wedding pastry help please...

[gfron1]

My business is really hitting its stride right now. Our sales have doubled in the past three weeks and I'm getting all the cool gigs (I know this because we're a small enough town to know what cool gigs there are). I just signed a contract for 80 wedding pastries. Its a local doc who didn't want a wedding cake - which is great since I refuse to do them. I pitched my concept and they bought it so I'm not looking for help there.

It will be a 2" genoise disc, brushed with chambord syrup, topped with raspberry bavarois (and since we loosely use terms around here - to me this means a custard folded into a cream), all of that wrapped in a white chocolate mousse, with a layer of snow white glaze on top, decorated with a squirt of whipped cream and a fresh raspberry. I will make 80 of them (plus a few just in case of problems).

I'm glad they liked the idea because its fairly straight forward for me. Here is my rough plan:

1. Genoise - I'll bake sheets and cut out the disks.

2. Bavaroise - Set it with gelatin...I might go a bit heavy on the gelatin just in case they don't eat it right away or if its warm

3. Mousse - the bride doesn't really like white choc, but I assured her it would be more vanilla. I chose white choc because it would add a bit more stability, along with more gelatin.

4. Glaze - I rarely do glaze so I could use help here, but I was going to use this new Snow White coloring from Amoretti. I'll wrap my pastries in acetate and pour onto the frozen pastry, and let it set up.

Everything will be done and frozen the weekend before, then glaze the morning of, and cream and berry on-site.

The genoise is a piece of cake. The rest has room for error. The biggest risk is that I'm making 80+ of these and only have a dozen rings (I'll buy some more). Should I even be using rings or is there a better way? Anyway, any advice is welcome. Thanks

[Chris Hennes]

The genoise is a piece of cake.

You're killing me here...

What are you using the rings for again? I thought you were using acetate to wrap them?

[gfron1]

First, I'll use the rings to cut the genoise into discs. Then I'll use the same 2" rings, with the genoise at the base, to pipe in the bavarois, and then freeze. That whole mess will get set inside a 3" ring, lined with acetate, filled with mousse, and frozen until the last day or so.

[Serj]

If I were doing this, I would fill the small mold (lined with acetate) 2/3-3/4 full with bavarian cream and freeze that completely solid (overnight). Then I would filling the bigger mold (lined with acetate) half way with white chocolate mousse, upside down on another sheet of acetate and as quickly as possible peel off the acetate from the bavarian and insert it into the white chocolate mousse, but not all the way down to the sheet of acetate, so that the top of the cake is completely smooth and the same color. Then I would pipe the rest of the white chocolate mousse up the edges. Then I would cut the cake with the bigger mold, trim it slightly to make it 2 3/4" diameter, lavish it with the syrup and push it into the center of the white chocolate mousse, using something to press it down and make sure it's level. Then, instead of trying to play around with glaze (sounds like a pain in the butt to me), I would freeze & spray them with white cocoa butter/white chocolate mix - the velvet effect would look pretty cool.... I would also try and do it as close to the date as possible, just to keep all the extra gelatin from contracting and getting rubbery in the freezer...

Just my 2 cents. Good luck!

[MikeTMD]

... Glaze - I rarely do glaze so I could use help here...

←

Glaze should be no problem:

if you are doing chocolate glaze: chocolate + heavy cream+glucose/light corn syrup;

if you decide to do anything else: anything else + ClearJel ( modified corn starch, is really what it is);

ClearJel is cheap, and easily available from many sources (I get mine @http://www.sweetc.com/), it gives you stable and completely transparent glaze, which is why many pastry chefs favor it.

Good Luck!

Edited March 28, 2009 by MikeTMD (log)

[gfron1]

thanks guys - a point that responds to both of you. The outer colors will be pink with a white (formerly clear) glaze. The wedding colors are white and orchid pink. I might switch the bavarois and mousse so that it is pink on the outside with the white top - probably a better color contrast. And the spraying of cocoa butter is a good idea (I'm sure addicted to using my Wagner power painter), which could also give me the pink outside. I didn't originally mention it because it would be one more element to deal with in the process, but it certainly creates a nice effect.

BTW, I didn't mention that I have to create a large version of this as well for the cake cutting.

[Tri2Cook]

Dejaq's white mirror glaze from the demo with a shot or three of titanium dioxide (I would imagine the coloring you want to use would work just fine, I'm not familiar with it.) is white, shiny, tasty and easy to work with.

[RuthWells]

... Glaze - I rarely do glaze so I could use help here...

←

ClearJel is cheap, and easily available from many sources (I get mine @http://www.sweetc.com/), it gives you stable and completely transparent glaze, which is why many pastry chefs favor it.

Good Luck!

←

When is the last time you ordered from Sweet Celebrations? I heard a rumor that they were going out of business a few months ago, and at that time, no one was answering the phones. : (

[mjc]

The biggest risk is that I'm making 80+ of these and only have a dozen rings (I'll buy some more).  Should I even be using rings or is there a better way?  Anyway, any advice is welcome.  Thanks

You can make rings out of the acetate, so you don't need the metal rings at all. Or at least you can remove the metal rings right after you add the mouse and let the acetate support it.

