Deconstructed Lemon Meringue Pie

This is a deconstructed Lemon Meringue Pie. Personally, I am a fan of deconstructions, as they make it’s easy to be creative and think outside the box. I called this leMOMA: A Modern Lemon Meringue Pie. Obviously, It’s a play on the MOMA (museum of modern art - NYC). This dessert is very abstract and inspired by the Tim Burton exhibit I saw at MOMA couple of years ago.

The flavor components consist of the following:

• Lemon Mousse 
• Candied lemon shell
• Butter tea cookie
• Italian meringue 
• Candied lemon zest
• Limoncello reduction
• Limoncello reduction sugar

Production
Lemon Mousse
Ingredients:1.5 oz egg yolks;1.5 oz sugar; 1 oz water; 1 oz lemon zest; 3 oz lemon juice; 11 oz of cream 
Process: Whip egg yolks and heat sugar lemon zest and lemon juice to 245F, then add it to whipping egg yolks. Whip the cream and fold in to the mixture.

Candied Lemon Shell & Zest
Ingredients: Lemons, simple syrup

Process: Cut out the bottom of a lemon, then cut the top on the bias and hollow out. Zest a second lemon in large rectangular shapes. Soak in simple syrup overnight.

Butter Tea Cookie
Ingredients: 12oz butter; 6oz sugar; 3oz confectioners sugar; 4.5oz eggs; 1 tsp vanilla; 18 oz cake flour

Process: cream the butter and the sugar; add the eggs and vanilla then add the cake flour. Once the dough has formed, pie out crazy (but skinny) shapes. 


Limoncello Reduction & Limoncello Reduction Sugar 
Ingredients: Limoncello

Process: For the sugar, reduce limoncello until all the liquid is evaporated. Remove from pan immediately and break into small pieces.

For the reduction, reduce limoncello over low heat for 15 min until a syrup has formed. 

Italian meringue
Ingredients: 2oz water; 8oz sugar; 4oz egg whites


Process: Heat sugar to softball stage and immediately  add it to whipping egg whites. Once the meringue has cooled, it's ready for use.

Plating
Streak the reduction across the plate. Dip the top of the lemon in crystal sugar, then place at the start of the streak. Fill shell with mousse. Pipe small dollops of meringue on the butter tea cookie and through out the plate, then tortch until golden brown.  Place the cookie inside the mousse and the reduction sugar across the reduction. Add the candied zest to the corner of the plate.

Macaroons

Macaroons are my favorite cookie. I was introduced to them when I was studying in southern France. I indulged in a lavender macron and the delicate little cookies that I'd never even tried before went soaring to the top of my list.

Not only are macaroons rich in flavor, they are rich in history. Dating back to the days of Henry II and  Catherine de' Medici's. They are the cookie of France and can found at patisseries across the country.

French macrons are slowly becoming popular in America. When they are jam filled, they are considered to be a gluten free dessert. Furthermore, I recently learned that their lack of yeast or flour makes them a great option during Jewish passover.

While macarons look and taste like an intricate and delicate cookie, they are actually quite simple to make.


Production
Almond Macaroons 
Ingredients: 2 oz almond flour; 2 oz powdered sugar; 2 oz egg whites; 3/4 oz of granulated sugar; vanilla extract.

Process: Sift the almond flour and sugar and set aside. Whip the egg whites to soft peaks, the add the sugar to make a stiff meringue. Fold in the dry ingredients and your desired color. Note make the color represent the filling inside. For example if your macaroon will have a lemon filling, yellow is an appropriate color. Fill a bag with the macaroon batter and pipe into small circles slightly larger than a quarter onto a silpat lined sheet pan. You must be consistent when piping macarons -  they need to be sandwiched. Once the dough is piped, dust the top of the macarons with powdered sugar and the let sit for 15-20 min so that an outer crust forms. Bake in the oven at 350 for 20-25 min.

Once the macarons are done, let cool and the fill with desired center. Ganache and jam are both great options!

Cheese Plate

The cheese plate is simple, delicious and goes a long, long way. France is probably the most 'cheese friendly' county, but it's also becoming popular in America. Cheese is great with wine (obviously) champagne and other cocktails. The cheese below is wrapped in phyllo dough, plated and served with fresh fruit, nuts and a compote. More often the cheese plates are becoming the responsibility of the pastry chef.  That said knowing and understanding different types of cheese are important. It's also important to have an understanding on what other people might like too.

On our cheese plates we used an aged Swiss, brie and blue cheese all wrapped in phyllo dough. When working with phyllo dough you must keep it from drying out. Once it looses moisture, it's worthless. No matter how hard you try, it will just crack and crumble, therefore you must keep it covered with plastic while working with it. It's also a good idea to have some melted butter and a pastry brush around.  The butter will keep the dough moist and help it stick to each other. Once the cheese is wrapped,simply bake the oven until the dough is crispy and the cheese is melted. Plate, serve and enjoy with a nice glass one wine!

