here comes the bride

There comes a time in every pastry student's life when a wedding cake must be made.
Some students look forward to it all session.
Some dread it.
But the time had come!
Making a wedding cake is a multi-day endeavor. Cakes (10", 8" and 6") were baked and buttercream and fillings made on Monday night.
The cakes were torted on Wednesday night and filled with a variety of flavors, like lemon curd, blueberry buttercream, pistachio cream and whipped ganache.

Saturday morning, bright and early, we were joined by wedding cake creator Julie Durkee of Torino Baking (www.torinobaking.com) who brought her expertise in all things bridal!

The students worked in teams, crumb coating their cakes, then applying the final buttercream icing, making sure they had everything level and precise. Julie demonstrated her beautiful piping techniques, and the students tried their hands at scroll work, basketweave, dots and flowers.

After decorating each layer, the cakes were built. I think this was the most nerve-wracking part for the students as they made sure the cakes were perfectly centered.

But the finished results were magnificent!

Here's the happy group at the end of the day... ready to cut into their masterpieces and see how delicious they tasted!

And here's the even-happier group, at the post-class gathering for a well-deserved beer!

le fraisier

I can't help it--I'm in love with French fraisier cakes. The layers of fluffy genoise... Grand Marnier syrup... fresh strawberries.... rich pistachio cream... all topped with marzipan. What's not to love?

I also love the way they look. Building them is an exercise in patience, as my pastry students found out recently when they tried their hand at "le fraisier".

After you torte the genoise into two perfect layers (so far, so good...) you line strawberries of equal heights into lovely rows, so when the cake is cut, all sides have beautiful strawberry halves showing.

You then pipe in a massive quantity of pistachio cream to fill in all the gaps.

The really fun part comes when you set the top layer of genoise on the berries and cream, making sure it's perfectly level.

One of my favorite pastry teaching moments came when a student emailed me a photo of a fraisier cake he made at home, with a level sitting on top so I could see how perfect it was! (Thanks, Ray!)

Pistachio cream is piped all around, then a thin layer of buttercream is applied to the top, and of course, leveled.

A sheet of light green marzipan becomes the top layer, and chocolate writing and decor are the finishing touches.

My students did a beautiful job on these cakes--they were the challenging beginning to a week that ended in Opera cakes!

I learned fraisier cakes from the master--Philippe Delarue, owner of Patisserie Philippe in San Francisco. Day after day I would make fraisier cakes, small ones to serve 12, huge ones to serve 40! Each day Philippe would come by and do the final leveling before they were chilled and the marzipan layer was applied.

One day, he looked at my finished cake, and without touching it, simply picked it up and took it to the walk-in.

I had arrived!

Here's a gorgeous cake of Philippe's, complete with gold leaf.

Where's my fork?

american desserts

American desserts have been weaving their way into my baking lately. You know the ones I mean. They're the desserts you had as a kid growing up in Ohio... or the ones your grandmother made... or the ones you remember were so luscious at some diner in the next town over. Nothing fancy, nothing elaborate... just simple baking with pure flavors.

I've been baking the past few months at Della Fattoria (http://www.dellafattoria.com/), a bakery-cafe in Petaluma. Besides their incredible bread, which is baked in a wood-fired oven at the family ranch, there is a cafe in town where pastries are made. I've been playing with some all-American classics, like fresh pineapple upside down cake.... it's caramel-y goodness makes it no wonder it's been a favorite ever since Jim Dole found a way to can pineapple in the 1920s!

It was also a little slice of heaven to make butterscotch pudding and homemade oreos....

But the afternoon I pitted a case of spring cherries and made individual cobblers may have been my favorite.

We were planning to serve them for Friday night dinner at the cafe... but the minute they hit the case at lunch time, people started ordering them with homemade vanilla bean ice cream. I think it struck some nostalgic nerve!

Meanwhile... I offered an American Dessert class at Tante Marie Cooking School. Students spent the afternoon baking lemon meringue pie, apple pies, cherry pies, big fat chocolate layer cakes, carrot cake with cream cheese frosting and pecans, peanut butter cookies, chocolate chunk cookies, coconut cupcakes..... whew!

Some people had a favorite memory of the dessert they chose to bake... for others, it was a chance to bake something they had always wanted to try.

I think I'm going to keep going down my list.... I can envision a summer full of grunts, slumps, crisps and bettys!

the sweet kitchen

Yes, it' supposed to be my break between sessions of the professional pastry course at Tante Marie's Cooking School.

But I love to teach... and it's so much fun spending three days with home bakers in a class called The Sweet Kitchen.

It doesn't matter that students in this class come from different backgrounds and levels of baking experience--they put on an apron, roll up their sleeves, and dive right in to cupcakes, candies and tarts with huge smiles on their faces!






















The lemon meringue cupcakes were a big hit because what's more fun than making a cupcake, filling it with a sweet-tart lemon curd, piping on billowy meringue... then taking a blow torch to it and watching it turn a golden brown?

Some students loved making sugared flowers for a garnish. Making buttercream and learning simple piping was also on the agenda.

Day two was devoted to candy and confections. There was plenty of truffle making....

and some lovely and delicious blood orange pate a fruit was cut into tiny shapes and rolled in sugar.

I love nut brittles and toffee, so I was happy that several students wanted to try their hand at making it.

They were surprised at how fast it set up!

A few of the students got adventurous and made home-made s'mores-- those yummy graham cracker, chocolate and marshmallow concoctions that you've probably had around a campfire.

They were incredible! The homemade graham crackers were buttery and delicous...then came a layer of rich caramel sauce, then homemade vanilla marshmallows... and the whole thing was dipped in chocolate.

Who needed a campfire?

