mollygilbert520

Sugar

April 26, 2010 by mollygilbert520 1 Comment

(doo doo dee dee dah dah) ahh honey honey.

Just wanted to post a few pictures of what my classmates and I have been doing at school these days – mostly playing with sugar. Poured sugar, blown sugar, pulled sugar, rock sugar… it’s uh, pretty sweet. (heyo!)

Lollipop anyone?

Candy cane!

Ribbon candy

Poured sugar pets.

Jessica’s blown sugar fruit basket. She’s kind of awesome.

Kristyn’s blown sugar giraffe. Also awesome.

Hungry hungry caterpillar
Chipmunks in love in sugar

Sugar Scrabble board

You sunk my sugar battleship

Operation!

The most delicious board game of all
Pretty sweet, huh?

Death By…

April 1, 2010 by mollygilbert520 2 Comments

Chocolate, duh. Or, more specifically, death of mini chocolate “cupcakes” by ferocious, mean-faced chocolate cupcake monster.

Don’t follow? It’s okay. Look:

This is my latest FCI-assigned chocolate project. The assignment was to design a chocolate showpiece that embodies this theme: if you were a creature or monster, what would you be?

This is me.

I’m calling it (me?) a “quarter-life cupcake crisis monster.” What do you think? Can you see the resemblance? Notice the swirly chocolate “frosting” – maybe brunette curls?

And these are my poor, delicious little chocolate victims:

It’s too bad they’re so adorable and delicious. Maybe if they weren’t made out of pure chocolate, I wouldn’t want to eat them.

…Yeah who am I kidding? Of course I would. I’m a pastry school student, for pete’s sake. Eating cupcakes is like, homework.

Life is really hard sometimes.

Merry…

March 26, 2010 by mollygilbert520 Leave a Comment

No one’s hangin’ stockin’s up,
No one’s bakin’ pie,
No one’s lookin’ up to see
A new star in the sky.
No one’s talkin’ brotherhood,
No one’s givin’ gifts,
And no one loves a Christmas tree
On March the twenty-fifth.

– Shel Silverstein

Pastillage Cake Stand by Sarah K.

Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

March 23, 2010 by mollygilbert520 5 Comments

Just wanted to show you what I made at school this week:

It’s a cake stand! Made of pastillage!

Pastillage. Pah-stee-YAHJ. It’s really just a paste made from sugar, cornstarch, vinegar and gelatin – you roll it out like pie dough and cut it into shapes, and it dries hard. Then, barring any major disasters (this stuff is de-li-cate. It likes to crack and shatter), you can glue your shapes together with royal icing or isomalt, and voilà!

Cute little guy, isn’t he?

You know, I’m sort of sensing a trend with these showpieces. I think someone has a Peter Pan complex.

Oh, what, you think it’s me? Just because I happen to like chocolate chip cookies? And adorable mice? Tiny little sugar mice who like to wear overalls and cookie crumbs?

…Fine. But I mean come on – have you ever read If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, by Laura Joffe Numeroff (great name, by the way)?

If you haven’t, you should. And if you have, you sorta like my cake stand, don’t you?

Admit it. You want a cookie.

I wonder what happens when you give a blog-reader a cookie. Let’s find out, shall we?

Salted Chocolate Chip Cookies

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 sticks butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
12 ounces semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 tablespoon sea salt, such as fleur de sel, for sprinkling

Directions:

Working in a large pan over medium-high heat, brown the butter. Just swirl the pan of butter over the heat until the milk solids start to separate and turn brown. Once the butter is browned, pour it into a metal bowl and put it in the freezer to cool.

Preheat the oven to 375ºF. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt.

Once the butter has completely cooled to room temperature, whisk it vigorously with the sugar until it is light and pale yellow. Whisk in the eggs one at a time until thoroughly blended. Mix in the vanilla, then stir in the flour mixture gently, until combined. Fold in the chocolate chips.

Using an ice-cream scoop or two spoons, drop the batter by the tablespoon onto the prepared baking sheets. Sprinkle each of the cookies with some sea salt, and then bake for about 12-15 minutes, until the edges have browned and the cookies are golden. Allow to cool, about 5 minutes, before enjoying… with a glass of milk, naturally.

Makes about 50 cookies.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Tomatoes, Arugula and Pine Nuts

March 21, 2010 by mollygilbert520 6 Comments

Here in New York City, Spring is springing. Want to see?

Also, there are people outside. All kinds of people, just hanging out! Strolling, even! No one’s hurrying down the street, hands clutched over the collar of a big jacket, heavy boots clunking and head bent down against the wind. Today, heads are turned up, bare arms are swinging, and faces are soaking in the sunshine. It’s really quite wonderful.

True it’s only March, and this gorgeous sun is bound to hide away again, giving us only peeking glances of its uplifting warmth until its usual playtime sometime around May, but for now it’s putting me in a damn good mood, and I just can’t be bothered to care.

