pastrygirl

Ok, so we made marshmallow today and piped it straight out of the mixer, so it was cooled below 90F but not yet set. I haven't eaten that one yet so I'm not sure how firm it set, but it was relatively soft and flowing. She uses isomalt because it is less sweet and marshmallow is always soooo sweet when made with mostly sucrose. Her theory on egg (and cheese for that matter) is that shelf life is all about AW, not ingredients. But long shelf life doesn't seem to be her focus, to be honest.

@Bentley possibly both! I'm taking a class with Melissa Coppel next week (mentioned above by Teonzo), if we do a pipeable marshmallow, I'll let you know. I used to make a marshmallow chantilly by toasting marshmallows in the oven then dissolving them in cream. I then whipped the cream in an iSi. For a bonbon, maybe a white chocolate ganache where the cream had marshmallows melted into it. You can also play with toasting white chocolate, I've burnt it with a propane torch to get some of the smoky flavor of a campfire.

Kate Weiser has these chocolate pears with marshmallow that looks piped in on her Instagram ...

Wanted to add I think the Opalys is actually 33%, not 32. Zephyr is 34

Opalys is a little less sweet and less runny than Ivoire. They add more milk solids and a little less fat to make it more opaque. Opalys is 32% fat and Ivoire is 35%. I probably have a Valrhona brochure somewhere with more info but I have to go to work. You may also like Callebaut Zephyr, it is sort of in between Opalys and Ivoire in terms of opacity & viscosity. And less expensive!

Thanks! Love is a strong word for it - I do enjoy the challenge of custom creations (when I have time), and it's fun to have different projects, but cake decorating has always kind of stressed me out. Trying to get it all perfect and round with straight sides ... but yeah, it is fun when I can get in the zone and just play sculptor/artist. Here is another one from a couple of weeks ago - it was the hubby's birthday the day before the couple was leaving for a 3 week, 222 mile trek on the John Muir Trail in the Sierras, so wife wanted to surprise him with a mountain themed cake. It was a mountain of cake, alright!

Seahawks birthday cake for someone who turned 30 on the season opener yesterday. Chocolate cake, coffee buttercream between the layers, and cream cheese icing with marshmallow fondant topper and message. Hawks won and client was happy. BUT! As I was painting with food color and vodka on the other cake I made that day, I was totally kicking myself for spending an hour cutting out and piecing together the Seahawks logo. Next time, I'll just paint it. Duh! Oh, that learning curve Didn't get a pic of the other cake, which was a WW 2 tank on top of a bunker. Turned out OK, but I wished I'd had at least another hour to add details to the tank. I always think I can decorate faster than I really can!

No problem, I've had more cake orders than chocolate orders recently, so cake is on my mind. I would cook down the strawberry puree to concentrate it, but cooking does change the flavor a bit. A little balsamic vinegar might help too. I'm not familiar with "pot of gold", but it is entirely possible that their flavors came from a bottle rather than fresh fruit.

For chocolates or for cakes? At first I was thinking cakes and was going to suggest cream cheese, but that wouldn't work for molded chocolates. Otherwise, as you know, fondant is almost entirely sugar. I wonder if you could add glucose as bulk (either atomized or syrup) - it is still sweet, but not quite as sweet as regular sugar. White chocolate is sweet but a little less so, especially Valrhona Opalys and Callebaut Zephyr. A little lemon or lime juice helps boost most fruit flavors. Good luck!

If the recipe calls for fresh quince, maybe a really green (under-ripe) pear would be close? Quince are pretty hard and astringent before cooking and sweetening. It's probably still a bit early for the quince crop, I think of them as coming in in October or November, though of course each year varies and a lot of fruit has been early this year, at least in the NW.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, could be very useful in high volume hotels, institutions, airline meals, that sort of thing where you might want to cut apples a day ahead. I'm not necessarily against GMOs, but the antibiotic resistant aspect is disturbing.

"shallow" and "commercial refrigeration" don't go together for me. They're not all at least 30" deep?

A few years back, Johnny Iuzzini and some other chefs introduced liquid sable - a sable butter cookie, baked, then pureed in the food processor with a little oil. It takes a while (faster if the cookies are still warm). If there is butter in the cookie, you only need about 10-15% by weight of oil to liquify. It'll be soft at room temp but can be frozen for easier handling. Obviously, more oil makes it more liquid. Since I hate pressing in crumb crusts, I've adapted the theory to graham crackers and use the liquid crust for no-bake cheesecake and lemon bars. Since they are lower in fat than your typical butter cookie, I add more fat, and use browned butter for flavor. For a 1/4 sheet pan crust, I lightly toast 300 g graham cracker crumbs, add 50 g sugar and a bit of salt, then process with 125 g melted browned butter. I spread the crust in the pan then chill to set before adding my topping.

It's also possible to make a liquid graham cracker that you can pipe with graham cracker crumbs and oil or browned butter. Or let set and cut into pieces. It is denser than plain graham crackers.

Like cooked rice or couscous? Use a large fork to comb through and break up and lumps. More of a folding or stirring motion that lifts and doesn't mash.

Thank you for sharing!

IIRC, raw milk cheeses aged less than 3 months are banned from import. So yes, the US does miss out on some good stuff. Im surprised to hear France needs pastry cooks. Has everyone French left and gone expat? Or is there a restaurant bubble there too? Here in Seattle, it's getting comical how many restsurants keep opening despite how many chefs say it's impossible to find & retain enough qualified staff.

I think I did have a bit that I decided had gone off and threw away, but it was probably 5 years old and had been melted many times. It seems to be good for at least 2+ years if stored properly. And all those good (for chocolate sales) winter holidays are coming, might as well have lots of festive colors!

I don't know, it looks a lot like taro, just more gnarled. Maybe a sweet potato or yam of some sort?

I believe there may be a connection between these two observations ... in my kitchen, people sneaking treats get their hand slapped! It's all sweetness until you steal my mise en place

Yes it should be. Has it separated or changed color? If not, use it!

luckily we have imports

As an American, I must recommend an excess of cheese at all times. That's how we like it!

I have found some egg whites in cartons that will whip, but only because of added "whipping agent' stabilizers and definitely not organic. Might you add a yolk-heavy item in the future? Lemon bars, lemon curd, yellow cake, egg yolk buttercream, sable' cookies?

What is the heathen English version? Cheese after dessert?