mckayinutah

I agree with Wendy that is is nice to actually see Michael move and hear him speak instead of just seeing his face in a magazine. I am sorry he lost and do feel he was the better chef. Although , I do feel anyone who wears shorts in a kitchen ( Batali ) or wears a tight dress ( Batali's female sous chef ) while working on food and is a professional, should have lost. ( I did find it funny ( and well deserved ) when Mario's sous chef with the tight dress/ skirt, was flinching when the hot oil was shooting out from the fryer while she was deep frying the churros ) A tight skirt/dress is great for the night club or a date, but not for kitchen stadium. - unless she was trying to catch someone's eye Jason

Although this thread is on the pastry challenge that occured a few weeks ago ( actually it was a sugar challenge ), I wanted to tell that I happenend to see that the Food network is airing a Chocolate challenge this weekend, with " 6 of the nation's top chocolate artists creating towering sculptures with the theme of love" Did this occur at the same time as the"pastry challenge", and if so, is it the same participants or different - does anyone know? Thanks, Jason

Neil, I am a big fan of the Clement jackets well, and the company is in France. I have a catalog of theirs at home and they carry a fairly wide range of jackets, with many available in short or long sleeves ( although I do not know how much they are - do not know the franc to dollar conversion). Their website is www.clement-chef.com or I saw in the latest PA&D, that a company in NJ called Technobake systems ( technobake@yahoo.com) supposively carries them in the U.S. On other uniforms, I am a self proclaimed chef uniform afficianado ( if you show me a chef jacket, I can tell you 9 out of 10 times who makes it.) I in fact just bought 2 pairs of chalkstripe chef pants from KingsMenu for $12.00 a piece, and they are very comfortable. I am waiting on a few embroidered jackets from them as well. As far as short sleeved jackets and ladies jackets go, I have seen many of the more popular uniform companies start to carry both shorter sleeved versions of their jackets as well as jackets that are supposed to be better fitting for the ladies ( wouldn't know if that is true or not ) Take care, Jason

I saw a copy of this book at my local Barnes and Noble a few months ago and randomly scanned through it, noticing a few recipes that seemed interesting to me. Was lucky enough to see that the library carried it, so I checked it out, copied off all of the recipes at work that appealed to me, and returned it to the library ( so I basically got what I wanted from it for free) I ,like Wendy, have not made anything out of it yet, but I do seem to remember being intrigued by some of his sorbet recipes. Jason

I think it depends on who you talk to. I was told in culinary school that a "torte" was any cake that consisted of 3 or more layers, where a cake was only 2 layers ( the typical Betty Crocker stereotype, where you bake 2 cakes and frost them together to get what Americans would associate as a " cake") BUT, I have also heard that "torte " is used if it makes the dessert sound better. Carrot cake sounds more appealing and familiar than carrot torte, while hazelnut torte is more appealing than hazelnut cake, even if it is only 2 layers. Jason

Thank you Lysbeth Take care, Jason

This book is also on my "wish" list, but I have a "fear" of sorts, of purchasing books that I haven't been able to flip through, either in a bookstore or in a library. This comes from getting books in the past that have come highly recommended, only to have them sit on my bookshelf collecting dust because they aren't exactly in the realm of what I was hoping. Anyway, for those who have it or have seen it's insides, is it mostly composed of small chocolate stuff ( like what is shown in the lastes issue of PA&D ) or does it include other chocolate areas, such as showpieces, etc....? Jason

I went into my local Home Hepot one day last month looking for something to use for a stencil for tuiles that was larger than the usual sour cream container top that I was using ( they are only good for stencils that are smaller than their diameter), and happened to come across exactly what Aidensnd is talking about ( I wasn't really looking exactly for them -they just were hanging out at the end of one of the aisles and they happened to catch my attention as something that may be useful to me ). I picked up a few smaller ones for about $.97 a piece, and they work and cut fine with an xacto knife - I just remember to NOT spread my tuile paste on the side with the writing on it. To clean, I just rinse off the excess tuile paste with hot water. I have used them basically everyday since I have gotten them, and the writing is still attached, so I know it hasn't gotten into my tuiles. They also look just as new and sturdy as the day I got them. Jason

