The chocolate week one and week two

(Also known as the two weeks with the substitute teacher)

I actually gave a glowing review of the program during my mid term interview, because really I had so far had a good impression of the school. I am so lucky because I am in the BEST group, my group mates are lovely, I love our chef, our lab is brand new, I am learning a lot and what I like the most is that I'm learning to become a professional and that's exactly what I want.

But then I was asked if I had anything to add and I then expressed my displeasure that I didn't appreciate the fact we have 8 labs coming up without our chef. So that took place the past couple weeks, time flew by as usual and for once though I didn't mind so much. The sub teacher was ok, honestly he wasn't bad at all and he was very nice and polite but it was just different let's put it that way.

The fortnight started with a Monday public holiday, and on Tuesday we were with chef and we made 3 different kinds of gateaux de voyage and all three were good! I only took one home but I tried all of them. The next day, we made another 3 different cakes but even though they were pretty good and all looked quite pretty, I'd rather not put on more weight!! My birthday is coming and I just want to feel good about myself. Mid life crisis you say? Maybe....

On Thursday we started working with chocolate, our little project was to make a chocolate bonsai and sub teacher was quite organised, at the end of the day we had the pot and tree bark ready. Working the chocolate and shape it into a bark was HARD! Honestly I think my bonsai bark was one of the smallest because it was just bloddy difficult, it kept breaking and falling apart. Regardless what I just said, maybe because it's all new to me... I am completely fascinated by chocolate right now. I love to temper, I like that there is a science to it, that you have to be precise, that when you make a mistake... chocolate forgives, you can remelt and start again. What a magic substance!

We finished our masterpieces on Friday, and all day we had visitors who came to admire our work, sub chef was very happy and proud and we too were happy. It was an uplifting Friday. I was kind of looking forward for the following week which was just the week past, a very busy week! On Monday and Tuesday we made 4 large chocolate eggs, they weren't easy to make and my eggs were far from perfect.

Then we spent two days to make a lapin cretin. We made it out of different sized egg moulds and round mould for the eyes, it was very DIY and I don't know... difficult as it was, surely it shouldn't have taken so long to make ? I did enjoy making this piece but it was really like heart attack central in the oven room when we had to spray our lapin and our chocolate structure. I now look at chocolate show pieces on Instagram with a different pair of eyes... Amazement, because honestly... it's not easy peasy to make at all! On Friday we finalised the piece and I was just glad that I managed to not break my lapin nor my chocolate structure. At least 4 of us broke their lapin and had to patch it all up.. if that happened to me it would've probably been really difficult for me to catch up because I am still a bit slower than others.

Having said that though, I think I could pat myself in the back for having finished in the middle pack the past couple of weeks. My chef said to me during the interview that I think too much! I never realised that maybe I had been umming and aahing for a tad too long before I do something but so I consciously have been trying not to. So it's been like oh you have to attach both halves of the eggs together I was like ok bang bang bang. In the end one half got stuck onto a wrong half, the (not very) delicate dentelle should've gone with the roughly brushed half and I used a smooth egg half. I didn't stop to think but the job gets done and it wasn't the end of the world that I made a mistake HAH normally I would definitely get upset! Oh we have to cut the bunny's face for the mouth ok, let's cut.. normally I would stop and stare at the eyeless mouthless head for a few minutes to decide where I will cut the mouth where the eyes will go etc. In the end I think I was happier to have finished in good time rather than stressing out at the end trying to not be the very last and finished the piece poorly and gets disappointed in the end. So, well done me hehe.

Next week, our chef is back and a month to the day... it would be our last day at school. I am officially sad because I get along really well with my group buddies and we spent many hours everyday 5-6 days a week I will definitely miss seeing them everyday... (I think as for my cold hearted chef though... we would be replaced by a new batch of Anglo students and forgotten BOOO!!!).

You cross path then you say good bye. I hate that, mais c'est comme ça la vie.

