teonzo

There are various "standard" sizes for pre-made frames: 34x27 cm; 40x40 cm; 60x40 cm... If the recipe/book doesn't tell the measures, then you can only guess which is the correct size by checking the total weight of the ingredients. Not much of a help, I know. Teo

You get some recipes on the official website: http://www.pacojet.com/en/recipes/ Pacojet is more versatile than a standard churning machine, you can get good results even if your recipe is quite out of the standard balance (much less sugars, less fats and so on). Usually all recipes that work with a churning machine work perfectly with a Pacojet too. About sorbets you can drastically reduce the sugars ratio, just give a look at the official recipes. Teo

What's most dubious about this inspection is the violation described as "no hand-washing facility or soap near the food prep area and hot and cold items". It's quite hard to think that Per Se changed their kitchen set-up after the previous inspections. So, if previous inspections declared that the kitchen set-up was ok, why should there be a violation now? Teo

Then it seems that the problem lies in how you freeze and defrost them. There should be no need to let them set in the refrigerator before freezing them, you should try to put them immediately in the freezer. Pay attention on how you defrost them, if you get the same problem with 2 different recipes then it sounds more like a problem of condensation during defrosting. Teo

The main problem is given by the egg whites, you whip them at hard peaks and without making them stable (Italian meringue). You end up overwhipping and overmixing them while you mix your batters, in this way the whites separate a bit and you get the mushy effect. Plus you have the troubles of using raw eggs (unless you pasteurize them or use already pasteurized eggs, but doesn't seem so if you talk about separating them). I would try a simpler and quicker recipe, like this one: 350 g dark chocolate 70% 350 g cream 500 g cream Make a ganache with the chocolate and the first amount of cream. If your chocolate has a different % then you need to re-balance the ganache, Wait until the ganache cools to 35°C, then add the second amount of cream (whipped to soft peaks). This mousse is stable and really easy to make. When you make mousses and similars you always have to whip your stuff to soft peaks and not to hard peaks, this way it will be much easier to mix the batters and you will avoid overwhipping and overmixing troubles (mostly resulting in air/volume loss and separation). Teo

If you can read French then there is this one: Délicieux macarons salés by Christophe Felder Teo

Dave, thanks for the blog (just finished reading, can't comment there since it's closed) and for opening this thread. I really appreciated that in these weeks of complaints about the scarcity of blogs on this forum (and so on) you just took the ball and started rolling. You showed a nice pair of b***s and confirmed it with your life resume. I really hope you will continue writing some more anecdotes, it seems like you have a boatload of them in your bag. If I can ask for something, then I would be really glad if you could write some stories about your years in SF, with the rise of Chez Panisse and so on. Thanks. Teo

I've ordered a LED globe (cool white, 5500-6000K) from an Amazon.it marketplace seller (costed 15 euro including shipping), hopefully I'll receive it in the next days. Now I'm using just two pieces of cardboard with some aluminum foil taped over it, I'm keeping the cheap route to see what I'm able to learn and what results I'll get. While surfing on Amazon I've seen a set composed of 2 umbrellas (each one with a CFL bulb) and a big reflector screen (about 7 x 5 feet), it costs 120 euro. Maybe I'll consider it if I'll see I'm able to get quality pictures. BTW, here is my last photo: http://www.teonzo.com/immagini/cake_dolciviaggio/crostata_patatedolci_mandorle_favetonka.jpg I made it this way: - sunny day (one of the last until next spring I suppose), about 1 pm, table placed under a window facing South with a white curtain to diffuse the direct sunlight; - placed a big sheet of white paper over the table, then set the white balance on the camera (luckily my cheap camera has this option); - placed the pie on the paper (with something underneath to not be in direct contact, of course); - placed the 2 homemade reflectors (if I consider South as 90° then I put them at 30° and 120°); - put the tripod in place, set the camera at ISO 80, shutter speed 1/60, self-timer at 2 seconds (to avoid shatterings after clicking the button). The only manipulation of the photo was resizing and saving it as jpg, I didn't change/touch anything else. I'm quite happy with the result, now I need to find out if it was a lucky shot or if I'm really starting to learn. If you wonder what the pie is, from bottom to top it's made of: - Tonka bean flavoured shortcrust; - sweet potato "jam" (don't know how to translate it in English); - almond crumble. Teo

