Held in Custard-y

It's the Final Countdown!

We now have only 15 class days left until we are done with culinary school. Hooray! It's been fun, but I think we're all anxious to move on to a real pastry job now. April 8th is the last day so mark your calendar (I know I have).

Jiggle it, Just a Little Bit

I think the custard section of our class in now over, but it couldn't end soon enough for me. I am not a fan of goopy, gelatinous desserts (gummy bears and cheesecake are an exception). So the idea of spending an entire week making tons of eggy, wobbly creme brulee (top right photo), clafoutis (left photo), flan and cheesecake left me less than enthusiastic. Add to that the danger of spilling scalding hot water on your arms when trying to pull these desserts out of the oven (they sit in a heavy sheet pan full of water to prevent burning the outside) and you have a very long, unhappy week.

However, it might have been worth it for the discovery of a delicious flourless cake (bottom right photo) recipe. Yes, it had some wobble to it, but it was comparable to cheesecake consistency and it was oh-so-chocolatey and adorable coming out of those pyramid molds!

Another highlight to custard week was getting to use a culinary torch to burn the sugar that sits on top of the creme brulee to create that signature carmelized crust. I don't want to eat it, but I do want to torch it!