Sweet Potato Cheesecake Pops

People love little things on a stick. Even my 4-year-old niece told me she wanted "little purple cakes on a stick" and not a birthday cake at her party.

Desserts on sticks are everywhere. People are drawn to them because the are little, cute and help control portions. Desserts on sticks are everywhere, both sweet and savory, they have certainly become the trend.

During our 'vegetable' week at school, we made a sweet potato cheesecake pops. Sweet potato is a flavor similar to pumpkin and is very popular in the south and the perfect way to incorporate vegetables into to pastry! I would make these again, they are perfect for a small party.

 

Production:
Sweet Potato Cheesecake
Ingredients: 6 lbs cream cheese; 1 lb 2.5 oz sugar; 1/2 cup heavy cream; 4 tablespoons cornstarch;  2 teaspoons of lemon juice; 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract; 1 lb 5 oz granulated sugar; 3 cups of sweet potato puree; 15 egg yolks; 6 eggs; 2 tablespoons of cinnamon; 4 tablespoons of ground ginger; 1/2 tablespoon of salt; 1lb of graham cracker crumbs; 4 oz of sugar; 8 oz melted butter

Process: Beat the cream in the mixer with the first sugar until smooth. Mix the corn starch and heavy cream, lemon juice and vanilla then add it to the cream cheese. Create a sweet potato puree by peeling and boiling the potatoes, the processing them with the eggs, sugar and spices. gradually add this to the to the cream cheese mixture. Adding the eggs or liquid is critical point in a cheese cake recipe.

Combine the butter and the graham crackers. Do bot add too much butter, otherwise the graham crackers will become super greasy. Once the batter is finished, press crumbs into the bottom of a silicon mold. then press the cheese cake mixture on top. Bake in a water bath on low heat (240F is usually good) for an hour and a half. Once the cheese cake is done, let it cool in the refrigerator over night.

To assemble the pops, place sticks into the the bottom/middle before unfolding. remove from the mold, dip in slightly warm chocolate, the roll in graham cracker crumbs.

Blueberry Soup

I  have never actually had a dessert soup, but I have certainly heard of them. I was excited when I learned we'd be incorporating it into our 'fruit' mystery basket. We could have good the normal route of poaching or roasting fruit and using a compote or gelee, but those are things we do all of the time in pastry. For this dessert, we really stepped outside of the box, especially when we incorporated mint and basil.

I would absolutely serve this fruit soup dessert on a hot summer day. It's light, refreshing and the concept alone is intriguing. When planning dessert menus, it's important to think about your guests and seasonality - this dessert does just that. It's on the 'healthier' side in the world of plated desserts and it uses fruits that are in season (assuming you are serving in the summer!) Additionally, it's gluten free and if you removed the honey, it's a great vegan option.

It also easy and flexible, but still contains a "wow factor." You swap out the blueberries for mixed berries, raspberries, blackberries, whatever is readily available in the kitchen!

The primary components of this dessert include the following:

• Blueberry Soup
• Honey Herb Sorbet
• Fresh blueberries
• Orange segments
• Mint garnish

Production:
Honey Herb Sorbet
Ingredients: 3 1/2 cups orange juice; 2 tablespoons of honey; 5 tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 1 1/2 tablespoons orange zest; 1/4 cup finley chopped fresh basil; 1/4 cup finely chopped mint

Process: Dissolve the honey in 1/2 cup of the orange juice. Once the honey has dissolved, add the remaining orange juice and the rest of the listed ingredients. Refrigerate until very cold, and prepare in an ice cream maker.

Blueberry Soup 
Ingredients: 1/4 cup sugar; 1/4 cup water; 6 cups blueberries; 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice; 2 cups of fizzy water (La Croix, San Palagrino, etc) 2 oranges peeled and membranes removed; mint to garnish

Process: combine sugar and water to make a simply syrup. Puree all but 1/3 of the blueberries then strain. Stir in the simple syrup and lemon juice and refrigerate. When the soup is cold, add the fizzy water. Use the remaining fruit, oranges and blueberries, when plating.

Plating:
It's best to use a shallow bowl for this dessert so that your whole fruit garnish is not crammed together. I chose a simple white soup bowl and it worked perfectly. To plate, line the oranges in the center of the bowl and insert loose blueberries in between. Place a quenelle of sorbet on top of the orange segments then using a gooseneck, pour the soup around the mixture and garnish with fresh mint.

Soufflé & Soufflé Glacé

Soufflé & Soufflé Glacé

Most people think of a puffy, warm, rich, chocolate explosion when they think of souffle. While this is the most traditional way to make souffle, there is also frozen souffle or Soufflé Glacé. We made both versions in class, using a similar plating style. Souffle comes from the french word "souffler" which means to "blow up." In hot souffles, the "blow up" happens due to the combination for the eggs whites and custard. Souffle's must be  baked in a water bath, in a deck oven with complete temperature control and most of the heat coming from the bottom.