The only time I have made pate de fruit was using Boiron fruit purees and the chart that Ted is refering to. They are the best I have ever had. I get my apple pectin from Albert Uster imports and it is a rather large conatiner (5 1/2 #), which would make alot of pate de fruit. I also do not know if they ship to the general public. The recipes that Boiron has do not require a refractometer, if that is of concern. Take care, Jason

I watch this last night and , like always, I am amazed at the talent showcased. I only wish that they would include some lesser known competitors on occassion. Seeing Katherine from Mandalay Bay and Dale Fox from The Hilton was great, since I had never heard of or seen any of their work before now, but Andrew Shotts, Frederic Monti, Jody Klocko, although very talented, have been there many times, and it would be nice to see a fresh face every now and again. That is something I also would like to see more of in PA&D. I truely love reading about new or unheard of talent, and can't wait for the latest issue of it to arrive, but many times in the "signature" section, there is a PC that has been shown in past issues, or someone who is nationally known and can be easily "researched" in other ways (googled, etc...). In this past issue ( with Jean-Pierre Wybauw on the cover ) Scott Cohen has an article on his new pastry chef, who happens to be the PC who hired me to come to Utah. And even though we were on different sides of the fence from a management standpoint, I have alot of respect for him, as he is a great and dedicated pastry chef who is realitively unknown, but whose work I believe would be greatly appreciated by the readers of a nationally known magazine such as PA&D. Jason

These weren't dots though - it was actual looking, creamy ice cream. Jason

If you want to read an article on it, go to www.kutv.com and click on Fresh ideas. Jason

Just wanted to mention what I saw last night on a local TV station's news broadcast. I thought it was interesting. There is a chemist here in Utah who has created ' instant " ice cream while you wait. He takes the ice cream base ( cold ) and "injects" it with liquid nitrogen. This created an ice cream instantaniously. ( although the procedure was not shown ) Unfortunately it was only about a 2 minute pre-taped segment that had the last 10 seconds or so of audio missing, but the finished product looked exactly like what you would expect ice cream to look like. He said you can create your own combination of flavors right there on the spot, then "poof" some liquid nitrogen and you've got ice cream. Take care, Jason

I feel you Wendy. Been there this past week. Every week I attend a BEO meeting ( Banquet Events Order ). 2 Tuesdays ago I am told that the party for the following Friday (a week and a half away) hasn't chosen their menu yet. Like Wendy, this is the busiest time of the year for me.The next day ( Wednesday) the day before Thanksgiving, I am told that the person organizing the banquet would like BAKED ALASKA, for 600 people! I tell my Banquet director that I can't do that , not for that many people, not a week and a few days away, not on one of the busiest days of the year, that he will have to pick another dessert or 2. She says " well, if we charge enough, you can do it , right? What part of no do you not understand? About 2 hours later she calls to tell me he isn't in and is probably gone for the holiday. Won't be back till Monday - the event is on Friday. So now I won't find out the dessert until Monday, at the earliest. Monday I get his 3 choices, but he wants the dessert to be " showy " - which is why he wanted the Baked Alaska so it could be ignited. NOW, we finally decide to go with only 1 dessert and upscale it some by making an individual garnish to fit this particular company's image. ( Did I mention that she is brown nosing because this company is giving us a couple thousnd dollars ) The banquet is a buffet, but now we must plate up all the desserts so that they can have a sparkler inserted in each slice and lit to create a glowing effect as they are brought into the room. Needless to say, I wasn't happy about getting a menu so late, wasn't happy about having to plate up 35 cakes when the banquet is buffet style. So, yes Wendy, I do feel your frustration. Take care, Jason

