Lesley C

Isn't it also funny that the majority of top chefs in NYC are French as well. Thanks Michael for that page on the site about his store. I'm a big fan of Caffet. He has great taste. His year of MOF (1990) was a Grand Grand Cru.

Michael, sorry, I'm not sure if Caffet is closed. There's just nothing on his Web site about a shop. I've seen quite a few Japanese magazines. Yes there are some nice things in there, but beating the French at their own game? Hmm..not so sure. Why is everyone so intent on beating the French at their own game? If there is great pastry in Japan it is because of people like Pelletier, Herme, and Bau. Let's give the French credit for what they still master beyond all others, and that (in my books at least) is pastry.

Patisserie Riederer in Aix-en-Provence owned by MOF extraordinaire Philippe Second is a great modern shop. Pascal Caffet used to have a pastry shop. You can see his stuff at www.pascal-caffet.com. Stohrer in Paris on the rue Montergeuil (sp?) is another of my favourites. I would think a good place to start looking is the guide of the Relais Desserts (site: http://www.relais-desserts-international.com). My big fantasy has always been to visit Demel in Vienna. I've heard it's disappointing but I'm sure I'd love it.

I just returned from Cancale Brittany where I tasted some terrific Belons in the month of July. The only problem with oysters in summer months is that they get "laiteuse" (milky) on the top of the flesh when they are in reproductive mode. But hey, apparently some people like them that way. The oyster producers in Cancale are working on eliminating this altogether. The bit about not eating oysters in summer months had a lot to do with transporting oysters in hot weather from the coast to Paris. This isn't an issue anymore.

I have five words for any pastry chef looking for recognition: get out of the restaurant. In France, the majority of top pastry chefs work in a boutique setting. Do you think Pierre Herme would be Pierre Herme if he worked in a restaurant? Hell no! You have to get out behind the shadow of the chef, especially if that person is a chef/owner. As a former pastry chef and present restaurant critic, I can honestly say I go out of my way to name pastry chefs in reviews. Problem is, I rarely come across one good enough to mention. Excellent restaurant pastry chefs are a rarity in my city, Montreal, though we do have excellent restaurants and very little of that oreo cheesecake crap. Problem is, many restaurant pastry chef are under the orders of the regualr chef. How many of them are really working with their own vision? If you're looking for recognition, open a chocolate shop or pastry shop. Not only will you be the boss, you will also get all the credit.

Martha Stewart also has a variation of that in her tart book. I'd do the stove top thing, pour it into a pre-cooked shell then bake it at 200F until it sets a bit further. Or, I'd do the stove top brulee and add a few sheets of gelatin to make sure it cuts properly. A creme brulee is a bit too soft to set up to tart consistency. Individual tarts wouldn't be a probelm, big one big tart would be a mess to slice.

Actually, I think the desserts at Med are better now than before. Sorry Mike. I'm a pastry chef as well so I know evil comments like that can hurt. Your desserts were more in line with the former Mediterraneo.

Hmm...gee I don't know. My Kitchen Aid (purchased in 1988) is at a friend's house right now and I've been using an old hand mixer. I kind of like it. Just made banana bread and it worked very well. It seemed faster to me and I had more control incorporating the ingredients. I agree with nightscotsman. For small jobs a hand mixer is great. I think it mixes better than the stand mixer. But God no, I would never use it for Italian Meringue. I don't have a second bowl for my stand mixer because when making something like a jelly roll cake, I prefer beating my whites while the yolks and sugar are still being whipped in the stand mixer. I prefer the two machines going at the same time. So, I'd opt for the stand mixer and a hand mixer, over the two bowls with the stand mixer. Ideally two stand mixers would be my choice.

Sorry, sorry. Nancy Silverton's pecan sticky buns are in Baking with Julia, page 190-191. She made sugar buns on Martha's show. Also very good.

I love the Nancy Silverton recipe. There is a TON of butter in there. Suvir, you can probably access the recipe through the martha stewart Website. She made tham on the show.

