesn't acknowledge the error; if she does ask for clarification, s/he usually gets it wrong and will then say "Oh, I thought you meant this". Even one of my accounts commented on this person, because I have them do deliveries, which is a good thing; you can't do much damage in the kitchen if you're not there. I just can't get over the no apologies, the not willing to stay to do it over again, the no acknowledgment of what you just cost me..... at least with a novice, you expect mistakes and try to anticipate the mistakes and try to prevent them.

I have someone on staff whom, when making a mistake, never apologizes, always frames it as "the lime oil bottle fell in the cooler"; or when adding 6 ounces of salt and 6 ounces of baking soda to a cookie dough "I followed the recipe" (which did not specify ounces or teaspoons; and nor did this member of staff ask before making the dough, and I should mention this person has 15+ years of culinary experience. Seriously on what planet would this much baking soda and salt make sense with 10 pounds of flour?!). Today it was a shrug and "I don't know" when asked where the critical piece of the food processor went to because s/he was the last person to wash it and put it away (it doesn't operate without this little piece of plastic which everyone knows to be aware of and keep track of) So, if you make a mistake at work - and mistakes cost $ - do you apologize? Stay later to redo the work because of your mistake? Offer to replace what you broke? (I don't mean something gives out from aging - I mean you broke the disher that we've had for 3 years without any trouble with it previously but the first time you use it, it's broken after 15 minutes?) Sweep it under the rug and pretend you know nothing? How does the boss handle it? I am at my wits end. Long term solution is being formed but short term, I am just venting. An apology doesn't fix the error but it lets me know you realize what you did wrong and acknowledge it. I never yell - what's the point of yelling or berating someone when they've made a mistake? but my patience is severely tested with only two weeks left to go in the holiday madness.

I am so very lucky - Santa already visited this year and brought me a double stack Blodgett Zephaire convection oven. I am not about to ask for anything else!!!

Yes! My mother made this when I was a child; in the summer I think; and used orange jello, with grated carrot shreds and chopped walnuts. I could not get enough of this stuff. It didn't have any cheese or mayo or anything, I just remember the orange jello color, and the crunch of the nuts and carrots. It probably did have celery in it, I don't recall. Now I need to go out and buy some orange jello. Thank you for the memory!

Recipe errors can happen in proofreading, editing, etc; does the author have a website? Perhaps there's a corrections page that might provide a clue; or call the bakery and ask them. Rose Levy Beranbaum has a list of errors from all of her books on her website/blog; mistakes happen. Maybe the thought that a cookbook author would not provide a reliable working recipe is really foreign to Danish culture? What does she think she did wrong?

One of my favorite restaurants does exactly what Katie has described: there's a large, half-circle rod that goes around the top inside of the door with heavy curtains that can be pulled shut or opened slightly. Because there are windows in the front, you can still see in the restaurant; there's a waiting area to the left so the curtains don't impede people coming in or out, it just keeps the people sitting at the bar comfortable every time the door opens/closes all winter. They take the curtains/rod down in the summer. Hope that works for you!