Frozen souffle's are simply a mousse or bombe mixture frozen in ramekins. To achieve height you must line a ramekin with acitate. The frozen souffle is than poured into the top of the acetate and frozen. When the acitate is peeled off, the frozen souffle sits well above the rim of the ramekin.

Production: 
Chocolate Souffle
Ingredents: 1 1/2 lbs semisweet chocolate;1 qt heavy whipping cream; 1/3 cup liquor; 4 eggs; 8 yolks; 2/3 c sugar; 1/4 tsp vanilla

Process: Heat 1 1/4 cups of the heavy cream and combine it with the chocolate to make ganache. Gradually add liquor. Whip the eggs and yolks in mixer with sugar. Fold in the ganache and
vanilla. Whip up the rest of the cream and fold it in to the chocolate mixture. Cool the mixture, fill the ramekins lined high with acitate then freeze.

Plating: 
Souffles should be served immediately after coming out of the oven. The longer they are out, the more height they will use. If serving this in a restaurant, have the server pick the hot souffle last and serve immediately. This souffle was dusted with powdered sugar, punctured on the top, then filled with a Grand Marnier creme anglaise. An orange segment was added for height and decoration. orange zest and chocolate shavings were added to the bottom of the plate to add additional color and decoration.  

Production:
Chocolate Souffle Glace
Ingredients: 8oz sugar; 2 oz water; 4 oz egg whites; 6oz melted dark chocolate; 12 oz heavy cream.

Process: Use the sugar, water and egg whites to make an Italian meringue. Meanwhile, melt the chocolate and cool (but don't let it seize). Fold the chocolate into the Italian meringue once it has cooled. Next, whip the cream to soft peak and fold it into to the chocolate mixture. Fill the ramekins to the very top of the acetate and freeze overnight. Remove the acetate band before serving.

Plating: I used a similar plate format for the frozen souffle as I did for the hot souffle.  If these were BOTH on the menu (which would be unlikely) I would have given the frozen souffle different components (e/g berries, or different liquors). This souffle glace is topped with Grand Marnier soaked oranges, orange curd, a dollop of whip cream and a chocolate tuile.

Red Velvet Opera Cake

Beautiful, delicate, sophisticated, but in my opinion ruined by the molasses. I think using molasses as a primary flavor in a dessert is risky, people either love it or they hate it. I also think molasses is one of those flavors that people don't really know, they might try, then hate. Perhaps I am being dramatic, but I was disappointing that my most visually appealing dessert made in class was my most disappointing in terms of flavor.

I love opera cake, we made it last quarter and it was one of my favorite desserts. I love the intricate layers and the European nature of the cake. I liked the idea of doing a red velvet  version. Visually, the deep read coupled with the dark chocolate would make the plated visually stimulating and sexy.  I wasn't overly impressed with the flavor in the cake, perhaps my red velvet standard have been "Americanized" I think red velvet and I need cream cheese frosting. Sad, but true and associated flavors (like red velvet and cream cheese) is absolutely something you must keep in mind when preparing a dessert menu.

My favorite part was the chocolate circle. In my opinion, it is what gave this dessert it's "wow factor". It was rather east to create, just some tempered chocolate, acetate and a cake pan. The primary components of this dessert consisted of the following:

• Flourless chocolate cake
• Molasses Ganache
• Chocolate Buttercream
• Pecan croquet 
• Candied Pecan
• Dark chocolate circle 

Production
Flourless Chocolate Cake
Ingredients: 13 1/4 oz of dark chocolate; 3 1/8 oz melted butter; 2 5/8 oz egg yolks; 1 lb 10 oz egg whites; 4 1/2 oz sugar; red food coloring

Process: Melt the chocolate and combine it with the butter and egg yolks. Whip the whites and sugar to a stiff meringue then add the red food coloring. Fold the chocolate mixture into the whipped whites and pour into a flat sheet pan (this needs to be flat, it's very important!) Bake in the convection oven at 340F for about 10 min.

Pecan Dacquose
Ingredients: 7oz toasted pecans; 7 oz powdered sugar; 8 3/4 oz egg whites; 2 3/4 oz sugar; 1/8 oz of cream of tartar

Process: Toast the pecans, then process them in a food processor and sift with the powdered sugar. Whip the egg whites, sugar and cream of tartar, the fold the two mixtures together. Spread the batter on a silpat lined sheet pan and bake at 350F for 5 min.

Pecan Croquant
Ingredients: 5/8 oz pecan flour; 4 3/4 powdered fondant; 3 1/8 glucose

Process: Cook the fondant and glucose then stir in the pecan flout. Pour onto a silpat and bake until barley crispy. You must pull and mold these as soon as they are out of the oven. You literally have less than two minutes to do so. If needed, warm up the dacquose slowly in a deck oven with the door open. Do not overheat or these will turn into soup! 

Molasses Ganache
Ingredients: 4 7/8 oz milk chocolate; 4 7/8 oz milk; 6 oz molasses; 1 7/8 oz butter.