Or to eat anything that’s not this:

I can’t decide if I should call it pasta or salad (pasta salad? Just seems too pedestrian for something so light and fresh), but it’s a perfect, effortless meal for these warm, breezy days, however fleeting.

Whole Wheat Pasta with Tomatoes, Arugula, and Pine Nuts

My cousin Katie made this for me for dinner last week, and I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it. It’s healthy and fresh, and takes only minutes to prepare – the whole thing comes together effortlessly while the pasta water is boiling. We gobbled this up as-is, but it would be great mixed with some grilled chicken or shrimp for a heftier meal.

Ingredients:

1 box whole wheat spaghetti
a few large handfuls fresh arugula
one half pint cherry tomatoes, chopped in half
1/4 cup pine nuts
olive oil
chopped parsley, for sprinkling
parmesan cheese, for sprinkling

Directions:

Boil a large pot of salted water for the pasta, and cook as directed on the box. While the pasta is cooking, place the pine nuts in a single layer in a large, dry sauté pan over medium heat, and toast until fragrant and lightly browned, stirring occasionally. When the pasta has finished cooking, strain it and add some olive oil to coat the noodles. Throw in the arugula, tomatoes, and pine nuts, and sprinkle some parsley and parmesan on top, to taste. Give the pasta a toss and serve in large bowls with extra cheese, if you like.

Serves about 4.

Irish Soda Bread

March 17, 2010 by mollygilbert520 1 Comment

KISS ME I’M…

A brunette? Hmm, no. …A person who likes cheese? Yeah you’re right, that’s probably not it. Oh wait, wait, I got it:

TOP OF THE MORNIN’ TO YA! LUCK OF THE IRISH!! HAPPY ST. PADDY’S DAY!!! WOOOO!

woo.

Yeah… I’m not really that into this holiday. Notwithstanding my name, I’m not Irish and, if we’re being totally honest here, I suppose I’ll just admit that I don’t really know who St. Patrick was or what he did to land himself a holiday. To me, St. Paddy’s Day is less of a holiday and more of an excuse for dressing monochromatically and day-drinking. Which is fine by me. I’m just saying.

At any rate, if you’re interested in paying homage to St. Patrick in a way that doesn’t involve salacious t-shirts or green beer, I know of something that may help. It’s called Irish Soda Bread.

I recently thought that I didn’t like Irish Soda Bread, until we made it at school and I promptly scarfed down an entire loaf. You’d think there’s something off-putting about the combination of caraway seeds and dried currants, but it’s actually kind of inspired. And it turns out that the term Irish Soda Bread is a bit misleading, given that, in texture and crumb, this loaf is exactly like a giant scone.

Even if you’re not into day-drinking, don’t you think this sounds like something you can get behind? Erin Go Bragh, Lads!

Irish Soda Bread

This makes enough dough for two 6-inch round loaves. Make two, freeze one? Or eat both. I won’t tell anyone.

Ingredients:

390 grams all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
50 grams granulated sugar
25 grams butter, cut into small chunks
110 grams dried currants (raisins are a fine substitute)
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
280 milliliters buttermilk

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Combine the all-purpose flour, salt, baking soda, and cream of tartar in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. Cut in the butter, using two knives or a pastry cutter, or the paddle attachment of a stand mixer, until the butter is the size of peas.

Add the currants and caraway seeds. Add the buttermilk, and mix just to combine. The dough will still look a bit shaggy, but that’s okay.

Shape the dough into two round loaves, and cut a deep, broad “X” in the top, approximately 1 to 1 1/2 inches deep.

Bake the loaves on a large sheet pan (or two), lined with parchment paper, for 30 to 40 minutes, until a brown crust forms and a skewer comes out clean.

Enjoy with a few pats of soft butter. And a green beer, if you’re so inclined.

Oh, Bother

March 10, 2010 by mollygilbert520 2 Comments

“I like Rabbit,” said Pooh.

“…Because he uses short, easy words, like ‘how bout lunch?’ And ‘help yourself, Pooh.'”

I’ve always been a big fan of A. A. Milne and his friends from the Hundred Acre Wood. Eeyore, Piglet, Owl, Rabbit, Tigger, Kanga and Roo – and of course, the rumbly-tumbled Pooh Bear himself. And here he is! Isn’t he cute? So cute you could just eat him, I think.

Yep, that’s our friend Winnie the Pooh, in chocolate form. Entirely edible! The base is white chocolate with a flower-patterned transfer sheet print, the hunny pots are molded dark chocolate, filled with white “chocolate plastic” hunny, and Pooh Bear himself is a creamy milk chocolate cutout. His shirt and the bumblebee on top of his head are also modeled from chocolate plastic. …Don’t worry, it’s not actually plastic – it’s made from sugar, water, corn syrup and melted chocolate – more like a very flexible tootsie roll. At any rate, it’s great for small decorations on chocolate showpieces. Like, say, for molding a silly old bear’s t-shirt.