Don't bother baking berries into the creme brulee. The results are jammy and watery, seriously disgusting. The reason I mentioned curd is that the two consistencies are the same, and I like layers, the element of surprise for the diner. In raspberry season, I'd served some berries alongside.

What if you made a raspberry curd, poured it into a ramekin and froze it, then topped it with a vanilla creme brulee made on the stove. I dunno, might work, no?

That's nothing! When I was there in 1989, the was a uniform Tabarnac!!! And it was ugly! They dropped it in 1991. Thank God!

Did you have a steak? I was underwhelmed by the steak, but much of the rest was rather spectacular -- for a steakhouse, that is.

Blue State _4, all the courses are the same. It's a set government program. I still say ITHQ. The contacts they have there are amazing -- especially if you want to do a stage in France. And, despite the discipline (I had to wear a friggin' tour de cou for three years) it's a fun school. Wild wild parties.

I think you would be better off taking a Berlitz fast French course than head to Riverside. I just can't seem to get a take on that place. Has anyone here attended? Food dwarf, why do you recommend Riverside? I don't want to be mean here, I'm just curious. As Zach stated, I don't think language will turn out to be a problem at ITHQ these days.

I second Steve's recommendation of Pascal Brunstein's petit fours book. There's some great stuff in there-- all so perfect.

I have a sponge cake recipe that uses a -- ahem -- chemical emulsifier (Tandem). If you have some on hand, I'll post the recipe. It makes a large batch and holds up well for wedding cakes.

I was in the pastry program. Not a lot of knives involved -- at least not sharp knives. That chick was a total whacko.

Fireweed, I had kids in my class at the ITHQ who weren't much better. I remember one guy in my class who stabbed himself in the leg while chopping chocolate. He also used to throw out all his cookie dough when the teacher wasn't looking because he was too lazy to pipe out more than one tray. I had a girl in my class who dropped acid every day before class. She once told me she thought our teacher was a grasshopper. Scary. At Pius there was always a hard core group in every class and a lot of sharp girls. The probelm there was that the classes were sometimes huge. I remember a few groups of 25 students. It's tough to give your full attention to each individual when you have to spread your energies around such a large group. At the ITHQ, there were between 8-14 students per teacher. It makes a difference.

If you speak French, you might want to check out the ITHQ. The resources there are outstanding. The library alone is astounding, and they are renovating the school to the tune of a couple million this year. All these schools are government funded. Save your $18 000 for better things.

John, The kitchens at Pius can hardly compete with those of the Institut de Tourisme et d'Hotellerie du Quebec (the biggest and best school in the province -- if not the country), Calixa Lavallee, Riverside technical insitute and Jacques Rousseau. The only good thing about Pius' poor facilities is that they offer students a taste of what it's like to work in a "real" kitchen. The stoves are old, the equiment isn't that great, and there isn't a dishwasher on hand to wash the pots. Reality bites at Pius. I say, all the better.

Sorry John but your information is completely wrong-- or dated. Thomas Green is NOT in charge of the program at the Pius X Culinary Academy. The program head is a man by the name of Tony Mancini. The last I heard, Tom Green teaches table service, which is probably better suited to his skills. Secondly, the operation could hardly be called "slick." Pius probably has the worst facilities of any cooking school in the city. I will vouch for the winning personality of the staff, however, save for Mr. Green. Despite the weaknesses at Pius, the students all seem to find good jobs and from what I've seen most of them continue in the industry. Yes, the programs are basic but all the programs in entry-level cooking schools in Quebec are. Pius also has a terrific chef on staff by the name of Otto Daniels who is highly talented in the realm of culinary competition. I worked as a pastry teacher at Pius for three years. The freedom the staff was given and the high ratio of young teachers straight from the industry brought a dynamic to the school you just couldn't find in the other larger cooking schools. ExCentrix, if you need more information, feel free to PM me. Also I know there are a few Pius graduates who post here. Maybe they could contribute a few words about their experiences with the cooking program.

So what d'you tell him?

I had some pretty bad sushi at Kaizan, but some interesting and good stuff at Treehouse. I just don't like the room at Treehouse.