If you are talking about what I think you are, the 'darker" finish is typical of a non-stick finish, which I feel is better. They are more expensive then the silver finish, but worth it in my opinion. HTH, Jason

Unfortunately, if you are a heterosexual man or a lesbian, " stacked " probably isn't going to make you think of cakes or food, but something else. An even worse name is what the soda fountain where I work was called for about 2 years - "Chubby's" Jason

No problem. I actually get 20# bags of pasteurized whole eggs here at work, but I haven't even noticed if they are available at grocery stores or not. Jason

Patrick, I have made many mousses in my life and I have found that the ones with eggs in them seem to be the smoothest and best. But that is just my opinion. Any recipe that has uncooked yolks or eggs should be made with pasteurized eggs, to be safe. Saying that, the first dessert menu that I came up with had a milk chocolate/macadamia nut cheesecake on it that was unbaked and contained yolks in it. Unfortunately I didn't have access to pasteurized eggs and made it with fresh eggs. Needless to say, I didn't get anyone sick ( that I know of ), but I would have definitely gone with pasteurized eggs if I had them. Take care, Jason

I know exactly what you are talking about chefpeon. The dessert was sort of like clear noodles. It didn't look that appealing to me, as there was no color to it and I don't remember there being anything else of color on the plate with it or anything that would provide taste, for that matter. I believe the PC's name was Christine Chang of Clementine, but again I am just guessing from memory. It actually reminded me of the sticky stuff that is sometimes left on heavier duty envelopes, the stuff that you would roll up in your hand and then flick at someone, as if it was an actual booger ( when I was a kid that is, not nowadays ) Jason

Another thing that came to mind, is Mesnier was there for 25 years ( since 1979 and Jimmy Carter I believe ). Wonder how long Dubois will stay. Curious as to who the assistant PC is there, since the one who was shown with Mesnier in a past issue of PA&D ( a few years back ) left after some sexual harassment was allegdely going on. Jason

Very interesting

Just read on the NY times newspaper website that the successor to Roland Mesnier at the White House has been named. It is Thaddeus Dubois, formerly of the Borgata resort in Atlantic city. I believe he was named one of the top 10 pastry chefs a few years ago in PA&D, and I do know that he has worked in Pittsburgh as well as in Mississippi. I think this is an interesting selection, going from what I would call an old school PC in Mesnier, to someone who is more in tune with the modern pastry scene. It will be interesting to see how his desserts are received by the first family and by others who attend the receptions, banquets, and other parties that he will providing the desserts for. Jason

They must tell all the instructors to tell their students not to use the 'F" word - I had Chef Allen, not mentioned by McDuff. The only one mentioned that was there when I attended was Pekar. Jason

McDuff and I must have had the same instructor at J&W - we were told not to use the " F " word - frosting - when I was there , back in the early 1990's Jason

What? Plenty of more than decent food in SLC and surounding areas. Robert Redford's restaurant at Sundance was memorable when I was there. I have not been, but Russell Chatham's Livingston Bar & Grill should be more than edible. Speak up, Montana, Wyoming, Utah and Idaho. Defend your culinary selves. The Tree room at Sundance is on their 2nd chef since Jason Knibb has left ( which has only been a few months ), so they aren't up to where they used to be. The Grand America , built primarily for the Olympics, is on their 3rd GM, 3rd Exec. Chef, and 3rd Exec. Pastry Chef, all in a span of 2 1/2 years. So no stability in the food there. Utahn also do not seem to be appreciative of good food. They rather load up their 10 to 12 kids and hit the local buffet. Unfortunately, in my opinion, having lived in other areas of the country besides Utah, I think the tough alcohol laws really hurt the more upscale dining destinations here. I also think that Utah doesn't attract the 'better" chefs that it could ( those that are good generally have left ) primarily because of a certain religious group that has a strangle hold on everything here. If you cough the wrong way you get weird stares The mountains are great as is the skiing, but don't expect SLC to become a dining mecca anytime soon. Jason