Linzerbear

how about a smoked orange curd? or a Gelee,or a panna cotta?

on the same site i found this recipe Chocolate-Hazelnut Spread (easy version) Yield: about 12 ounces (1 1/2 cups) 2 cups whole raw hazelnuts 1 cup powdered sugar 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder up to 1/4 cup vegetable or nut oil 1/2 tsp vanilla extract Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Place hazelnuts in a single layer on a shallow baking pan. Toast until the skins are almost black and the meat is dark brown, about 15 minutes. Stir the nuts halfway through baking to ensure an even color. Since the skin is bitter, you’ll want to discard them. Wrap the cooled hazelnuts in a clean kitchen towel or paper towel, and rub until most of the skins have come off. Don’t fret if you can’t get off all the skins. Process nuts in a food processor, scraping down the sides of the bowl occasionally, until they have liquefied, about 5 minutes. First, you will get coarsely chopped nuts, then a fine meal. After a little while, the nuts will form a ball around the blade, and it will seem like you only have a solid mass. Keep processing. The heat and friction will extract the natural oils, and you will get hazelnut butter! When the nuts are liquified, add in the sugar, cocoa and vanilla. Slowly drizzle in enough oil to make a spreadable consistency. Since the mixture is warm, it will be more fluid now than at room temperature. Transfer the spread to an airtight container, and store in the refrigerator for1-2 months. For best results, stir the chocolate-hazelnut spread before using. Perhaps a good place to start from.

I just did some Google on your topic, and found that Nutella is a lot like our US Peanut butter. Hazelnut paste & oil, skim milk, and cocoa powder( which gives the chocolate flavor, but not the solids) which would keep it spreadable and LOTS of sugar, which i would think makes the shelf life. Hope that helps

exactly that is what i was thinking.

thanks, both of us were thinking the same thing, like a gum paste or modeling paste, but neither of us had ever heard of it referred to as rose paste thanks!

A friend of mine was taking a pastry test and one of the questions was,What is Rose Paste made of? the only rose paste i know of is rose coloring paste, or a flavor paste, but her only options on the test were; brown sugar, confectioners sugar, shortening,meringue powder, things of this sort, nothing with roses or flavoring. Any one have any ideas? thanks!

I guess it's all about perspective. I got the opposite feeling. I didn't view it as a lot of things going on, I saw it more as not enough going on. It's like a gathering of tasty garnishes with no focus point to pull them together. That's why I keep going on about ice cream, cake, meringue, etc. I don't see a lot of point to the sauces on the plate (no matter how tasty they are) other than appearance when the fruit is already in it's own sauce in a seperate glass, there's nothing to mop them up with. I just can't picture someone taking a spoon of fruit covered in sauce from the glass and trying to scrape some of the plate sauce into it before taking a bite. ← I am totally about the KISS too, but i have to agree with you, i do not see the focus of the dessert, more like garnishes and accompaniments then a main item, and i totally agree things served in a glass like that need to literally stand on their own, as a consumer is not going to take it out of the glass and put it on the plate mop it around and then back on the spoon and into their mouths. If it is about grilled fruit then pick one or two fruits in season and focus on them and then build the rest around it, adding a cookie or cake piece of some sort to become more of a neutral way of conveying the unique flavors of your sauces etc will also add to the feeling of a more "dessert" experience of eating just grilled fruit. IMO of course i do love the sounds of some of your sauces, i just think you need a bit more focus

Not sure if this idea will work with your menu but is fast and easy. Make a fryer with a pot and some oil. Then make a fruit or chocolate "spring roll". I have done a banana layered with some vanilla sugar in phillo dough rolled up like a spring roll fry till brown, you could serve with a fruit "salsa" to incorporate some of those knife cuts, I like to serve then with a 5 spice chocolate dipping sauce. Or run with the fryer and make a fritter or play on a doughnut. Good luck

I have actually seen this happen, and sometimes it is due to an old bottle of coloring and a poor quality color, what happens in that the color separates as it sits, so you end up with pink or blue flecks. Usually when it has happened to me, i buy a new bottle of color, and make sure i shake it well. I of course am not 100% sure why it happens or how to stop it, but just my observations when it has happened to me.

I've been waiting for someone to throw some real positives in about school. The more i read throughout the forum the more I think that CIA might really be the place for me. I think it will be a good learning experience on many different levels. And New York is a great place to get exposed to many different types of food. As far as the pay. I've had this discussion many different times with many different people. I'm a believer that money isn't the most important thing in the world (That statement is almost anti-american ) Like a said early, my mother was a teacher for many years and is now a principal. From her I've learned that as long as you're doing something that you truly love. It doesn't matter how much you get paid. In other words, listen to your heart, not your bank account . So i'm really not worried about the money. Just as long as I'm not living on the street. Thanks again, Will ← I totally understand, money is not everything. I would not being doing Pastry if it were, i am just saying that you need to make sure you can pay your bills, and support your family which is sometimes harder for people making a career transition, but if your cool with that, then go for it! ;-) New york is expensive just like San Francisco(where i first started out after school) and sometimes i had to choose between food and rent. But those were some of the best times of my life that being said.

Just thought i would throw out, that as someone who worked for a few years in the pastry world before going to school (Johnson & Wales University), that going to school will seriously speed up the learning process, as you are exposed to many aspects and diverse techniques in a very short period of time, not to mention the learning on how to work quickly, efficiently, and cleanly. Of course school is just the beginning, and staging is always important. Also something to consider which no one seems to ever mention is the pay. I firmly believe that someone who is a marine can handle the long hours, hard physical work, and stress. But for many, all of that combined with a relatively low pay rate especially for someone just getting into the business is too much and people run back out of the kitchen. You really must have a love and passion for doing pastry/baking for 10.00 bucks an hour and in some areas 10.00 bucks is being generous for the first few years. No one likes to mention that profit margins in bakeries, and the food business in general is very small, so wages are usually pretty low. I am not trying to discourage you, just trying to be honest. It took me almost 10 years to pay off my school loans ( this would not be the case for you) and although i am now paid very well, it was a lot of hard work and studying, and travel to get there. Just some thoughts to consider.