Melinda xx

ps. I miss you Sydney friends xx

The week we had our mid term interview

Last week felt like a busy week maybe because the week before when we were not with our chef, we didn't have any TA class and the labs were very low tempo. Monday morning, I sauntered into the lab and my friend said .. do you know we are having an evaluation! WHAT?? Ah but when I found out it's Succès, ah chill... I would prefer a surprise evaluation than a weekend where I would be thinking about it. The succès was to be decorated with chocolate and after I scrolled on the posts I've liked on insta I decided to attempt this crown pretty looking thing that would go nicely and give some height.

Honestly! Instagram could be so deceiving sometimes! The short video makes it look so simple to do .. but bugger! it was so not do-able at all! I tried three times!! Anyway by then I started to panic because I hadn't made a single thing of chocolate decor and time ticked tocked really fast when you are under pressure. Bah! In the end my succès looked so unattractive I didn't take any photo. Normally, the pass/fail criteria for the evaluation is if sell-able then you get 10+ and if not then below 10. Chef said my sponge was ok, the colour was a touch under ... and the butter cream no problem but the rosaces could've been piped higher... I passed, but personally I wouldn't buy it. Maybe he should change the criteria to .. would people buy it ? because sure... you can put them out for sale but what if nobody buys them? right? But then again I think I would be getting under 10 and might end up developing some sort of depression haha.

On Tuesday, we made the mini choux and the nougatine for the croquembouche. Rolling out the nougatine was such a work out and you try to mould it into a baking pan to make the base, 2 seconds later ... Ouchy! So hot! If you wait around until it's cooler the nougatine mix will harden quickly and you would only get 1-2 meagre pieces everytime. It is a good thing to work with fast people... because I will try to keep up, and that day I was lucky to pair up with Bhupar mr rapidos. I didn't want to slow him down and I think I came in FIRST with all my pieces of nougatine lined up on a tray... UNBELIEVABLE!

On Wednesday morning I came in for my midterm interview with Brigitte and my chef. I had heard from the guys who had had their interview that you would be asked how you found the program so far, which I thought was a bit weird... I thought the evaluation was to review how I progressed so far like when I had a performance review at work more or less. But so yes, no it wasn't. How do you feel about the program? about the art class, about the wine class, about the demo, the excursions? Any remarks to add? euh yes, bla bla bla.

And then finally when we got to talk a bit about how I was faring... How do you think you are doing so far? Average. How is your French going? ok. About your internship, any thoughts? I had already decided to let chef decide for me because I trust him to have my best interest in mind. So I said, I leave it up to him but I also added that... (of course I secretly wanted to be placed in a hotel because of the prestige) my background is the hotel industry so I naturally would probably go for jobs at a hotel when I go back. Chef then said, you know how hotel works already then... so no *SLAM* I said euh I worked in the corporate office though not in the hotel... No hotel for you, it would be too tough for you, said my chef extinguishing my little hope. OH. So then ? In a shop. Okay. Get your CV and cover letter ready in French and you will later have to go to see the chef and have an interview in French, you ok with that? Fine.

Initially I was completely ok with chef saying no re: hotels because I had heard the hours are mighty long and hard work... but then during lunch I was chatting with a girl in my class and she's tiny! I think I look more solid (fat) compared to her and she told me that when she said she wanted to go to a 5 star hotel.. chef said that it would be hard work bla bla but he thought that she would be ok. When I first heard that I suddenly felt disheartened, whyyyyyy??? she and I are quite on par in class I thought. I was feeling a bit down for half a day or so but after some reflection... honestly I think I don't have the stamina for 12 hour days doing physical work 5-6 days a week not even if I was 15 years younger. So I am not envious anymore.

In the afternoon, we built our croquembouches. I really like building it.. and even though I'm not good in decorating 'free style' at all, in the end it looked ok, even quite pretty. We finished just before 8pm that evening it was a long day... and our croquembouches tragically ended up in the trash at the end of the day.