Process: Boil the milk then our it over the chocolate. Add the molasses, then the butter. NOTE be sure the mixer has cooked before adding the butter, otherwise it will become greasy.

Chocolate Buttercream
Ingredients: 8 oz sugar; 2 oz water; 4 oz egg yolks; 10 oz butter; 3/4 tsp of vanilla extract; 4 oz melted chocolate

Process: Whip egg yolks and 2oz of sugar by hand over heat until the sugar melts and the yolks start to foam (3-4 min). Once the sugar has dissolved in the yolks, pour the mixture into a mixer and whip on high speed. Heat the remaining 6 oz of sugar and water to soft ball stage (240 degrees F). When the sugar has reached softball stage and the egg yolks have started to foam, gently pour the hot sugar into the whipping yolk. Mix on high speed for about 10 min or until the bowl feels to be room temperature –  NOTE: bowl will be warm from the addition of the hot sugar. 

Once the yolks have whipped and the bowl is at room temperature, start adding chunks of room temperature butter and add the vanilla. Whip on high speed until the butter cream becomes smooth. Take a small portion of the butter cream and mix it with the chocolate; gradually fold in the rest of the butter cream to incorporate all of the chocolate. 

Layer the buttercream between the dacquoise then pour the molasses ganache over the top. Refrigerate for several hours or overnight before cutting.

Plating: 
I used a simple white plate to avoid taking away any attention from this bold plated dessert. The chocolate circle is very important. Be sure to use and temper high quality chocolate. Cover an acitate strip in melted chocolate and just before it is about to seize, wrap the acitate around a six inch cake pan and place in the refrigerator to cool. Once the chocolate is set, you'll have a beautiful, perfect chocolate ring. 

To plate the dessert, cut the opera cake into thin strips and place across the plate, exposing the intricate layers.  Place the pecan croquant at the end of the cake. Add a candied almond and finish with a chocolate circle.

Pate de Fruit

Pate de fruit are chewy little candies with intense fruit taste made from purees of fresh fruit. They are not popular in America and the closest thing we have to them, which is a far, far second, is the gumdrop. 


Pate de Frute are a simple combination or sugar, pectin, glucose, citric acid and puree. They can be made many, many flavor combinations. I chose strawberry, because I love 'gummy' strawberry candy. I was also a fan of the red color, given it was valentines day. I plated the plated the pate de fruit on a white plate with fresh cut strawberries and tear-drop heart garnishes. I perfect little plate for Valentine's day. 


To make pate de fruit, warm the puree and blend 1/4 of the sugar with the pectin.When the temperature reaches 122F, slowly add it to the slowly add the puree. When the mixture reaches boiling point, add the rest of the sugar and powdered glucose then pour it into a lined sheet pan. Once it sets, cut it into the desired shapes and dredge it in sugar. 

I liked pate de fruit because it was very different from what we usually make. I would have loved it even more had we had 'sour' sugar to sprinkle on top -  it would have been like a home made sour patch kid (secretly by biggest candy weakness!) 

Goat Cheese Panna Cotta

Panna Cotta comes from Italy and means ‘cooked cream.’ It’s basic custard that can be sweet or savory.  In Italian restaurants, panna cotta is usually served as sweet custard with a fruit compote. 

To mix the plane-Jane dessert up, we decided to incorporate goat cheese into the panna cotta - which made the primary components of this Panna Cotta include the following:

• Creme
• Gelatin
• Sugar
• Goat Cheese 

I am a goat cheese lover, so this dessert was right up my alley. It's perfect for a customer looking for something outside of the typical dessert box. Given the popularity of goat cheese, I'd imagine it would sell well too. I could see a restaurant like Chicago's Girl and the Goat selling this plated dessert on their
menu. This plated dessert consists of the following components:

• Goat Cheese Panna Cotta
• Port wine reduction
• Vanilla green apples
• nutmeg tuiles
• Thyme gelee

I loved that we included the thyme gelee. The flavor compliments the goat cheese well. The nested tuile adds height and sophistication and the port wine pulls it all together. This is a beautiful plated dessert.

Production
Goat Cheese Panna Cotta
Ingredients: 1 3/8 oz milk; 10 7/8 oz of goat cheese; 2 1/2 oz sugar; 3/8 oz gelatin

Process: Heat 1/3 of the geletin and of the milk with the goat cheese and sugar over low heat until melted. Remove from the heat. Whisk the gelatin into the hot mixture along with the remaining milk. Immediately transfer to an ice bath. Once the mixture is cooled (but not setting) pour into ramekins and refrigerate overnight.

Vanilla Granny Smith Apples
Ingredients: 2 lbs simple syrup; 1oz vanilla extract; 2 granny smith applies sliced very thin with a mandolin.

Process: Heat the syrup and vanilla to a simmer. Poach the apples and let cool. Store in the syrup overnight until use.

