pastrypez

I use matcha for coloring/flavoring Italian Buttercream at work. I use it on petit fours that I make with a pretty simple sponge cake. I make some simple syrup with Cherry Rose tea (also a green tea) from Remedy Teas (http://remedyteas.com/) and brush that onto the cake layers. I find that gives the bite a bit more depth.

Hi there. I'm a fairly recent grad from pastry school and have only been working in this industry for 6 months, this is my second career. Needless to say the learning curve has been steep, having said that I really love what I am doing. But, and there is always a but... I'm a disaster when it comes to menu planning. Any helpful information on where I can learn more about it? If I had to choose my first job out of school it would have been working as an apprentice under a seasoned pro; we don't always get what we are hoping for though, right? I work for a catering company and while some may call me the pastry chef I am most definitely a pastry cook at best. In general I need to know more about menu writing and specifically I have to come up with desserts on these themes: -Spanish tapas -Pub food -Paired wine French dinner hosted by our wine purveyor -something sweet, two bites, finger food with bacon, but definitely a dessert. Any guidance or direction you can point me to would be appreciated. Thank you

recipegullet appears to be having some issues. Does anyone have a copy of the recipes for red velvet handy that could be e-mailed to me? I have to make a few hundred cupcakes for a wedding next week and wanted to start experimenting.

Does anyone know what is going on in the former Fork/Bacchus/CocoLaTiDa location? Walked by there today and noticed the polka dots were missing and saw someone in there with a laptop.

Um, nope. I am heading there myself for that sole purpose, if you're in pastry school I think you can call it "research." Technically we're going to Italy for a couple of weeks, but the last four days of our trip I will be eating, um, conducting research in Paris. I found this thread while making a list of where I must go while there, I can't wait!

I have found that if I am just standing and doing chocolate work the Danskos are great for me (unless I need to trim my toenails--TMI?), unfortunately I have rolled my ankles turning corners or even stepping off of my workmat, any suggestion for an alternative woman's shoe? Does Dansko make a chef's shoe that doesn't have a tapered heel?

I'm currently attending a program at a local community college and absolutely love it--I'm in pastry/baking. Before deciding that I wanted to do this I spent a week at CIA (Greystone) in a career discovery program. I was really impressed with the facilities and chefs I met at CIA. Were I much younger and not married I probably would look at one of the more prestigious schools here or abroad. That said I'm going into my second career and I'm married and a homeowner and don't plan to leave the Pacific Northwest anytime soon. One of the things I did was meet with a number of local pastry chefs and asked around and 90% of the people I spoke with said that if I wanted to stay in Seattle the community college in West Seattle was the way to go. After I heard that enough times and visited the school it was a no-brainer for me. I'm finishing up my 3rd quarter this week and am stunned that I'm halfway through the program, it has gone so fast and I have learned so much. I guess what I'm trying to say is it all depends on what you're looking to get out of it and what your goals are. I should probably say that I do believe in the whole networking thing because I did go to a prestigious liberal arts college on the east coast so I know what kind of doors that can open. Having said that I don't think I'm up for spending another $100k on schooling!

Made some Pate de Fruit in school on Friday and we'll be cutting into it tomorrow and taking a look at it. I'll take some pics and upload the recipe if it turns out! My notes indicate that we used apple pectin though we did discuss the use of agar.

I've been practicing my piping at home using paper cones and sheets of acetate that I got at an art store and royal icing and it got me to thinking what other things people use when they practice at home? At school right now I'm working on chocolate so doing lots of filigree (or attempting to)!

Thank you all for the info, I am not actually planning on making this, just using it as an example for a costing project at school. I trust you my taste in pastries is better than my success at finding recipes for tasty libations online. Cheers, Yvonne

Hello all, First time poster here and I have a question regarding alcohol. I'm working on a project for school and need to know what the following ingredients are: -Lena -Goldken They are for the following recipe: Choctease Ingredients: 1/2 oz. Lena 1/2 oz. Frangelico 1/2 oz. Goldken 2 oz. cream Instructions: Blend ingredients in shaker over ice. Honey rim Poco glass add chocolate stripe down the side then strain mixture into glass. Place chocolate flakes on top of mix and lay open Stawberry on the side. Thank you in advance! Cheers, Yvonne