Thursday was a big day because we had another evaluation and this one was no surprise. It was the éclairs & religieuses & Royale evaluation that we had to miss because of the gas explotion. I actually ended up failing both my éclairs & religieuses (10 and 8 out of 20!) they were both overcooked and especially the religieuses they are all singed at the collar... black as charcoal they were. CRAP. My éclairs were too fat and looked so homemade. I cringed at how they look. Chef said the cream was ok, how I filled them was ok, choux pastry not too bad, Royale looked ok, the mousse he said he saw it was fine, my decoration as usual was awful. You know considering how much time I waste on instagram looking at pretty cakes I would learn to decorate better, but NO. But I really liked this evaluation because I felt like I had to really go go go otherwise I wouldn't finish on time, it was quite a thrill :)

Thursday afternoon we had a demo by a MOF in cuisine Fabrice Desvignes and it was great!!! I was tuning in completely and really, he was great and funny and seems very nice. The plated desserts that he made were pretty and at the end of the day I was so motivated to try harder on the presentation which so far often lets me down.

Friday, it was éclair redemption time. I love all the choux pastry family and it's ridiculous that I still couldn't make nice ones. I piped and repiped several times until I was relatively happy with the shape. Luckily they came out looking ok, at least they weren't cracking too too much and rather nice and slim. I had a bit of trouble with my caramel au beurre salé at first ... woah panic central because it looked a bit oily and strange but chef fixed it. Phew. I added a bit more salt to taste and I loved it! On top of that, one of them looked pretty good, it was a small victory for me... (even though the other 9 were still pretty moche!)

My gâteau basque.... argh I shouldn't had cared about being left behind the pack and could've left it in the blast freezer for another 5 minutes and it would've probably made a big difference. My egg wash too could had been a bit thinner I think, the egg wash was catching at the fork the pattern was not marked clearly and so it didn't come out as pretty as the others. It is still pretty good though, I quite like it.

Friday morning we had class where we were given recipes for this coming week... it would be a week of gâteaux de voyages.... and for the next two weeks, except for one day, we would be with a replacement teacher. Grumble grumble... I know that my chef can't be my chef forever but whilst I'm still at school at least. Anyway we'll see... no expectations no disappointment right? Grumble grumble...

During the midterm interview chef asked whether I was happy, it took me a second or two to answer because I had to stop and examine how I felt... I answered yes, I was (and am) happy. I have to mention that because ahhh, after I reread what I wrote it seems that I whinge a lot and you know, actually... on the inside I'm very happy :) I just want to get better! Whingers are amongst my least favourite human traits... and I hope that I never become one of those tiring people who complains all the time!!! And to you who bother to spend a few minutes to catch up on how I'm doing, I promise that I will do better next week so that I don't get upset and you won't have to read about it but it's hardddd as I am never one to lower the bar just to be content. Reach for the stars and all that right?

Bla bla bla. You have listened (read) enough for now, until next week maybe.

Melinda xx

Ps. I had my first visitor on Saturday. This lady who I used to work with, who in the past few years occasionally would say to me that I didn't belong in Australia I belong in Paris. She was the one who planted me the seed in my head last year and who would've thought that one year later I'm here. Thank you and love you Sandra! xx

The short week

Three days of school only then a 4 day long weekend! Woo hoo!! So this week... we had a substitute teacher, it was my turn to be chef of the week and we had another art class and art class = art homework plus we were also to hand in the preliminary recipes for our creative project on the same day. I never thought that I would ever find this hashtag appropriate for me but... #schoollyfe!

I think I might had mentioned in passing about our final project; we are to present to a panel, 6 creative individual babas and 2 tartes where by we are free to select our 2 flavours which would have to be present in both baba and tarte. When we had first been told of the project I thought eeeeekkkk!! how scary especially anything to do with the art work we have to present. But as time passes I am getting a bit more excited about this exercise. Maybe.... I can do this.

Art class was on Wednesday morning for 4 hours and even though I was better prepared with my art homework but I stayed up until after 1.30 am to make sure that I selected recipes that are quasi final for at least the basic elements of the creative challenge. So as the day started my battery was only at 65%. Pascal is really nice and to be fair, some of us had spent hours on the homework and so to have him examining each work for like 10 minutes, was a very nice gesture.

Anyway, consequently the class did run 40 minutes late so lunch for me wasn't an option. I should had already been in the lab 10 minutes ago, my hunger was already gone! but my battery was at the most, 40% and I was looking forward to the end of the day very much. Luckily it was the substitute teacher and he doesn't arrive normally until the time the class starts. So yeah, by the way for the three days we had a different chef and I am still TS. Team Stévy haha.