We really had an enjoyable 3 days together.... and I'm sure there will be alot more days spent in the sweet kitchen for these students!

life after gluten

I am such a fan of the magical properties of wheat flours that I am probably the last person in America to experiment with gluten-free baking. But so many people are asking for gluten-free baked goods that I decided it was my duty to drag my head out of the sand and spend the afternoon in a wheat-free kitchen.

It turns out that the author of one of my favorite pastry blogs, http://www.cannelle-vanille.blogspot.com/ has been trying to get wheat out of her diet, so I turned to her for some recipe inspiration.

Her Chocolate Chip Cookies, made with a gluten-free baking mix instead of wheat flour, were so crispy and delicious that my kids (who didn't realize they were guinea-pigs-for-a-day) said they were the best chocolate chip cookies they'd ever tasted.

Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

4 oz non-hydrogenated shortening

4 oz brown sugar

2 oz sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

8 oz Gluten Free Baking Mix (such as Bob's Red Mill)

1/2 tsp xanthan gum

5 1/2 oz chocolate chips

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the shortening and sugars until well combined. Add the egg and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients, mixing until well incorporated. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Dump dough on a lightly floured surface and shape into a log that is about 3" in diameter. Wrap in parchment or plastic and refrigerate at least an hour.

Cut the log into 1/2" disks and bake at 375F about 12 minutes, until edges are brown but center is slightly soft.

One of the things that really interests me about this "alternative" baking is the history of the flours themselves.

The Lemon-Pistachio Cupcakes here are made with millet flour... a grain that originated in China 5000 years ago. I ground pistachios to a fine meal in a food processor for this recipe, which was like a delicious, moist tea cake.

The Chocolate-Banana Cupcakes were made with teff-- a grain I had never heard of! Turns out it's another ancient grain, a favorite in Ethiopia. I couldn't find teff flour, which the recipe called for, so I ground my own flour in my spice grinder--very easy. The kids gobbled up the chocolate cupcakes, but were lukewarm on the lemon. Both cupcakes were so sweet that a sprinkling of powdered sugar seemed a better option than icing.

Most of these flours are packaged by Bob's Red Mill, an Oregon company that specializes in whole and organic grains. I can find the largest selection at Whole Foods, but many are available at markets like Safeway.

Finally, I made Lemon-Lime Meltaway Cookies with amaranth (from pre-Columbian Aztec days...), sweet rice, sorghum and almond flours. They had a lovely flavor and a slightly sandy texture, which I didn't mind.

I won't be giving up my beloved wheat flours anytime in the near future.... but it was interesting and delicious to take a walk on the gluten-free side!

onward and upward!

The sun was barely coming up when our day started at Tante Marie's Cooking School this morning--it was graduation day for the professional pastry students.

Everyone started trickling in around 7:15am... even with daylight savings time starting a few hours earlier.

Coffee on... laminated doughs pulled from the freezer... looking for the perfect radio station for our mood (Prince?! Not Cat Stevens!!)

Students were focused, intense, happy. They had been working on their final project concepts, recipes and production schedules for weeks. They had been baking for a few days. Now, by 2:00 they had to finish their final projects, decorate their displays... and be ready to greet their families and friends.

Of course there was craziness... a napoleon that summersaulted to the floor... gumpaste flowers that weren't dry... the clock reading 1:30 when there was so much left to do... but what amazing presentations they all did. I want to share a photo album like a proud parent!

Jenn's Half Moon Bay Farmer's Market Pie Stand drew crowds.. it was complete with modelling chocolate bees with almond wings!

Amie's coffee theme included an antique samovar, coffee pots de cremes in espresso cups and B-52 mousses with caramel swizzle sticks!

Amelia's springtime wedding cake had gorgeous flowers.. and each tier had a different syrup and filling.

Sheryl's study of teas included infused panna cotta, caramels, tartlets, cupcakes, poundcake and truffles!

Ellen turned her Washington DC roots into an amazing display of presidental desserts--with cakes and confections from Presidents Washington, Lincoln, Eisenhower (or their wives!)....and the inaugural dessert of President Obama.. a delicious apple charlotte with caramel sauce.

Kathleen's Southern cakes display also reflected her roots and was mouthwatering.... especially the 4 layer coconut cake and the red velvet petit fours!

Matthew discovered his love of all things laminated, and made orange bouchees, caramelized banana danish, and chocolate and caramel croissants.

Kate went for the bite-sized desserts, with petit fours glace, mini cream puffs and cupcakes.

Kara wanted to show a small town boutique bakery. Her display was perfect, with tiny creme caramels, lavender cookies, scones and cupcakes... all presented in unique ways.

Jessica's love of her German mother and grandmother prompted her German Christmas display... complete with a Black Forest Cake, Zuger Kirschtorte, and stollen. There were even German Christmas ornaments!

Siobhan's "tipsy tea party" included a chocolate mousse with port-macerated figs... an olive oil cake with drunken grapes... and s'mores with Lillet marshmallows.

Ashlee's garden party was beautiful in pink, white and yellow... with tiny cupcakes and tarts in gum paste flowers, a lemon mascarpone cake and tiny ice cream cones!

Kat made a black-and-white wedding cake--the layer I fell for was chocolate with coffee buttercream. We joked that she was making her own wedding cake since she's getting married in the fall!

And speaking of weddings... Liz wanted to make her sister's memorable by designing an incredible croquembuche wedding cake filled with assorted berry pastry creams. And did I mention it was sitting on a chocolate gluten-free sphere cake with gum paste sea shells.. garnished with a mini adirondack chair sitting on graham cracker sand?

Whew! What a day! I am so proud of each of you for what you have accomplished in the past six months... may you have many happy days up to your elbows in flour, butter and sugar!