Nutmeg Tuile Nest
Ingredients: 8 3/8 oz of butter; 8 3/8oz powdered sugar; 8 7/8 oz of egg whites; 6 3/9 oz of pastry flour; 1/8 of ground nutmeg; 1/4 oz of coffee extract

Process: Sift the sugar, the add it to the cream and softened butter mix well to incorporate. Fold in the egg whites, then fold in the the pastry flour and nutmeg, then the coffee extract. The batter should be the consistency of a smooth paste. Let cool in the refrigerator at least an hour. Pipe onto a silpat and smooth whit a small offset spatula. Use an icing scraper (with indents) create ribbed lines in the batter. Bake at 325 until golden brown.

When fully cooked, remove from the oven and shape. For nesting, grab several links of dough and pull together. You only have a few min before the tuile hardens. You must work with it very hot. Using a bowl or other shape can helpful with molding the tuile.

Thyme Gelee
Ingredients: 1/4 oz parsley; 1 7/8 oz of water; 3/4 oz of fresh thyme; 11 5/8 oz of water; 1 1/8 oz of sugar; 3/8 oz of gelatin.

Process: Blanch the parsley in the first boiling water for about five seconds. Note: the purpose of the parsley is to add color. Drain and submerse into ice water, the process in a blender until smooth. Strain through a coffee filter to remove any excess parsley. Bring the thyme and second water to a boil. Remove from heat and cover to allow for infusion. Strain the liquid and let cool to room temp. Bloom the gelatin and then melt it in the microwave with a small amount of the thyme infusion. Stir the mixture back into the infusion then add the parsley water. Pour into a shallow pan and refrigerate until the gelee is fully set.

Port Wine Reduction
Reduce 10 oz of port wine over low heat. Let cool and set aside until use.

Plating
For this plated dessert, I used a small yellow plate. I didn't want to use a white plate because the panna cotta is white. Given it's the primary component, it needs to stand out. I removed the panna cotta from the ramekin and placed it on the plate, slightly off centered. I then wrapped the green  apples around the base of the panna cotta, but left a few holes so that the primary component was still peeking through. I topped the panna cotta with a tuile nest then added to schemers of port wine reduction. I finished my dessert by adding the thyme gelee. 

Peanut Butter Fudge

I haven't made a lot of fudge, and I was surprised by the amount of sugar to flavor ratio.  There is way more sugar than chocolate (or peanut butter) in Fudge, which surprised me. Fudge is usually an indulgence I only enjoy around the holiday, but I think it could be incorporated into desserts more often. Fudge done right is has amazing non-grainy texture and is full of flavor. When we made fudge, I decided to go the non-traditional route (but still play it safe) and make peanut butter fudge. I am glad I did, because it was the best fudge I've ever had and moving forward, it  will more than likely be my token, go-to when making fudge.

It would be great to use the peanut butter fudge in a deconstructed PB&J. The fudge, coupled with an egg foam based cake and a strawberry compote would make fore a nice deconstruction. Anyway, needless to say that the fudge was fun and there are many directions you could go with it...

Production:
Peanut Butter Fudge
Ingredients: 2 lbs of granulated sugar; 12 oz milk; 4oz of corn syrup; 4 oz butter; 8 oz peanut butter; 1/2 tsp salt; 1 tsp vanilla

Process: Combine the sugar, milk and glucose in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Stir the mixture constantly until the sugar has completely dissolved. Fully dissolving the sugar is critical! If you don't, the fudge will be grainy! Continue to cook until the temperature reaches 230F, then slowly stir in the butter. Make sure to scrape the bottom of the pan as you stir to prevent any burning. Add the peanut butter, salt and vanilla and continue to to cook until the mixture reaches 236.

Pour onto a marble slab and and let cool, untouched until the temperature drops to 110F. Scape the fudge off the marble and transferred into a sheet pan. When the fudge is cool. Cover tightly and store at room temperature over night. Cut into squares and serve.

Plating:
Given this is a rich candy, serve in smaller portions. I chose a square bright colored plate to bring out the color. I then used chopped peanuts and cocoa nibs as a garnish.

Chocolate Grapefruit Tart

I am not a grapefruit lover so, I was more than skeptical of this dessert from the start. What saved me was the sable breton and the chocolate grapefruit ganache. This dessert also had a grapefruit tuile which meant we busted out the mandolin again and dehydrated grapefruit slices. Personally, I think dried citrus fruit looks beautiful. The intricate detail that shows up within the flesh coupled with the vibrant colors of the peel make for a complete "wow factor" if done right.

This dessert also included grape fruit ganache and sugar soaked grapefruit segments -  a chocolate citrus explosion, but fortunately a good one.  What I liked most about this dessert was that it pushed my outside of my comfort zone. I wouldn't likely ever do a grapefruit dessert, because I am not a fan of the tangy citrus fruit. However, couple it with chocolate a top a french butter cookie (sable breton) and it's actually a very sexy dessert bursting with familiar flavor.