Let's not dwell too much as to why I didn't really enjoy the past 3 days. I'll tell you one of them though. I am in the please and thank you camp and so I don't appreaciate it when someone superior in rank swear when giving orders. I am not in the army nor in the navy! I am not opposed to people who swear if only sparingly and I even find it funny when used in the right context. But when he yelled I want the effing this and effing that, sorry no matter he said it to the whole class I don't like it and in my eyes he went down one rank. We will have another 2 weeks with a different substitute teacher who I heard from a friend in the cuisine class, swears a lot. Crap! Maybe I should expect the worse and so hopefully would be pleasantly surprised.

We made babas this week, and so it should had been a crucial learning week for us because simple as it may look, from what I read and seen there are important rules to follow to have them soaked properly etc. I felt though that we weren't explained enough and all week it felt a bit like an amateur baking class where the teacher was just there to ensure that our bake would come out ok.

On Monday apparently some of us prepared the crème mascarpone for the baba. I was a bit pissed because I completely missed it. What when how, why weren't we get called to watch how it's done. Anyway, the following day it went missing. Apparently it had been thrown away, because it had no label. I had NO IDEA that the stupid cream had been made, let alone knew where it's been kept in the fridge. I thought I had checked the bowls and containers in the walk-in fridge that they had been labelled before I left on Monday, nobody blamed me but I was still a bit upset at myself that it went 'undetected' because I should had had picked that up. GRRRRR.

Apart from the baba, luckily the other 2 tarts were pretty simple, and the barquettes marrons were also not super difficult, apart from the piping. My piping is horrid, I need to practice because it is really annoying me. Though in this photo they look especially ghastly because I had to carry many things that day, art class stuff, dirty uniform, a box and these barquettes unprotected in a cake carrier running down rue de Rennes to meet a friend. My piping is not THAT bad. Otherwise, the lab this week was a breeze actually, a lot of standing around.

Ok, enough rant about school because it's an extra long weekend and the weather in Paris is simply incroyable!!! Four day weekend is the best, I have enough time for everything... straigthening my hair, writing this post, cat naps, ironing my uniforms, a long bath etc.

On Thursday night we had a pot luck night at Raz's and the food looks amazing! I slow roasted a lamb shoulder for about 6 hours but I think it could've done with another few hours in the oven! And it's a bit too salty for me, and the lamb's flavour is different compared to lamb in Australia. A bit too strong for my liking. I can critisize it to death, it's my dish. Everybody else's dishes though were really good especially the panaeng curry! Yummers!

After dinner we played three rounds of twister, such a fun night ... I'm gonna say it again, I am so lucky to be in group A.

Next week we are making a croquembouche apparently. I'm looking forward to that.... I love choux.

Melinda xx

The week when we had a surprise evaluation and the week before spring break

By now everyone comes in so early that even when I come in by 7am I feel like I was running in late already let alone at 7.07 that's like super late! Well that Monday morning I think I must had arrived few minutes late because not only the recipes are already written on the whiteboard, some people are already weighing up ingredients. Written on the board : croissant evaluation. Whattttt?! our group were never told it was going to be an evaluation... but chef said that because we were pretty good at it he didn't worry. So anyway I got over the 'shock' quickly and proceeded to make the dough as normal. We were to bake them the next day when our chef would be with us, that day we had chef from group B supervising us.

Meanwhile in between dough resting we also made kouign amann. I thought I had already made awesome ones in the past but the ones we made at school that day were amazing! We added some vanilla powder and kapow! they became even more super tasty. My cat loves butter and will come from a different room when he smells butter and he could definitely detect butter in these.

On Tuesday we baked our croissants and pains au chocolat, the look of mine were not bad.... I made worse looking ones but of course they were far from perfect! I have a list of things I found wrong in them but chef was much more lenient, he said the shapes of my croissants were mmhhh not good, lamination not bad but the butter must had cracked and pains au chocolat shapes were irregular. At home I cut open each and everyone and he was right, I rolled the croissants too tightly and the one he said was correct had a nice crumb (below) the rest mmhhhh I'd rather not show. One of 8 correct is a definite fail for me but I passed the evaluation though. So gentle my chef haha.

