The big news is that Steve arrived safe and sound on Saturday morning. As my sister Joyce would say, “that’s a beautiful thing.” I met him at CDG and we took the RER back into Paris, switched to the 5 for a number of stops, and then had a bit of a walk back to rue du General Renault. Steve crashed almost immediately, but I roused him temporarily and we had an enjoyable lunch down the street at Candide. I deposited Steve back at the apartment and made my way back to our old neighborhood, rue Poliveau, to get a haircut. I went to the same place that I had used before, and the same young man, Sebastian, did another good job. Plus I was able to practice my French some more!! (pictured above: Stephanie, Jean Jacques, Kate and me.)
The week began cool and rainy. Sunday was a catch up day for me as I prepared to start my “entremets” class at Le Cordon Bleu on Monday. I worked in the apartment a bit, made a flan from the Dorie Greenspan book, then went out in the afternoon to stroll and attend a free late afternoon piano concert at St. Sulpice.
Monday I didn’t have to be at school until noon, so I had a leisurely morning before heading out for my 40-45 minute trip to LCB. I discovered that there would be only 3 of us in the class, plus we had an interpreter, Leann, who had also been working there when I attended the classes in 2006. She certainly knows her stuff!
The week began cool and rainy. Sunday was a catch up day for me as I prepared to start my “entremets” class at Le Cordon Bleu on Monday. I worked in the apartment a bit, made a flan from the Dorie Greenspan book, then went out in the afternoon to stroll and attend a free late afternoon piano concert at St. Sulpice.
Monday I didn’t have to be at school until noon, so I had a leisurely morning before heading out for my 40-45 minute trip to LCB. I discovered that there would be only 3 of us in the class, plus we had an interpreter, Leann, who had also been working there when I attended the classes in 2006. She certainly knows her stuff!
One of my classmates is Kate from Taiwan and the other is Stephanie from Indonesia. Our chef, Jean Jacques, who had also been there during my previous stint, proceeded to start the demo of the production of 8 different “entremets” (basically layered desserts) that we would all be working on through the course of the week. (pictured below: Chef Jean Jacques assembling fleurs de neige, "flowers of the snow".)
(In my next entry I'll provide a more detailed description and explanation of each of these desserts with more photos.)
Since the class is so small, the three of us just “bellied up to the bar” around the demo area, taking notes and pictures, asking questions and just being pretty casual about it all.
Tuesday noon, during the lunch break at LCB, they had a welcoming party for all the new students. It turns out the round of new sessions for all regular pastry and cuisine courses had begun 1 week before, and the school usually has a “getting to know you” event. They put out a spread of cheese, bread, fruit, wine and other beverages for all to enjoy. I chatted with a young woman from Toronto who now lives in the Cayman Islands, as well as 2 young ladies from Turkey and a young man from Indonesia. Tuesday after class I met my friend Misato at the Paris mosque for tea, and we sat and chatted in our interesting French and her bits of English, as well as swapped recipes and ideas for desserts and garnishes. We hope to see each other again through the course of the month.
The week continued with each day bringing the production of another component of these layered desserts, first in the demonstration kitchen, and then in the practical kitchen where Stephanie, Kate and I all worked together to make these various components ourselves. Wednesday was the most time consuming session during which we made many different creams and mousses as fillings for these desserts, followed by the assembly of all the layers. Then on Thursday and Friday all of the final décor and finishing was accomplished. Whew!!!
Friday afternoon we presented all of our desserts to a number of the administrative staff members at LCB, during which a lot of pictures were taken (and this is where Steve enters the picture!!! – get it?), and we explained to our audience what went into each dessert. Then the final products were taken downstairs and served to students and staff. It was a good feeling of accomplishment. (pictured above: our table laid out for the administration; below: Chef Jean-Jacques on the left and who knows on the right?)
The feeling in the classroom and practical kitchen this time around is certainly much more relaxed than when I did the pastry diploma courses in 2006. Plus with only 3 of us in the kitchen we have so much room to work. It’s great!!
Next week – chocolate and more to come from the city of light.
Susan
Tuesday noon, during the lunch break at LCB, they had a welcoming party for all the new students. It turns out the round of new sessions for all regular pastry and cuisine courses had begun 1 week before, and the school usually has a “getting to know you” event. They put out a spread of cheese, bread, fruit, wine and other beverages for all to enjoy. I chatted with a young woman from Toronto who now lives in the Cayman Islands, as well as 2 young ladies from Turkey and a young man from Indonesia. Tuesday after class I met my friend Misato at the Paris mosque for tea, and we sat and chatted in our interesting French and her bits of English, as well as swapped recipes and ideas for desserts and garnishes. We hope to see each other again through the course of the month.
The week continued with each day bringing the production of another component of these layered desserts, first in the demonstration kitchen, and then in the practical kitchen where Stephanie, Kate and I all worked together to make these various components ourselves. Wednesday was the most time consuming session during which we made many different creams and mousses as fillings for these desserts, followed by the assembly of all the layers. Then on Thursday and Friday all of the final décor and finishing was accomplished. Whew!!!
Friday afternoon we presented all of our desserts to a number of the administrative staff members at LCB, during which a lot of pictures were taken (and this is where Steve enters the picture!!! – get it?), and we explained to our audience what went into each dessert. Then the final products were taken downstairs and served to students and staff. It was a good feeling of accomplishment. (pictured above: our table laid out for the administration; below: Chef Jean-Jacques on the left and who knows on the right?)
The feeling in the classroom and practical kitchen this time around is certainly much more relaxed than when I did the pastry diploma courses in 2006. Plus with only 3 of us in the kitchen we have so much room to work. It’s great!!Next week – chocolate and more to come from the city of light.
Susan
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