nightscotsman

I think a genoise by definition is supposed to be dry and require a soaking syrup of some kind to add moisture and tenderness. Given than, I wouldn't worry about the cake becoming too soggy, but I wonder if the pastry cream might become a bit thick and pasty after losing moisture to the sponge. I would suggest folding some whipped cream into the pastry cream so it stays lighter.

Adding invert sugar (Trimoline) will help to maintain a good emulsion, which is important when you have a lot of water content (from the raspberry juice and cream) in a ganache. Having a good, stable emulsion will help keep the liquid bound to the fat and prevent weeping. The Trimoline will add some sweetness, but you can counterbalance by using a slightly darker chocolate with less sugar. I would add a bit of Trimoline when you pour the hot cream over the chocolate. Stir with a spatula to emulsify the cream and chocolate, then when the mixture reaches 36º C, use a hand blender to mix in the softened butter until the mixture completely smooth and glossy.

rose flower water could be very nice. Just be sure not to overdo the flavoring or - like orange flower water or lavender - it can turn out tasting like soap. Which recipe did you end up using? Was it an egg white or non-egg white version?

This actually sounds to me like the custard overbaked in the oven. Essentially the mixture boiled a bit on the top and that is what caused the foamy, spongy texture. And I just wanted to clarify that while I cook my mix on the stove top, I don't actually go all the way to the creme anglais stage. I just boil the milk and cream and temper the eggs with the hot liquid. I pour the warm base in dishes and bake in a shallow water bath at about 325 F. Starting with a warm to hot mixture reduces the amount of time in the oven so the custard doesn't loose too much moisture and helps it to cook more evenly. I believe that putting a cold mix in the oven might tend to promote overbaking because you would have to leave it in longer to cook to the center, so there is more chance of the edges getting too hot before the center is done.

I agree that the flavor of butter would be nice in a marshmallow, but I suspect the fat would just deflate the foam and you would end up with something heavy and chewy like a nougat. Not that there's anything wrong with that.

Yep, I cook and strain before baking too. You get a much smoother, richer tasting custard that way. Never had problems with bubbles.

You can use any natural flavor extracts and they shouldn't change the final texture. Try coconut or coffee extracts for a richer flavor, or replace the water in the recipe with some strongly brewed chai. I made cinnamon marshmallows by just adding about a teaspoon of ceylon cinnamon and they were great with hot cider. As for fruit flavored marshmallows, I hope you'll consider making the strawberry version I added to the recipe archive. They have a very creamy mouth-feel and bright strawberry flavor.

Not a problem, Dean. That chocolate cake batter is indestructible. I think you could bake it in just about anything and it would come out fine. I actually made it as a cake for my boss (who was absolutely convinced for about two months that she was alergic to dairy, eggs and gluten ) one year using a combo of rice and rye flour instead of all purpose wheat flour. A little more chewy than usual, but it was still a fine chocolate cake.

You will never get a smooth texture without ice crystals without using some kind of fast-freezing ice cream maker. The inexpensive home models that have the inner canister you put in the freezer work quite well for small batches. The faster the freeze, the smoother the finished product. Also, it is important to agitate as it freezes to break up the forming ice crystals.

I think they do offer 2 day air delivery, but since it's from outside the US shipping is a lot more expensive. The way DR operates is you place an order and they contact you in a few days to give you the shipping price. At that time you can confirm whether or not you still want it sent for that cost. It took about 5 days to receive it (normal ground shipping) after confrimation with them. My fairly small order cost about $15 for regular mail, and would have been $55 for 3-4 days or $120 next day delivery. One other thing that looks good about the Silcon Flex large individual molds (like cake rounds) is they come equiped with a stiffener ring to keep the shape rigid. So if you fill them with a very liquid mixture you can pick the mold up and move it without spilling the whole thing. I haven't tried any of the large molds myself, but the priciple seems good. I also can't tell if you can bake with the stiffener ring still attached or if you have to remove it when it goes in the oven.

I recently bought some Silicon Flex brand molds (the rust red/orange ones) and have been quite happy with them. We've used the black Flexpans at school for everything (they own every shape and size available - even some that aren't on the market yet) and I really like their durability and the way they perform in the oven. I bought the Silicon Flex molds because they are WAY cheaper than Flexpan (about $10 for a quarter sheet) and they have much sharper and cleaner shapes. Plus for some of the shapes, like the smallest demisphere, they are set closer together, so you can get a lot more product on a sheet pan. I got the Silicon Flex pans at Design & Réalisation in Canada. They also have the best prices I've seen on polycarbonate molds for chocolate, and they can custom make almost any metal ring mold you could want with no set-up charges.