On that day we also made Polonaises which I had never had nor heard before, they look so retro and they are rather good. Wednesday we started by making croissant dough again! I was excited because I thought I would have a chance to see if I roll the croissants lightly and don't press them too hard they would be wonderful but chef said NO when I asked if I could make some with the dough. So maybe one day before the weather turned too summery I would try make some AT HOME. Anyway, so I ended up with 8 super fatty pain suisse that I didn't want and 8 escargots pistache chocolat. We also made that day, some amazing looking and very delicious brioches feuilletée but I gave away everything.

On Thursday we went on another school excursion, to flour mill Moulins Bourgeois Verdelot outside Paris. We went with people from group B and it was a rather nice day because the weather was beautiful and the village is quaint and charming. The factory was quite amazing, I like watching production line and it was quite fascinating to see and to know how flour comes about on the supermarket shelves though this particular mill only supplies in bulk to several artisan bakeries in Paris. Here is a photo of group A looking cheery and well pleased with their goody bags.

Us and group B.

Friday we made tarte tropezienne, and there went another week. I think on Monday I had reached my fat quota for the week already but I took this tarte home. Love it!

The week after was the week before spring break and it was another week of entremets. It was honestly, perhaps my least favourite week so far.. from the start. If I was a soccer player I felt like I had the ball in the penalty area, someone tackled me we both fell and I was the one given the yellow card. That happened on Monday, quickly forgiven and forgotten but then on Tuesday I got another reprimand which I'm sure this time it was my fault but I couldn't remember what. From then on, I was like a player who was just playing careful not to make a mistake and hit anyone and so ran slower dropped the ball etc. Focus was just practically gone and plus there were so many elements we made on the same day for different entremets so I was just carrying on autopilot following what everybody does. NOT good because I was feeling a bit lost as to what was going on.

Only on Thursday after we finished everything I finally could sum up in my head what elements were in which. That week we made 6 entremets in 4 days :
1. Douceur Feminine (so good! biscuit noisette, cremeux citron, chantilly mascarpone vanille)

2. Garigues (top left, biscuit chocolat, cremeux clementine à la basilic, compoté mara des bois, mousse au chocolat à la basilic)
3. Entremets peanuts (my favourite, biscuit chocolat, cremeux tonka, mousse dulcey, crunch cacahuète)
4. Tea Time (biscuit chocolat sans farine, cremeux framboise, mousse chocolat lait thé earl grey)
5. Noumea (biscuit noisette, mousse banane ananas)
6. Praliné Citron (pain de gênes, mousse praliné, cremeux citron)

Then Friday came, we had another demo but I kept losing interest. Maybe it was because I had holiday already in my mind, maybe because it was a week where I wasn't feeling my best, but in the end I think it was because I had too high hopes after the last demo. As with everything, I have to learn to not have any expectations and just let things to surprise me. That was a nice segway for me to explain that last year I went to Iceland without any expectations and I was quite blown away. A few days ago I came back from a quick getaway again to Iceland, this time of course I knew already what I was in for, but again Iceland stepped it up one notch.. it was even better than I remembered it.

I stayed at the same hotel next to the blue lagoon and the hotel had been redone and I loved it even more. Last year I found the surface of the blue lagoon was rough and rocky and I found that they had made it more pleasant and smooth. I found the people kind and friendly... the food fresh and delicious, the colours a palette of vivid and sombre unlike anywhere I had seen. The weather was amazing especially the day I visited the blue lagoon.

I can't wait to go again, but meanwhile... school restarts tomorrow and I'm all refreshed body and mind. The whole week we will be with chef from group D which I'm not especially happy about... because no matter how, I am still very fond of our chef and think that he is the best. But I suppose variety is good and I shouldn't have any expectation plus it is a very short week... where we will have another art class!! I am looking forward to the second half of our course but definitely not looking forward to the end. I am definitely going to try to make everyday the best day ever and not to think and worry too much about anything. Except for maybe, the art homework.

Melinda x

Ps. Wednesday before the holiday, some of us took a picnic rug and snacks to Parc des Sceaux. As pretty as I remembered it with all the cherry blossoms.