I don't know which varieties you have in the USA, but here in Europe chestnuts are divided into 2 main groups: "castagna" and "marrone" in Italian language, or "châtaigne" and "marron" in French language. I'm ignorant, but as far as I know both of them are translated as "chestnuts" in English language, never found a distinction between the two. Castagna / châtaigne is usually smaller, tastier, there are 2 or 3 inside the shell, it's a real PITA to peel since the skin goes far deep into the flesh in a lot of zones; they are used mainly to prepare the chestnut flour or dried chestnuts. Marrone / marron is usually bigger, less tasty, there is only 1 inside the shell, it's much easier to peel; they are used mainly to prepare marrons glaces, chestnut jam and all the other uses in pastry. So if the ones you got were "castagna" and not "marrone", then there was not much you could do, peeling them is a nightmare. If you roast them then a good tip is putting them in a bowl (just after roasting) and cover them with a towel for some minutes, in this way the humidity will help a bit to detach the skin. Teo

There are quite a lot of cookbooks coming out in France this autumn (some in the past weeks, some in the next). All of them are in French language, so it can be a problem. I'm copying the link to the original publisher, plus the Amazon.com link where available. Hugues Pouget , Sylvain Blanc - "Les 5 saisons par Hugo & Victor - Paris" http://www.editionsduchene.fr/livre/hugues-pouget-les-5-saisons-par-hugo-victor-paris-3237427.html This duo became quite famous in the past years, I really liked their pastries in the articles of various magazines, so I'll definetely buy it. Christophe Aribert - "Aribert" http://www.laymon.fr/#/ouvrages/aribert Book about this restaurant with 2 michelin stars, the publisher is the same of YAM Magazine (the magazine by Yannick Alleno). Emmanuel Renaut - "Nature d'un chef" http://editions.flammarion.com/Albums_Detail.cfm?ID=44829&levelCode=livres Another michelin starred restaurant, the English edition will come out next year, Amazon link. Gérald Passédat - "Passédat" http://editions.flammarion.com/Albums_Detail.cfm?ID=45033&levelCode=livres Amazon link. This chef is totally famous, 3 michelin stars in Marseille, he's a master of cooking fish. Régis Marcon - "Champignons" http://www.editionsdelamartiniere.fr/ouvrage/champignons/9782732454832 Amazon link. Another famous 3 starred chef, this book is based only on mushrooms. Christophe Adam - "Eclair de Génie" http://www.editionsdelamartiniere.fr/ouvrage/eclair-de-genie/9782732460109 Amazon link. Christophe Adam is considered to be the king of eclairs, so I suppose and hope this will be the definitive bible on this pastry. Pierre Hermé - "Ispahan" http://www.editionsdelamartiniere.fr/ouvrage/ispahan/9782732461847 I'm a bit sceptic on this one... a whole book about the Ispahan? It's a superb pastry, but this book seems to be another try to milk his fans (most probably I will succumb again since I'm dumb). Audrey Gellet - "Grand Pâtissier" http://www.editionsdelamartiniere.fr/ouvrage/grand-patissier/9782732460703 Amazon link. Audrey Gellet is the pastry chef of Maison Pic, the 3 star restaurant lead by Anne-Sophie Pic. She won a television contest, one of the prizes was a book deal. So here it is her book with her recipes, hoping there will be some desserts from Maison Pic. Guy Martin - "Le Grand Véfour" http://www.editionsduchene.fr/livre/guy-martin-le-grand-vefour-3237344.html Book about the history of this historical 2* restaurant, plus actual recipes. Vincent Lemains - "Les Marquis de Ladurée: l'Esprit chocolat" http://www.editionsduchene.fr/livre/vincent-lemains-les-marquis-de-laduree-lesprit-chocolat-3238730.html Another book by Ladurée, this time focused on chocolate. It seems to have the same classy package of the previous books. Teo

I tried the tabling method (as described by minas6907) a couple of years ago and it worked fine. Teo

To be honest (and coming back to the opening post) my goal would be being able to make a realistic photo of the real dessert. I don't like any kind of faked stuff, I prefer to get a lower quality photo but depicting the real thing. Especially because I'm making these experiments while I'm at home, so I'm going to eat it after making the photo. I would like to be able to get a good shot after the first plating, without doing another one (as much as I like my desserts, I'm not happy to eat 2 of the same in a row). Plating a faked dessert would also lead to wasting some food, I try to avoid it as much as possible. You (plural meaning whoever is reading, not only you Oliver) are welcome! I live near Venice, if you come to visit Venice then feel free to drop me a pm to organize something. Thanks to all the other users that explained the white balance and other details, much appreciated! I received the book for noobs and started reading it. It's quite clear and I'm starting to understand how a digital camera works. I've bought a CFL bulb but I think I need a more powerful one (I bought a 15W one), so I'll go back to the store and ask for the most powerful one they have. I've also "built" a couple of reflectors using some cardboard and some kitchen aluminum foil (I suppose it reflects better than white paper). Next week I'll make a boatload of photos to get some experience and confidence, I'll try to use all the settings of my camera and see how the results change, so I'll get an idea of how they work and which are the best for my case. Teo