Lecithin is an emulsufier that helps keep the butter from leaching out and forming a greasy coating. I don't think it will help with the crystalization. I agree with the glucose (or corn syrup) suggestion. Also some form of acid will keep the caramel from crystalizing, but will affect the flavor. The recipe we use in class for some caramels includes a bit of sorbitol which the instructors say will help preserve freshness and the smooth texture.

I've been told that there will be a book available in the US within a few weeks filled with recipes using Mycryo. Sorry I don't know the publisher or title, but I assume Cocoa Barry is backing it. I've also been told that the reason it can be used to temper chocolate quickly is that the process Cocoa Barry uses actually isolates and concentrates the very stable "beta" cocoa butter crystals.

I beg to differ - freezing will absolutely not kill the yeast. Just look at all the thaw-and-bake products available to both the home baker and professional, anything from croissants to pizza dough. I store my fresh yeast in the freezer for extended periods with no problem. You can freeze shaped loaves before they rise, defrost as needed overnight in the fridge, proof, then bake.

This is the method I would use. Since they are so thin you don't need to actually "poach" them very long. Just put them in the hot syrup off the heat for a minute and you should be fine. Worked great for apple slices we did a few weeks ago.

If it's sweet, kid's will eat it.

The main difference between "my" recipe (actually based on one from Martha) and most of the others I've seen is the lack of egg whites and a higher proportion of corn syrup or glucose. What is actually whipping is the glucose cooked to the soft ball stage, so there's not much water left in the syrup. The water in the bowl is absorbed by the gelatine so it not only sets as it cools, it's keeping the cooked syrup from softening. But then again, I'm most just guessing about the science . Anyway, I hope you'll give it a try - I guarantee it works and makes a very stable, but light and creamy marshmallow. If you want a firmer finished product for some reason, you could always increase the gelatine.

Check out this recipe I posted a while ago for Strawberry Marshmallows. It uses fruit puree instead of flavoring oils so the flavor is very natural and fresh. You could try substituting other fruits like raspberry, peach or even pumkin and some spices. I made a cinnamon version a few weeks ago (replace puree with water and add powdered cinnamon) that was great in hot cider. The variations are endless.

I think the chefs at school have just started testing some recipes with Mycryo. I saw one cake that had a raspberry mousse and a hazelnut mousse both made with the stuff instead of gelatine. The raspberry seemed to work well, but the hazelnut was way too soft when it defrosted. The flavor of both was the same as the gelatine recipes. Nothing conclusing though.

At school we did a dessert with poached pears that everyone liked: poach pears as usual in white wine, sugar and spices. Cool, then slice pear halves into fans. pipe a thin-ish layer of almond or hazelnut financier batter in a shallow baking dish and place pear half on top. bake until cake is browned and just done. Serve warm with thyme or hazelnut ice cream (I preferred the thyme - really brought out the flavor of the pear) and a pear chip garnish. You can bake them ahead of time and rewarm them in the convection for a couple minutes for service.

Oh, the 22nd is a Saturday! In that case, please count me in if I can be a weeny and order non-spicy food. Anyone mind if I bring some chocolates from our last test?

I had something like this at a restaurant years ago. I believe it was a fairly standard bread that had been boiled in a water and 'chemical' (is it baking soda? I don't remember) bath before baking. It's sort of like making bagels, but the ingredients in the pretzel bath cause the crust to become shiny and dark as it bakes. Makes a great snack.

If the marbling effect was from pouring partially mixed colored ganache or fondant on the cake then the streaks would be radiating out from the center down the sides rather than all in one direction like the photo shows. Any chance it could be a white poured ganache that was airbrushed with color? Seems like you'd have more control over the final look that way. Either that or rolled fondant marbelized before applying or airbrushed afterward.

I would definitely go with the Madegascar then, though also think I would just use extract and save the whole beans for stuff where it really makes a difference - like custards, ice creams and panna cotta.

PCB makes an opaque white cocoa butter coloring using titanium dioxide. You could either mix some into your white chocolate or spray it on the finished candies. You could also use vegetable oil to thin your candy melts. If you use about 8% or less it shouldn't have a big impact of the firmness of the set piece.