This plated dessert consisted of the following components:

• Grapefruit Infused Ganache: dark chocolate meets potent citrus
• Cocoa Nib Sable Breton; small disk to cut the infused ganache 
• Grapefruit Curd: adds color and flavor as it sits a top the ganache
• Fresh Grape Fruit: soaked in simple syrup to add a touch of sweetness
• Campari Caramel: acts as a garnish
• Grapefruit Tuile: To add beauty and height to the plated desser

Production
Grapefruit Ganache
Ingredients: 11 1/4 oz dark chocolate; 11 1/4 oz cream; 2 3/4 oz glucose; 1/8 oz of salt; 2 3/4 oz butter; 1 oz grapefruit zest

Process: Slowly heat the cream, glucose, salt and grapefruit zest in a small pot and bring to a boil. Remember to stir so that the glucose doesn't stick to the sides! Remove from heat and cover for 15 min to allow for the infusion to take place. Strain the infused cream and reheat to a simmer then pour over the chocolate. Pour the whole mixture into a food processor and process until smooth. Add the butter and blend until all ingredients are combined. Pour into a very flat sheet pan, cover and refrigerate for several hours.

Cocoa Nib Sable Breton
Ingredients: 4 1/4 oz butter; 3 3/8 oz sugar; 1/8 oz salt; 1 5/8 oz of egg yolks; 4 7/8 pastry flour; 1/4 oz baking powder; 1 1/2 oz cocoa nibs

Process: In a food processor, combine the butter, sugar and salt and process until creamy. Add the egg yolks and 1/3 of the flour. Once the flour has combined, slowly add the remaining flour and cocoa nibs. Remove the dough and let retard overnight. Roll the dough into 1/8 inch thickness and bake in between two silpats at 350 for 10 min. Once the Sable Breton has cooled, cut to the desired shape.

Grapefruit Curd
Ingredients: 3 7/8 oz sugar; 1 3/4 oz eggs; 1 1/8 oz egg yolks; 2 5/8 oz grapefruit juice; 1/2 oz lemon juice; 1/8 oz grapefruit zest; 1 3/8 oz butter

Process: Heat the sugar, egg yolks, grapefruit juice, lemon juice, and grapefruit zest in a double boiler until it thickens (consistency of ketchup). Remove from heat, strain and add butter using an immersion blender. Cover and store in the refrigerator until use.

Campari Caramel and Grapefruit Segments 
Ingredients: 8 oz of water; 1 lb 4 oz sugar; 1/2 oz of vanilla; 4 oz campari; 2 oz grapefruit

Process: Cut the grape fruits into segments. Begin to heat the water.  In a second pan, caramelize the sugar, remove from the heat, then pour a small amount of water on top. Stir continuously during this process. add the vanilla, the return to heat and add the remaining water, then the campari. Pour the mixture over the grapefruit segments and store overnight in the refrigerate.

Grapefruit Tuile
Using a mandolin slice grapefruit segments until very thin. Soak the slices in a mixture of graofrut juice and simple syrup. Place the soaked segments between two silpats and bake at a low heat, intil the segments have dehydrated. When the fruit is still warm, bend into the desired shape.

Plating

For this plated dessert, I used a light grey circular plate so that the vibrant orange colors would pop. Using a 3 inch circle cutter, cut a circle of cocoa nib sable breton and place it on the plate. With the same cutter, cut a disk of grapefruit ganache and place it on top of the cookie. Place the soaked grapefruit on both sides of the stacked cookie/ganache and add a schmear of curd between the grapefruit segments. Garnish with a twisted peel and cocoa nibs.

Roasted Pear with Chamomile

Pears and Chamomile are two things I like consuming separately, therefore I was intrigued when making this interesting plated dessert. I liked the idea of roasting the pears, in pastry we often poach fruit, roasting provides a similar flavor through an entirely different technique. I would call this a fall or winter dessert for a couple of reasons. One because pears are in season during cold months and two because warm fruit with a warm tea infusion also give off a winter vibe.

This plated dessert also calls for pear sorbet, making it both a  hot and cold dessert, which means that plating to service will need excellent execution. This plated dessert will consist of the following components:

• Chamomile Jus: A sweet infusion to tie together the flavors 
• Pear Sorbet: Small quenelle that sits on top of a pear chip
• Hazlenut Financier: Small cake to act as the base for holding the roasted pear  
• Pear Chips: Sliced with a mandolin, soaked in sugar then dehydrated 
• Sugar Garnish: Tuile to sit a top 
• Chamomile Sugar: Used for roasting the pear 
• Roasted Pear with Chamomile: The primary component and reason why a customer would buy the dessert

Production
Chamomile Jus
Ingredients: 5 7/8 oz water; 1/8 oz of dried chamomile; 3 5/8 oz of sugar; 7/8 oz lemon juice

Process: Boil the water and add the chamomile, remove from heat and allow for infusion for about 10 min. Strain through a coffee filter and reserve the liquid. Caramelize the sugar, once the sugar turns light brown in color, bring the infusion back to a boil and slowing stir into the caramel to create the jus. Add the lemon juice and set aside until use.