If you want traditional food in Bologna, then I think the best place is this one: Osteria Bottega Via Santa Caterina, 51 40123 Bologna it's a bit difficult to find but it's well worth a visit. You get traditional dishes done correctly and with great produce. Their wine list is good too. Last time I've been there was about 3 years ago, if I recall right it costed about 45 euro plus wine. Beware you need to book it with a good advance. If you can use a car and got in the outsides of Bologna, then I heard great comments about Berberè and their pizza. You need to book in advance and be prepared for a slooow service. If you are interested in pastry shops and you can use a car, then a visit to Gino Fabbri is mandatory, he is one of the best 5 pastry chefs in Italy in my opinion. Only problem is that you need a car and a navigator to reach his shop, it's in a village outside Bologna. Once there you just need to choose what you prefer, I tried a lot of his stuff and it ranged from really good to excellent. Another very good pastry shop is Regina di Quadri, this is easier to reach since it's within the "exagon" in the center of Bologna. I'll ask to some friends living there for more suggestions. All the websites I linked don't have an English version (major defect of most food related websites in Italy), if you need help feel free to ask. Teo

Agreed 100%, that cover is far from being a good choice. But if you look at his blog (not updated from a long time) and his facebook you'll find a lot of great stuff (at least to my eyes). If this book will be on par with what he put on the blog, then I'll be really happy. Especially because there aren't much books on modern plated desserts. Alice Medrich has a new book on chocolate coming out at the end of this month: Seriously Bitter Sweet: The Ultimate Dessert Maker's Guide to Chocolate I always heard good things about her, but never bought any of her previous books. Any suggestion? Teo

Baselerd: thanks for explaining some of the basics! Oliver: thanks for appreciating the desserts I make. And thanks for the suggestions about the white sheets and so on. I'll look for a fluorescent bulb, since during winter natural light will be scarce. Maybe the best option should be buying a basic set-up with 2 lights with umbrellas (don't know how they are called in English), Amazon IT sells a set for about 100 euro. But I suppose the priority should be buying a reflex camera. I already have a cheap tripod. I bought this book: Food Photography: From Snapshots to Great Shots it seems a good starting point for a noob like me, worst case I wasted 15 euro. My main problem while taking photos is with plated desserts, especially the ones with ice-creams. The ideal thing would be setting up the plate, the camera and everything, so when I plate the ice-cream I just need to take few quick photos and done. But I need to get skilled about lights and so on. First time I tried to take a photo of a dessert with a one-spoon quenelle all the photos were crap (as I said, I just click random hoping to get something decent), I had to plate it three times before getting a decent photo. Now I freeze the ice-cream, so I have more time to take photos. But it's a problem, since one-spoon quenelles don't keep the shape well while freezing (they tend to sit on the spoon and flatten a bit). Plus you see the frost on the surface, while a good one-spoon quenelle should be polished and "shiny". Here is an example: http://www.teonzo.com/immagini/dessert/tabacco_banana_peperone.jpg (another sign of my ignorance, I just don't know how the plate has blue shades, since it's perfectly white and there weren't blue things in the room) Thanks for the suggestions about editing programs, now I'm using Gimp, but I can use just the basic options. Teo

I would say it tastes like a crossing between hay and chicory. I don't know if the taste is similar to the smoked stuff, I don't suppose so since the flour is made from the seeds, while people smoke the leaves. I'll ask to one of my smoking friends next time I'll see him/her. Teo

Other 2 cookbooks that will be released in the next weeks: Antonio Bachour - "Bachour" Amazon page Official page I love the stuff that chef Bachour puts up online, his desserts are great, so this will be a sure buy from me. Too bad it's not available on Amazon UK and I'll have to import. Arnold Hanbucker, Karen Keygnaert - "A'Qi: A Kitchen Dialogue" Amazon page Official page I read some reviews online and this restaurant seems interesting. The problem about this book is that it's a bit expensive (if compared to current restaurant books), it has few pages and should be tri-lingual. Not the best value for money... Teo