Or a bowtie and apron for the pizza man.

made by Sarah K.

Gahhh – don’t you just love chocolate?

In the comments from my last post, someone asked if I have a recipe for homemade marshmallows. I like to use this one from Alton Brown. It makes a lot of marshmallows though, so you may want to cut it in half. You could flavor them simply with vanilla, as Alton suggests (listen, in my head we are on a first name basis, ok? Shut it.), or you could throw in some cinnamon or use peppermint extract to spice them up a bit. Either way, enjoy these fluffy mallows with some hotta chocolatta!

Hot Chocolate

March 7, 2010 by mollygilbert520 4 Comments

(Please listen to this while reading this post).

This week at school, we learned about chocolate. Cacao. Chocolat. We learned pretty much all there is to know about it – how it’s made, where it’s from, the difference between brands of milk, dark and white chocolate, and how to work with each. We tempered and we tasted, and I must say, it was a delicious week.

We made chocolate cake topped with chocolate leaves!

We made little chocolate squares filled with crispy hazelnut feulletine.

We made truffles,

And chocolate boxes to put them in.

But, there’s always room for more chocolate. So I wrote a chocolate poem (it’s not made of chocolate, though, so don’t try to eat it):

Chocolate

Choco-late, choco-late,
Cho-co-late.
Choco-late, choco-late,
It is great!
Especially
When I get to eat it.

Hot Chocolate (Hotta Chocolatta):
Adapted from Ina Garten

“Hotta, hotta, chocolatta – flip a dip a whip-a-cream in the middle of a hotta, hotta, chocolatta – pick her up and drink her down!”

Ingredients:

4 1/2 cups whole milk
4 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
4 ounces milk chocolate, chopped
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 teaspoon instant espresso or coffee powder
cinnamon and marshmallows, for garnish

Directions:

Heat the milk in a saucepan on medium heat to just below the simmering point. Remove the pan from the heat and add both chocolates. When the chocolates are melted, add the sugar, vanilla extract, and espresso and whisk vigorously. Reheat gently and serve immediately. Serve with a splash of cinnamon and a handful of marshmallows!

Yield: 4-5 servings

Smack Dab In The Middle: The Midterm

February 26, 2010 by mollygilbert520 5 Comments

Well guys, it seems we are smack dab in the middle. In the middle of a slushy, sleety New York City snowstorm, on a day that marked the midway point in my pastry program at FCI. And you know what that means, don’t you?

Midterm!

The midterm for the pastry program at FCI is much different than the midterm for the classic culinary program – mostly because instead of turning out dishes of sautéed skate and roast chicken, pastry students have to make cake. Doesn’t that sound hard? Doesn’t it sound like a test you would just hate to take?

I know.

Actually, to be fair, today’s midterm wasn’t just about cake. It was about whole egg foam cake and separated egg foam cake and chiffon cake. And buttercream and Bavarian cream and fruit mousse and chocolate glaze and fondant and even (in some soon-to-be-revealed cases) rice krispie treats.

The assignment was to create a “celebration cake” and, using the medium assigned (I pulled Genoise cake, buttercream and fondant from the exam designation hat) decorate your cake to fit your theme. My class turned out some absolute stunners – birthday cakes and Mother’s Day cakes, cakes for baby showers and bridal showers and valentines:

Kelsey’s 4th of July cake

Jessica’s Birthday cake

Zoe’s Spring Celebration

Sarah’s Sweet Anniversary Cake

Chelsea’s Birthday cake

Audra’s Baby Girl cake

Mai’s Bridal Shower Beauty

Kristyn’s Mamma’s Day cake

Lawpo’s Sweetheart cake

And me? I chose the Olympics. Specifically, the popular (“popular?”) phenomenon known as curling. You know, curling? The Olympic sport (“sport?”) where the guys (or gals, or 6-month pregnant gals) wear a slippery shoe and throw a teapot down an alley of ice so that the other guys (or gals, etc.) with the Swiffers can yell and try to get the teapot to… to do something, anyway. It’s fascinating. Or, at least, it’s mildly entertaining.

And in some matches (curling matches? games? rounds? I don’t pretend to know), I hear it can sometimes get a bit delicious:

A curling cake! A cake designed to look like a curling stone! Happy Winter Olympics!

View from the top

View from the back

Info: this cake is a vanilla genoise, soaked with amaretto simple syrup, filled with coffee buttercream, and covered in rolled fondant. I molded the curling stone handle out of rice krispie treats and covered it with fondant before affixing it to the cake with toothpicks.

Amaretto-soaked vanilla genoise and coffee buttercream filling

Won’t You?

February 14, 2010 by mollygilbert520 2 Comments

WON’T YOU?

Barbara’s eyes are blue as azure
But she’s in love with Freddy,
Karen’s sweet but Harry has her,
Gentle Jane is going steady.
Carol hates me, so does May,
Abigail will not be mine,
Nancy lives too far away…
Won’t you be my Valentine?

-Shel Silverstein