Pear Sorbet 
Ingredients: 1/8 Sorbet stabilizer; 2 5/8 oz of sugar; 5/8 oz dextrose; 1 3/8 oz powdered glucose; 3 3/8 oz of water; 1lb 8 oz of pear puree

Process: Mix the stabilizer with 1/4 of the sugar and mix the rest of the sugar with the glucose and dextrose. Warm the water in a saucepan, when the temperature reaches 86F, add the sugar/glucose/dextrose mixture. Continue to heat and 113F, add the sugar/stabilizer mixture and bring to a boil.  Remove from heat onto an ice bath. Store overnight and process in an ice cream maker.

Hazelnut Financier
Ingredients: 3 1/4 oz Hazelnut Flour; 6 1/8 oz butter; 5 3/8 oz sugar; 6 1/2 oz egg whites; 2 5/8 oz pastry flour; 1/4 tsp baking powder; 1/4 tsp baking soda.

Process: toast the hazelnut flour and let cool, meanwhile brown the butter and set aside. Miz half of the sugar with the egg whites and whip to soft peak. Sift the dry ingredients and fold them along with the remaining sugar into the egg whites. Fold in the brown butter and pipe into dome shaped molds. Bake in a convection oven at 350 for 15 min.

Pear Chips 
Use a mandolin to slice pears in to super, super, almost paper thin slices. Soak the slices in simple syrup for 15 min, then place the soaked pears between two silpats. Bake/dehydrate in a low oven (200 F) for several hours, until the pears are crisp.

Critical point with pear chips is maintaining size. This can be done by using two silpats. If you don't cover the top, the pears will shrivel and not look as appealing.

Sugar garnish/tuile
Cook sugar over moderate heat until a light brow and thick constancy is reached. Immediately remove from heat and place into a water bath. Using a fork or spoon, create a web-like pattern that will act as the garnish.  Work quickly, you only have 3-4 min until the caramel will seize.

Roasted Pear: 
Ingredients: 3 oz chamomile sugar; 5 firm pears, peeled-halved-cored; 1 1/4 oz butter.

Process: Toss the pears in the chamomile sugar. Place the butter in a saucepan and sear the cut side of the pear until gold brown. Transfer to the oven and bake for 20-25 min. Make sure the pears are soft. This dessert would be ruined if the primary component was raw!

Plating
A white plates works well with this dessert. It brings out the colors in the pear and the pear chip. I went for a rectangle to highlight the pear on one end and the sorbet on the other.

Place the financier in one corner of the plate, carve out a small piece on top to allow for the pear to sit on top, as horizontal as possible. Increase the height by adding the caramel garnish. On the opposite end, place three slices of raw pear the add a quenelle of pear sorbet on top. Place the pear chip on top of the sorbet and dot the jus in a semi circle around the edge of the pear, creating an implied connection between both ends of the plate.

Earl Grey Truffles

Truffle the candy was named after truffle the fungus. A little gross when you first hear about it, but makes sense when you have a bit more historical context. Truffle the fungus dates back to the fourth century BC and has become a  delicacy ever since. In modern times, many chefs refer to truffle the fungus as "the diamond of the kitchen." I think the same could be said for a perfect chocolate truffle in a pastry shop.  The chocolate truffle was created in France in the late 1800's. Candy truffles are traditionally made with a ganache center and coated in chocolate or cocoa powder.

In class we made earl grey infused truffles. I was really excited about actually learning about infusions because they sound to be complicated... but they are really just as easy as making tea! Regarding the choice of tea, I was glad it was early grey and not green tea. I am a big fan of green tea, but I think it's a saturated area and earl gray is a bit more outside the box.

Production:
Earl Grey Ganache
Ingredients: 9 1/4 oz of cream; 1 1/2 oz Earl Grey Tea; 3/8 oz of inverted sugar; 3/8 oz honey; 14 1/4 oz milk chocolate; 3 1/8 oz dark chocolate; 2 oz butter

Process: Slowly melt the chocolate (Do not burn the chocolate, e.g. heat it in a double boiler and walk away... it is the most expensive ingredient in the kitchen!) Boil the cream and add the tea then cover with plastic and let infuse for 10 min. Strain the tea and rescale the milk to the original amount using whole milk. Add the inverted sugar and honey to the mixture and bring back to a boil. Pour the hot cream over the chocolate to create and emulsion. Fold continually, tempering down to 95F, then fold the in the butter.

Cover the ganache and let cool. Once the ganache starts to thicken, take a melon baller and scoop out truffles. Place on a sheet pan and take to the freezer. Meanwhile, temper dark chocolate for the coating, and prep a bowl mixed with sifted coca powder and powdered sugar. When doing a cocoa powder coating to any candy or dessert it's best to mix it with powdered sugar to sweeten the flavor.

