sugarbuzz

I've been using this for about 12 years now. Never heard it referred to as a "ganache" though. We just call it chocolate water. The way I do it is I melt my chocolate & add hot water until I get the thickness & consistency I want. I use it for cake glazes mostly. As for the shelf life..I've stored this for up to 10 days at room temp in the kitchen without any mold or spoilage. I do have a recipe for a chocoalte mousse using this method & adding whipped cream to it. No gelatin is needed & it sets up completely firm. I use it for cake fillings.

http://www.starchefs.com/events/studio/tec...uez/index.shtml

The Cake Book by Tish Boyle has some good recipes in it. Pretty much anything I've made from any of her books turns out.

Apples go well with orange/cardamom combo. Orange cardamom cake petit four with a caramel filling, Apple i.c make an apple ice cream bombe,maybe a maple chiffon cake base.. serve with a riesling reduction

If it is only going up a few inches in size than no..I don't alter it. I'll double a recipe & make cupcakes with the leftover batter.

I just made an Apricot galette with a pistachio paste filling & topped it with blackberry ice cream. It sold out for lunch. I also made recently with blackberries.. Nectarine & blackberry crisp with lemon buttermilk ice cream Blackberry upside down cake with mango coulis & a scoop of lime frozen yogurt

A burger place is not surprising as he is a huge fan of In Out burgers...I remember reading about this in some foodie mag a few months ago.

When I make ginger truffles I'll steep the ginger w/ the cream..but then I'll sneak a small piece of candied ginger in the center of the truffle.

I know exactly what these are. I used to make them for a bakery in Chicago. Mocha,passionfruit,vanilla,mango..etc Crisp on the outside and almost a cotton candy like texture on the inside. It was always the last thing I would make because they have to sit in a warm oven all night. So I had to wait until the bake was done for the day & the oven had cooled off almost completely. It was a simple meringue with a lot of powdered sugar folded in & then a fruit compound was added. I'll have to dig out my old recipe book & see if I still have the recipe.

hmm.. I just made some vanilla star anise ice cream for my pear clafouti..maybe I'll try pairing it with a rhubarb galette.

I like Truffles, Candies & Confections by Carole Bloom also. It's nice for a novice because she explains about types of chocolate,tools to buy, how to temper..etc. Alot of interesting truffle recipes..and the brittle recipe is very good.

I remember my mom would make that icebox cake with graham crackers.

I just remembered this cake that my mom still makes & that everyone still anticipates is her pistachio cake. Which is a white cake mix with Jello brand pistachio pudding. She bakes it in a tube pan & it is the most hideous looking lime green color but man is it ever so good. I forgot about the Good Humor bars..the chocolate crunch ones were my favorite.

I grew up in Chicago..right smack in the city. I remember sno-cones, Italian ice, soft serve ice cream from the ice cream truck, Dolly Madison cupcakes,snowballs,ho-ho's..etc.. My granny was a terrific baker(which is why I'm now in the pastry biz). I'd come home from school to find her making donuts & funnelcakes,churros,fritters. My mom was a box cake maker..anything from a box was her preference. Remember pudding in a cloud? All those jello & pudding based desserts. I just remembered this old candy/ice cream shop around the corner from where I grew up..He'd serve sherbert..homemade and all kinds of flavors. But I would get the rainbow one all the time. Served in those little flimsy paper cups where you could push it through to the top to get every last lick.

I'm just going to take pics at the tasting. I was up late last night & was just too tired. I'm kinda iffy about my malt cake. It tastes good but it's just different. It's ricotta based..made like a souffle. It's very spongy & it kind of melts in your mouth. An acquired taste I guess..we'll see how they like it.