[gfron1]

Here's the latest. The couple accepted my bid, so we're on. I'll need 90 completed by the 18th.

I decided to go the silicone route and ordered enough molds to do each step in two rounds. The outer mold is THIS bavarese design. The inner is a simple cylinder. With that decision made, I won't need to be taping 90 acetate strips. My sequence should be:

12th Make cake and inner cylinder 1st batch

13th Set 1st batch into bavarese; freeze; Make cake and inner cylinder 2nd batch

14th Set 2nd batch into bavarese; freeze

16th Spray for velvet effect two days prior just in case I need to overnight something

18th Transport to event, fill dimple with white glaze, add chocolate disc, thaw and serve

What possible mistakes and horrors am I not seeing?

[DesertCulinary]

When is the last time you ordered from Sweet Celebrations?  I heard a rumor that they were going out of business a few months ago, and at that time, no one was answering the phones.  : (

←

I live in MN and used to shop at one of their local B&M stores - they sadly went out of business late fall of '08.

Edited April 1, 2009 by DesertCulinary (log)

[alanamoana]

Here's the latest.  The couple accepted my bid, so we're on.  I'll need 90 completed by the 18th.

I decided to go the silicone route and ordered enough molds to do each step in two rounds.  The outer mold is THIS bavarese design.  The inner is a simple cylinder.  With that decision made, I won't need to be taping 90 acetate strips.  My sequence should be:

12th Make cake and inner cylinder 1st batch

13th Set 1st batch into bavarese; freeze; Make cake and inner cylinder 2nd batch

14th Set 2nd batch into bavarese; freeze

16th Spray for velvet effect two days prior just in case I need to overnight something

18th Transport to event, fill dimple with white glaze, add chocolate disc, thaw and serve

What possible mistakes and horrors am I not seeing?

←

just do a test run with those silicone molds. i'm not a huge fan of those (i pretty much hate anything silicone except silpats or VERY simple shapes) because even when frozen solid, i find they don't release softer concoctions perfectly (that sounds like a contradiction, but i mean things like mousse and bavarois). i know you have a store, so maybe you have a more reliable freezer situation (and colder) than a home fridge, so you'll probably be fine. just work quickly because as soon as they soften, even a little, they will lose shape very easily.

[gfron1]

Thanks - its true. I find that if I don't pop them out very quickly the ones at the end of my poppings start to get soft and get messy. Even a better suggestions since I just bought larger molds than I would normally use. I do have the advantage of a pretty hard core freezer - not a blaster, but it takes things below zero. I'll also wear gloves for this job to minimize heat.

[bdonaghy]

The biggest risk is that I'm making 80+ of these and only have a dozen rings (I'll buy some more).  Should I even be using rings or is there a better way?  Anyway, any advice is welcome.  Thanks

You can make rings out of the acetate, so you don't need the metal rings at all. Or at least you can remove the metal rings right after you add the mouse and let the acetate support it.

←

Instead of metal rings - go to Home Depot and get PVC tubing and cut it - it will be less expensive and work the same way. Still line the rings with acetate and they will pop out nicely.

b

[tan319]

My 2 cents...

Demo the whole thing ASAP!

See where the screw ups are ( if any) and correct.

If you're spraying( which I doubt many see in NM) you don't have to use the glaze do you?

If you have the space make the core stuff ( anything frozen) ASAP just to have it made.

When you start opening and closing that freezer for 90 pieces alone you need that product frozen!

Personally, with all of that mousse and bavarian cream do you need whipped cream?

I've always "had discussions" with people who had to plate a dessert of mine with a fair amount of fat already involved with more ( whipped cream)

A raspberry in that dimple ( could hold with a dab of glucose) would be nice?

Make sure you have back up pins/springs/etc for your Wagner.

Had one bite the dust on someone once the day of, it sucked...

Sorry if I seem overly nosy/paranoid, just seen a lot of screwed up stuff go down in my day.

Good Luck!

Hope it goes off with out a hitch!

[gingerpeachy]

3. Mousse - the bride doesn't really like white choc, but I assured her it would be more vanilla.  I chose white choc because it would add a bit more stability, along with more gelatin.

I can't get past that statement. Persuading the bride to take something she doesn't like seems like asking for trouble.

[Tri2Cook]

I'm with Tan on this one. A small batch test run always leaves me feeling much more comfy about appearance, taste and procedure when doing large events. Especially a wedding. I think I'd rather face a school of piranhas while wearing pork chop underwear than an unhappy bride (or mother-of-the-bride for that matter).

[beacheschef]

The biggest risk is that I'm making 80+ of these and only have a dozen rings (I'll buy some more).  Should I even be using rings or is there a better way?  Anyway, any advice is welcome.  Thanks

You can make rings out of the acetate, so you don't need the metal rings at all. Or at least you can remove the metal rings right after you add the mouse and let the acetate support it.

