Wednesday's lesson was great fun and full of drama, 
this week was a Choccy special with Choux Pastry, and Chocolate Log on the menu and everyone was back this week, so we had lots going on.
I got lots of presents too, so I have lots of mentions and 'thank you's' for my wonderful goodies.
Firstly I have to thank Cheryl for my lovely bottle of wine which was her 'thank you' to me for Poppy's cake. Apparently, Poppy loved it and had a thoroughly enjoyable birthday party which I'm very happy about.
Then I have to thank Cath for my scalpel (I was really excited by this) I love tools, and Cath always brings in her precision surgeon scalpel (it's not but that's what it looks like lol) every week and I'm always eyeing it up and telling her that I'm going to get one....no need she bought me one. THANK YOU! I also have to thank Linda for the jar of pickles for my dad, which she had apparently promised him when they were sorting out the car fiasco. I did tell him about them on the way home and tried to drop them off, but he said he wanted dumplings, not pickles, so I ended up giving them to John! 
LOL!
So now to the lesson, Linda did a wonderful demo on Genoise sponge for the outer layer of the chocolate log and once completed the ladies went away and began to make their own. Shirley and I were talking about cakes when we heard a cracking sound like somebody had dropped something on the floor. I asked her if she had heard the cracking sound and she agreed she had, but none of the girls said they had dropped anything, so we continued our discussion. The sound bothered me, so I asked again if anybody had dropped anything, but everyone said no, so we dismissed it because we were all swamped and decided that something had been knocked or moved.....WRONG....that's when the ladies noticed the water! There now seems to be a stream of water heading from the sink area but unfortunately, we cannot get under the sink to check it because it's got the biggest chain and padlock on it that I don't even think Houdini could have escaped from! Mop mop mop! I'm now along with the other girls on the hunt for a mop and bucket before someone starts sliding everywhere! Luckily we managed to locate one in the kitchen, and I started to mop up while Linda went to find the caretakers. They all arrived pretty sharpish with mop and buckets of their own I hasten to add and really helped us out, even the guy mopped and did a pretty good job, I told him his mother would have been so proud. Now the only thing we need is the key for the dreaded padlock which apparently is safeguarded by the restaurant people upstairs! Blimey, there is only bin bags under the sink but hey ho if they are someone's pride and joy (well not anymore they're 3 ft deep in water). :unsure: Once we retrieved the key, we opened the doors, this was when we discovered that pipe had dropped and the water from the sink was pouring straight out all over the place. However, after a few goes at the switch the bucket to empty the sink and lots of mopping and laughing later, we all managed to resolve the issue! Yeah! The lesson continued around us while this was all going on....no time for stopping when there is cake to be made!
Once tidied Linda then did her demo for the Choux pastry and then I made mine along with everyone else. As a rule of thumb, I always tell the ladies to taste the mix (a batter) of everything they make to ensure it tastes ok. I did this with my raw choux pastry mix.
Note to self...DON'T EVER taste raw choux mix again it's disgusting, I was practically scraping my tongue at the table. :shock: Once I got over the shock of the taste, I piped my choux batter into star balls and popped them in the oven while Linda started on making my chocolate buttercream for my Chocolate Log. The mix was a little dry at first, so I said we should add some milk or water, Linda added some warm water while I carried on whisking. Then I tasted it (glutton for punishment as I am), but my oh my was it delicious, I even got all the girls to try it, it was that fabulous. It smothered the log perfectly, well it did when it didn't keep scraping back off every time I tried to apply it, I don't do rushing, and we were running out of time (I'm glad I wasn't on the bake-off I'd have been having a meltdown!), so after a few deep breaths and a little softer spreading on my part I finally managed to cover the log and scrape a few forks marks it down. Voila, an edible chocolate log just in the nick of time! My choux pastry did get cooked but didn't get covered until the next day. I am pleased to report that the ladies did manage to add a little festive cheer to their's, and they turned out beautifully.
Here are the results:-
Jill:
Scrummy!!
Cheryl:
Linda said this would look nice at a Christmas themed wedding. I agree it's lovely.
Michelle:
This looks dreamy, Michelle used ganache to top the log. Mmmmmm! Bet it tasted fab.
Sharon
These look delicious.
Sue:
Sue did the complete package decorations too! Gorgeous!
Cath:
This is Cath's chunky chocolate log, choctastic!!!
These are my Choux and Log - I ate a piece as soon as I got home!