Have you ever tried using powdered egg whites? They are safe and should have the advantage that they do not dilute the cocktail taste. Teo

This is one of my last experiments, I called it "Hippie Cannon" ("Cannone Hippie" in Italian, "cannone" means both "cannon" and "joint"). I found on sale a package of flour made from cannabis sativa seeds, this flour is legit in Italy because it doesn't have psychotropic effects. So I bought it out of curiosity and thought about making a cannolo / fake joint. Since in Italian they are called "cannoni" they recalled me the hippie saying "put flowers in your cannons", so I decided to fill it with a flower-flavoured cream. I tasted some pairings and rose was the best one. Then I decided to add a sort of "flower field", looking like the cannon is shooting out a flower field. It's made with the "soil" technique using the cannabis sativa flour. Underneath the soil there is a helicrysum jelly, I think it pairs really well with rose and that flour. The garnishes are rose buds, rosemary flowers and some helicrysum branches. I would have liked to put a lot of edible flowers of different colours (just to make a rainbow and insist on the hippie concept), but unfortunately I did not have them on hand. I have to admit I laughed quite a bit while realizing this dessert, loved the dual joke fake joint / cannon shooting a flower field. Disclaimer: I never smoked in my life and I'm against drugs. If you think I re-used some ideas from Jordi Roca and Albert Adria then you are totally correct. Teo

Just received an e-mail from Amazon UK, it should be here next week, sweet! Yesterday I found there is another fine dining book coming out this November: http://ronnyemborg.dk/the-book/ Judging from the photos it seems really interesting. Teo

You are right, I should have explained better my situation, my apologies. I'm a professional pastry cook (don't like being called chef even if my position should be that). I'm not working in this period, I'm making some experiments at home and putting them in my blog (linked below in the sign). I'm from Italy, so I can't find those books in libraries or stores. About my photography experience, it's almost zero: I have a compact camera (Panasonic DMC-TZ6), I barely know how to turn it on and click to make a photo. I'm not looking to become able to make high quality photos, it would take too much efforts than I'm willing to do. But I'd like to be able to make some decent photos, to understand how to get decent lightings, what "depth of field", "ISO" and so on mean (and how to set them). A bit of the basics to be able to correct my settings, knowing what I should do and how things would change. I'm not looking for suggestions on how to plate beautiful but fake food (like some examples you made). I just would like to plate the dessert (the real deal, it's going to be eaten afterwards) and be able to take some decent photos without clicking randomly like now and wondering what the hell I should have to do to get a decent result. Thanks. Teo

If he's smart enough he should put it. It's clear to everyone that he invented them, plus he has the copyright for the name. Giving away the recipe won't do any harm, since there already are a lot of clones. Clones are a great way to promote the original and spread the word about it without spending money in advertising. Just look at the macarons and Pierre Hermé: he gave away all his recipes, now you find macarons and Ispahan clones everywhere. This did not create Hermé any harm, he's more famous than ever and still expanding. Teo

Phaidon will release a set of seven volumes with the last years of elBulli: http://www.phaidon.com/elbulli-2005-2011/ My wallet is already crying. Teo

Besides spices, you have a whole universe of pairings to try with that basic recipe. Some suggestions: Darjeeling tea + dried apricots (you can substitute some of the wheat flour with almond flour) chamomile infusion + dried apricots + pepper lavender infusion (better making a cold infusion, water + lavender in fridge for 12 hours) + dried apricots + rosemary pomegranate juice + chopped walnuts + ginger licorice + dried figs licorice + candied pineapple hibiscus flowers infusion + dried cranberries Assam tea + candied orange peel + cinnamon Keemun tea + sweetcorn grains dates + carob flour (substitute 30% of the wheat flour with carob flour, the dark one made from the pods, not the white one made from the seeds) coffee + white sesame blackberry juice + star anise rose petals infusion + ground pistachio pineapple juice + marron glacé + ginger whitethorn infusion + candied nectarines ginseng infusion + goji berries (or dried jujube) mint infusion + candied lemon peel + dried coconut rum (with water, of course) + candied pineapple + nutmeg orange juice + cocoa powder (substitute 10% of wheat flour with cocoa powder) + cinnamon (or nutmeg or mace) Sencha tea + sweet potatoes (roasted and cut in small dices) licorice + dried longan carrot juice + japaleno Teo

If you are aiming for the strawberry taste and don't care about putting aside the cream, then you can use some modernist techniques like foams (made with an ISI syphon) or a "strawberry chantilly" (strawberry juice + cocoa butter). Teo