pastrygirl

Know your audience and who eats what. I like the idea of something non-perishable instead of more cookies that need to be eaten right away, also some savory options. How about chili oil, spiced nuts and cheesy crackers? One brother always makes Chex mix at Xmas, not fancy but I love it. Shrubs with seasonal fruit and vinegar are a nice alternative to jam, fruity but lower sugar. I never eat the jam people give me, but I’d drink a shrub.

Don't skimp on ventilation.

I think a nice plated shot or a close-up is sexier than a hotel pan. Also action shots, if you have a cheesy lasagna, get that string of mozzarella as it pulls away.

What are the dimensions of your caramels? 5 g sounds like enough for a small piece but better safe than sorry. If you end up with an extra kg or two of chocolate, Christmas is coming soon enough.

I use bubble wrap.

Knudsen has a 'Just Cranberry' unsweetened juice https://www.rwknudsenfamily.com/products/single-fruit-juices/organic-just-cranberry

I was going to say lemon curd too, but how about lime curd for the margarita shooter? And yolk-based orange buttercream in the macarons. You could do creme brulees in demitasse cups or make something with a creme anglaise or pastry cream type layer. Or a more shootable shooter of berries in a shot of creme anglaise? https://www.seriouseats.com/recipes/2017/11/french-vanilla-buttercream-frosting-recipe.html

Is it solid chocolate or filled with something? Is the garnish a plain raisin? Sometimes I get small lumps of silk in my chocolate, but not that small, and it looks pretty good otherwise (not dull and streaky) so I'm wondering if something salty or syrupy is drawing water 🤔

I'm curious about it. A friend from high school has been doing intermittent fasting - along with exercise and diet changes - and has lost 50 lb and seen improvement in other health measures. I'm trying to cut down on snacks before bed, not eating from 7pm - 9am should be do-able if I try. Is 14 hours the minimum number of fasting hours to make a difference? My friend says she only eats 3-8pm, I don't know if I could go that long.

Adding freeze dried fruit to soak up the juice might work, and will add intensity of flavor. I can't give a ratio, but if you're near a Trader Joe's, try a packet or two of their freeze dried strawberries crushed up and mixed into fresh and see what happens.

Also useful for ebelskivers, poffertjes, faux doughnut holes ... and quail eggs!

E. coli doesn’t always wash off, that spinach was contaminated at the farm. E. Coli was in the spinach, not on the spinach. The safer approach is to cook everything.

Some folding tables extend to bar/counter height. Otherwise consider a set of risers for your current table. Search for bed risers or furniture risers, they should be about $20.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Spoon

$5500 for the 50 lb savage, way too much for an unplanned non-necessity. The 2 smallest copper bowls went for $125 and $150, not bad, and a vibrating table for $400. I wasn't watching the little dippers or the panning equipment.. I'll find some new toys another time

We are not winners ... of the auction, at least

On one hand, I agree that's ridiculous. Do burgers have to be beef, or can there be turkey burgers, bison burgers, shrimp burgers? I'd define a burger as having a patty made of chopped or ground (whatever) and served on a bun. Veggie burgers are not exactly new, so why start this fight now? On the other hand, I am tired of people calling non-dairy frozen desserts 'ice cream'. Yeah, it's shorter and still gets the point across but ... maybe I'm more attached to ice cream than to burgers?

Perfect! Can you resurrect your old business in any way and sell for the holidays? If the museum likes you and wants to keep you, maybe they'd let you use the kitchen after hours. Tell them you love the flexibility but are itching for more creativity. I had a sweet deal with a restaurant/event space trading kitchen use for desserts, if you could work something similar out so you don't have a lot of fixed expenses, you could put in the OT for yourself and make that extra $$$ at Christmas. Low overhead is my secret to survival

It just seems like it’s only more $$ if you work a ton of overtime and/or get sales bonuses. I’m an introvert so I know it’d be a challenge for me to push the sales side, ymmv. But I’m also facing the fact that a long comfortable retirement requires a million dollars more than I have, so I understand the allure. I’m 47, not so much a ‘girl’, I should change my screen name but ‘pastryspinster’ doesn’t have the same ring 😂 Are there any more outlets at the museum that would satisfy your creativity or need for growth? Start a program of bonbons painted in the style of that months featured artist?

Hmm. Well of course they're going to be nice when recruiting, nobody says, 'come work with us, we're assholes, you'll hate it' ... just like interviewees never tell you they're flaky and can't actually follow directions 😆 Sounds like you need to clarify the position. How much production vs how much sales, and if the sales is mostly keeping existing customers satisfied or cold-calling new ones. How well do you know this friend of friend? Can you ask her for more specifics? Do you trust her character and are sure it was the company and not her? What were her reasons for staying so many years and are the people who provided the negative experiences still there? But it sounds like you really enjoy that flexible schedule, and as a not-so-spring chicken, do you really want to work 65 hour weeks? Or do you still have some years of that left in you and it would help you save for retirement ...

The heavy cream may separate into little fatty buttery bits in the freezer but if you heat the sauce to melt the fat, the fat should mix back in. Trying to mix it back in while cold will likely only yield frustration. Or just bake the enchiladas and don't worry about it, it'll be fine once hot.

@Chocolot thank you that is very helpful.

@Chocolot, a few more questions if you don't mind - how hard is it to clean? (Do you have three so you never have to switch chocolates? ) Is there a minimum amount of chocolate needed for it to work well? And about how much does the thing weigh? thanks!

I believe you! Is there a spigot or do you ladle the chocolate out? Do they have special power needs? Actually the 200 lb one wouldn't be so ridiculous during Christmas or if/when I grow the wholesale side. I have a 24 kg mol d' art, 200 lb is only four melters-full ... great for slab truffle production when I'm using 3 or 4 lb per frame. I will watch them all. @gfron1 if you get to the preview, I'm interested in melters up to 200 lb, small copper bows and a vibrating table. If they look trashed up close, let me know!

Found it! Cute lil' 50 lb guy, I could fit that in a rental car 🙃 https://www.bidspotter.com/en-us/auction-catalogues/rabin/catalogue-id-rabin10078/lot-95adc5a8-46dc-4d7c-abd6-aa7d011888b9