Constructing the truffles
When the ganache has hardened, coat in chocolate and roll in powdered sugar. Truffles are best to eat when they are at room temperature.  The tea infusion coupled with the chocolate makes them an excellent afternoon tea or after dinner indulgence.

Overall I loved making these truffles and have done so again since making them in class. I have become slightly obsessive with testing infusion flavors as infusions are super easy to execute and provide intense and exotic flavors that would be hard to get elsewhere.

Donuts

Donuts have wandered into the spotlight over the past six months. They are popping up on dessert menus all over the place. From traditional glazed to herb infused or savory topped, people just can't seem to get enough donuts these days. I am personally a huge fan of donuts. They have sentimental effect with me. When I was growing up, my dad would go get donuts every Saturday morning. When I eat a donut, I am temporary warped back to my childhood. Based on this new donut rage, I'd imagine it has a similar effect on other people.

While the trend of the donut is new, the donut itself is not. In America, the iconic breakfast indulgence dates back to the early 1800's. As 'American' as they seem, donuts can actually be found in various formats all over the world.     

When we made donuts in class, it was important to be innovative and align with the donut trend. Because donuts are icon a breakfast food, we thought it would be good to try out a breakfast theme, therefore we settled on the following: Coffee glazed , brown butter glazed and maple bacon. I added a chocolate ganache glaze to the mix. They were all delicious and the maple bacon was my personal favorite. 


Production: 
Sponge starter
Ingredients: 4 3/8 oz bread four; 3 oz water; 1/8 ounce of instant yeast

Process: mix all ingredients together and ferment for 90 min at room temperature. When the dough is ready, it will have tripled in size.

Final Dough:
4 3/8 oz bread flour; 3 7/8 oz of pastry flour; 5 1/2 ounces of eggs; 1/4 oz of salt; 7 5/8 oz of sponge starter; 2 1/4 oz sugar; 2 3/4 oz butter

Process: Combine the flours, salt, eggs and and sponge on low speed for five min. Once everything is mixed well, mix on high speed to develop the gluten. Gradually add the sugar, then the soften butter. Mix for another couple of min then roll the dough out on to a sheet pan and wrap in plastic and proof for 20 min at room temperature. Roll out the dough into a half inch sheet and cover with plastic. Let the dough proof for an additional two hours or let retard overnight. Cut the dough into desired shapes and let proof for another 20 min. Heat the oil to 365 and fry until they are a beautiful golden brown.

The post cut proof is really important and you need to keep a close watch on the time. If you wait too long the will become too soft and start to loose their shape.

Once the donuts have completely cooled, ice them with desired icing/frosting and or topping. When making donuts, oil temperature control is the critical point. It's fine to fry several at once, be sure to have a landing pad ready before starting. It you want to roll or toss donuts in cinnamon sugar, this needs to by done when the donuts come out of the oil.

Marshmallows

Marshmallows are an iconic treat used to a accent or enhance other desserts such as hot chocolate, s'mores and rice krispies among others. While homemade marshmallows are not at the top of every pastry chef's list, there is certainly a novelty to making marshmallows. The process is actually quite easy and a well-put-together plate of marshmallows can go a very long way. Marshmallows can be made with a variety flavors and infusions. They can also be cut into many shapes and sizes.

Marshmallows actually date back to ancient times and were derived from plants called marsh mallows which are very popular in Europe and Asia.  In America, we can thank companies like Kraft for making making marshmallows readily available and popular. In the 1950's they revolutionized the process, allowing mass production.
 
Production
Marshmallows: 1 5/8 oz gelatin; 1 lb 13 oz sugar; 9 7/8 oz of water; 7 3/8 oz of glucose; 11 3/4 oz egg whites.  NOTE: Corn syrup can be substituted for glucose if needed.

Procedure: Bloom the gelatin sheets and set a side. Meanwhile, heat the sugar, water and glucose to 285 F.  While the sugar mixture is heating, whip the egg whites on low speed. When the sugar mixture temperature reaches 266 F, whip the whites on high speed. At 284 F, squeeze the water out of the gelatin and add it to the melted sugar mixture and slowly pour on to the whipping whites. Continue to whip on high speed until full volume is reached. Pour the mixture on to a silpat lined sheet pan dusted with a powdered sugar/potato starch mixture.

Use a spatula to smooth the top and dust with more potato starch/powdered sugar mixture. Cover and let cool completely.  Once the mixture has cooled, you can cut into whatever shapes and sized you want. To avoid sticking, coat in the powdered sugar/potato starch mixture. If adding flavor or infusions, do it when the sugar is melting.

Plating
I chose squares because we are used to seeing marshmallows in rounds. It's fun eating a square marshmallow, a familiar taste with a new shape. It's similar to eating a square doughnut. Given my marshmallows were square, I also went with a square plate and symmetrically placed nine 2 inch x 2 inch marshmallows in three rows of three. The plate would be a great accompaniment to an after lunch or dinner coffee or hot chocolate.