I really enjoyed the lesson roll on Wednesday more spooky surprises!
this week was a Choccy special with Choux Pastry, and Chocolate Log on the menu and everyone was back this week, so we had lots going on.I got lots of presents too, so I have lots of mentions and 'thank you's' for my wonderful goodies.
Firstly I have to thank Cheryl for my lovely bottle of wine which was her 'thank you' to me for Poppy's cake. Apparently, Poppy loved it and had a thoroughly enjoyable birthday party which I'm very happy about.
Then I have to thank Cath for my scalpel (I was really excited by this) I love tools, and Cath always brings in her precision surgeon scalpel (it's not but that's what it looks like lol) every week and I'm always eyeing it up and telling her that I'm going to get one....no need she bought me one. THANK YOU! I also have to thank Linda for the jar of pickles for my dad, which she had apparently promised him when they were sorting out the car fiasco. I did tell him about them on the way home and tried to drop them off, but he said he wanted dumplings, not pickles, so I ended up giving them to John! LOL! So now to the lesson, Linda did a wonderful demo on Genoise sponge for the outer layer of the chocolate log and once completed the ladies went away and began to make their own. Shirley and I were talking about cakes when we heard a cracking sound like somebody had dropped something on the floor. I asked her if she had heard the cracking sound and she agreed she had, but none of the girls said they had dropped anything, so we continued our discussion. The sound bothered me, so I asked again if anybody had dropped anything, but everyone said no, so we dismissed it because we were all swamped and decided that something had been knocked or moved.....WRONG....that's when the ladies noticed the water! There now seems to be a stream of water heading from the sink area but unfortunately, we cannot get under the sink to check it because it's got the biggest chain and padlock on it that I don't even think Houdini could have escaped from! Mop mop mop! I'm now along with the other girls on the hunt for a mop and bucket before someone starts sliding everywhere! Luckily we managed to locate one in the kitchen, and I started to mop up while Linda went to find the caretakers. They all arrived pretty sharpish with mop and buckets of their own I hasten to add and really helped us out, even the guy mopped and did a pretty good job, I told him his mother would have been so proud.
Now the only thing we need is the key for the dreaded padlock which apparently is safeguarded by the restaurant people upstairs! Blimey, there is only bin bags under the sink but hey ho if they are someone's pride and joy (well not anymore they're 3 ft deep in water). :unsure: Once we retrieved the key, we opened the doors, this was when we discovered that pipe had dropped and the water from the sink was pouring straight out all over the place. However, after a few goes at the switch the bucket to empty the sink and lots of mopping and laughing later, we all managed to resolve the issue! Yeah! The lesson continued around us while this was all going on....no time for stopping when there is cake to be made! Once tidied Linda then did her demo for the Choux pastry and then I made mine along with everyone else. As a rule of thumb, I always tell the ladies to taste the mix (a batter) of everything they make to ensure it tastes ok. I did this with my raw choux pastry mix.
Note to self...DON'T EVER taste raw choux mix again it's disgusting, I was practically scraping my tongue at the table. :shock: Once I got over the shock of the taste, I piped my choux batter into star balls and popped them in the oven while Linda started on making my chocolate buttercream for my Chocolate Log. The mix was a little dry at first, so I said we should add some milk or water, Linda added some warm water while I carried on whisking. Then I tasted it (glutton for punishment as I am), but my oh my was it delicious, I even got all the girls to try it, it was that fabulous. It smothered the log perfectly, well it did when it didn't keep scraping back off every time I tried to apply it, I don't do rushing, and we were running out of time (I'm glad I wasn't on the bake-off I'd have been having a meltdown!), so after a few deep breaths and a little softer spreading on my part I finally managed to cover the log and scrape a few forks marks it down. Voila, an edible chocolate log just in the nick of time! My choux pastry did get cooked but didn't get covered until the next day. I am pleased to report that the ladies did manage to add a little festive cheer to their's, and they turned out beautifully.
Here are the results:-
Jill:
Scrummy!!
Cheryl:
Linda said this would look nice at a Christmas themed wedding. I agree it's lovely.
Michelle:
This looks dreamy, Michelle used ganache to top the log. Mmmmmm! Bet it tasted fab.
Sharon
These look delicious.
Sue:
Sue did the complete package decorations too! Gorgeous!
Cath:
This is Cath's chunky chocolate log, choctastic!!!
These are my Choux and Log - I ate a piece as soon as I got home!
I really enjoyed the lesson roll on Wednesday more spooky surprises!
Last edited:
