Practical (I've never taken a test so sweet)

Today started with making half recipes of pate sucree, which in itself would not be graded, but the rolling of it would be. The written exam was all short answer and surprisingly thorough with 15 questions. Then chef cut out to a private room and we did the following:

• Made a small batch of creme anglais
• Made one perfect cornet for piping
• Piped 'Happy Birthday' in compound chocolate on three cardboard rounds
• Rolled pate sucree into a 10" tart pan

None of this was particularly challenging. With creme anglais, you get the sugar dissolved in the half&half -- you can boil it, but if you do, when you add the whipped yolks, it'll go from thin to thick to scrambled eggs in a hot second. By using medium heat, it took a good minute and a half to thicken, but no eggy grit formed -- perfectly smoooooove.

Cornets are annoying, but once you got it, you can make perfect ones all day. Rolling a triangle of parchment into a cone with a super tight pointy tip doesn't take a lot of skill, just a little practice.

Piping 'Happy Birthday' was easy -- there were lines in the cardboard that you could guide your letters, which would not be on a properly iced (or glazed) cake.

Rolling the pate sucree was a bit tricky -- once you roll it out far enough to have enough to extend beyond the 10" pan, it had to be even through out. Once you get it on the pin and transfer it onto the pan, you don't want it to rip and you want enough extra to get onto the walls of the entire tin. Pushing it in and giving a little lip that rises over the edge, it's problematic.

I didn't do anything more than once, and just chugged through -- I was the first in to see the Chef. Most importantly, my creme anglais was a perfect consistency, perfectly cooked. My piping and cornet were good enough for a perfect score, but my tart was a bit uneven on the sides. I had left it on a sheet tray sitting on top of the oven, and the pilot lights heated up the tray enough to make my walls sag. Oh well. I got a 95 on the practical, a 94 on the written, and learned I got a 95 on the midterm.

And that's it for mod 4. Packed up the creme anglais to make some great ice cream at home.

I totally spaced and didn't take a picture. So when I got home early (as we could split when we were cleaned up), I took all my tools out and cleaned them. As I held each one, thought of the yummy meats and starches and greasy things, fried, sauteed, baked, mmmmm....

ADDENDA:
This entry needs more pictures. Here's something delicious:

RUFUS DE CAT!!

BREAKFAST: 6:15am, organic cornflakes with good milk, .5 bowl, hunger 2/5
That peasant bread and champagne was sitting with me.

AM TASTINGS: 9am, a couple handfuls of semisweet chocolate, .25 bowls, hunger 4/5
Funnily enough, the practical didn't really involve tasting anything, just making it look proper in thickness, texture, and design.

AM WATERING: 11am, 1 quart

LUNCH: 11:45am, school made fresh beet pasta with homemade tomato sauce, 1.5 bowl, hunger 4/5

PM SNACK: 1:30pm, small plate of mashed potatoes, .5 bowl, hunger 4/5
Went over to B's friend's house, who just had wisdom teeth pulled out and B dared to make her mashed potatoes....from a box! So I came over with some spuds, heavy cream, Irish butter, and borrowed some salt, a dash of hot sauce, a dash of Worcestershire and made some proper mash.

PM SNACK: 4pm, sesame crackers and peanut butter, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5
Raiding the fridge at Casa de la HVS.

DINNER: 5:15pm, grilled shrimp with chorizo and corn cakes, water, 1 bowl, hunger 4/5
Good dinner at Union Smith Cafe.

EVENING SNACK: 9pm, 3 small school made croissants, .25 bowl, hunger 4/5