This week has been a very decadent week. Beaucoup de chocolat. Here’s a look at what I’ve been up to:

I wish I had added a bit more glaze for a shinier sheen. I chose a simple design that in the end reminded me of an awkward starfish. Oops!

Bavarois

Here is a picture of my friend Neha’s Bavarois. Magnifique, mademoiselle!

Neha’s Bavarois

The cakes we’ve been making lately (Fraisier, Bavarois, etc.) have incorporated a few new techniques such as making Bavarian cream. But for the most part, it seems like a review of basic pâtisserie. Just as we thought we could get comfortable…we had to temper chocolate.

Chocolat Café et Truffes

The first day of chocolate tempering was the hardest: milk chocolate. It was a novice’s work so I won’t even bother posting our hideous, not-so-delicious Praliné et Muscadines. Even the dark chocolates featured above are not sufficient with chef’s standard of brillant. They can always be shinier.

Well I suppose if I keep working with chocolate and practice, practice, practice, perhaps one day I can be like Chef Daniel Walter and know just from looking, whether the chocolate needs to be heated or cooled a few more degrees. We call him Monsieur Chocolat for a reason.

Done with chocolate [tempering] for the week and of course like any other day at Le Cordon Bleu, I’m craving salty [Spanish] jamón…