←

Instead of metal rings - go to Home Depot and get PVC tubing and cut it - it will be less expensive and work the same way. Still line the rings with acetate and they will pop out nicely.

b

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I also use PVC rings from Home Depot - just make sure to file the edges - they can be really sharp! It works great for frozen desserts. (downside is that you can't use them to bake in)

We line PVC rings with either acetate or parchment - the mousse pops right out.

[gfron1]

My puree is on its way and I'll do a trial run immediately - thanks for the super duper warnings. I also think gingerpeachy is right and I've been thinking the same thing. I'm touching base with the bride on a few modifications and making sure she's 100% on board or if she wants me to adjust...kinda like protecting against buyers remorse.

[tan319]

My puree is on its way and I'll do a trial run immediately - thanks for the super duper warnings.  I also think gingerpeachy is right and I've been thinking the same thing.  I'm touching base with the bride on a few modifications and making sure she's 100% on board or if she wants me to adjust...kinda like protecting against buyers remorse.

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If I may add, on the vanilla aspect.

You might want to try a custard cream, I use 'Lion" custard powder.

You can find it in Asian stores especially ( it's Malaysian)

You see "Creme de Poudre" in a lot of French pastry recipes, like in the Robert/Ducasse book.

You make a pastry cream, with vanilla bean and .say. to a liter of milk /8 egg recipe you would use about 80 grams of custard powder ( some call it pastry cream stabilizer).

It has a bit of xanthan powder in it so it sets it up a bit.

Once you add your whipped cream for the bav you're set.

It has a really unique taste with the real vanilla bean added, you might like it.

[gfron1]

By any chance is that the same as Bird's Custard Powder from the UK? If it is, I sell it at my store - never used it, but I sell it.

[tan319]

It's the same idea but I don't know about the taste or the stabilization aspect.

I can say that a few times I lived in the UK for awhile I had bread & butter pudding that I'm sure was made with Birds and found it kind of eggy tasting.

The very nature of the Lion is a kind of cotton candy-ish backnote.

Check out the Birds, it's been a long time for me.

[gfron1]

I'm appreciating the reminders to do a trial run right now - nothing major happened, but...

Yesterday I made my vanilla bavaroise plugs - note, not white chocolate, just vanilla. Today I made an almond biscuit and cut them into 3" discs that were perfect for the mold. I made a few decisions today that I'll run by the bride tomorrow at a tasting. First I added a fresh raspberry inside the dessert - I was worried that it might be too creamy and needed some textural variation.

I then made my raspberry mousse which was very good, but I now know that I need much more puree. I filled my molds about 2/3 with the raspberry, shoved a berry in the center, pushed that down with the vanilla plug, which I trimmed because they were too long, and finally more mousse and squished with a chambord syrup soaked biscuit. They're in the freezer now and it all feels right. In the morning I'll pull one out to see if it looks okay, then spray them with the colored cocoa butter, and finally I want to do the thaw test. I'll let one thaw 1 hour, one for 2 hours and see what happens. The tasting is after dinner tomorrow night.

[gfron1]

Did the tasting tonight. Hubby-to-be was not feeling well, but his wife was ready. The pastries came out beautifully! They needed a bit more thaw time so I've noted that for Saturday. I sprayed violet tinted cocoa butter on the pink mousse which gave it a color very close to the orchids which are the theme. My only problem was that there was a bit of weeping - not much, but enough that I noticed it. I may up my gelatin by a sheet - that's the remedy right?

Now I'm thinking about timing. Dinner is 7-8, the dessert is at 8:30. The site doesn't have cold storage so we'll be going freezer to room temp which is expected to be around 60F on Saturday. That makes me even more nervous about weeping. 90 minutes in the walk-in was enough to give it a good thaw, but at room temp, I'm thinking 45 minutes.

Let me add that I have a fundraising cater from 5-7 which has every notable restaurant in town - so of course I need to put on my best face. Soooo...I'm thinking, I'll have all of the pastries sprayed and frozen before Saturday. I'll do my cater from 5-6ish and turn it over to a staff member to finish and clean. I'll come back to the shop to plate and freeze (worrying about condensation on the plates), then at 7:30, I'll transport the desserts (5 minute drive); add the raspberry, the chocolate disk and set up the ceremonial cake. I'll be done by 8:15, watch them cut and head home for a good night's sleep.

Too tight? Not enough thaw time?

[Tri2Cook]

Personally, I would probably pull them before leaving for the other event and let them thaw in the walk-in if you have the weeping problem solved. A couple hours in the walk-in will do all or most of the thawing but they'll still be plenty cold to hold up for transport and setup. Eliminates the worries. But to answer the question you actually asked, an hour at room temp should be plenty of time to thaw.

I did a frozen banana-citrus mousse over a frozen ginger parfait in 2 1/2" molds today and set one out to get a feel for how long they need to be tempered to get the texture I want for serving. They were completely thawed and the parfait was heading towards being a liquid again long before the timeframe you're looking at. I realize they're a different item but the mousse part isn't all that different. It was 50% fruit puree, 25% pate a bombe and 25% whipped cream with a bit of gelatin (.8% of the total weight).