Random Reflections XIV: Gender and the Preference for Jazz Music

Yes, I know the title of this post might surprise some, but it was something that made me wonder if anyone has done any research on it.


Wilbrod House Dining Room

Last Monday night I was sitting at the dining table enjoying some pasta with some housemates (plus a friend from School). As we ate, we chatted and enjoyed the music that was playing on someone's laptop computer (which is a common occurrence in Wilbrod House). Of course, it was jazz, and the guys at the table said how much they loved jazz, and they started talking about going to jazz festivals, and so on. They also asked everyone else what they thought of jazz. I was, of course, not partial to jazz music; I simply prefer classical music (from Haydn to Shostakovich). Another female housemate said she didn't particularly care for jazz.

I tried to think of people I know who liked jazz, and all of them were male. So I asked the guys at the table if they knew of any girls who really liked jazz, and after some thought, they said, "No, not really." So, I began to wonder if there was a correlation between gender and the preference for jazz music. Hmmm ...

Anyway, I guess I will never know for sure, but it was an interesting thought that came to mind.

Life in the Wilbrod House is never dull, that's for sure. Good food, nice music, interesting personalities and lively conversations. Couldn't ask for more.

Random Reflections XIII: An Inspirational Story

A friend at School told me about this book she was reading recently, called The Last Lecture. Since I am a former academic who once stood in front of students and presented lectures, the book title naturally piqued my curiosity, and so I decided to look it up on the Internet. What I found were links to videos of a few inspirational lectures given by the late Professor Randy Pausch in the last few months of his life.

After viewing the online videos, I felt truly inspired. I think it is good to be reminded every now and again how to live our lives better, to know what the real priorities in life are, to find the strength and courage to do what is difficult, and to persevere when things get tough.

Here is the URL to the videos:
http://download.srv.cs.cmu.edu/~pausch/

Should you find yourself in need of inspiration or courage, check it out. I guarantee it will at least make you think about your goals in life and, perhaps, even force you to reflect on your existence.

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Update on 26 April 2009: I finished reading the book The Last Lecture this weekend. I found it quite similar to the lecture (i.e. the video), but it has extra background information about Randy Pausch... The final few chapters of the book made me cry. So, if you're planning to read it, have a box of kleenex ready.

Random Reflections XII: The Purpose of Education

Today, as I was thinking about what I would do with the knowledge I'd acquired here at LCB Ottawa after I graduate, I began to reflect on the purpose of my education in the culinary arts.

I remember a point in my previous career when I suddenly realised the main purpose(s) of education, and my own role in it. To me, the purposes of education can be plotted on a continuum: from the conservation of knowledge to the extension of knowledge.

When this notion is applied to my own learning experiences at LCB Ottawa, I can see that the techniques taught in Basic Pastry were meant to conserve knowledge that has been distilled from years of experience (why "reinvent the wheel" when there is no need to do so, right?). Tried and true methods are taught, so that we have a base to work from. But as we move into Superior Pastry, the purpose of the course is to get us to extend knowledge, to push our creativity further, to get us to question how far we can take a technique, to ask what else is possible, and so on. And that is the challenging part for me.

I can see I have a particular preference for certain plating designs, but they are starting to get a bit boring. As Chef CF says, we need to push a little harder, and try more ideas.

Some days I have no answers/inspiration at all; other days I have a lot of good ideas that I'd like to try out in my 5-hour practical classes (which we call "workshops" now). Whether I pull them off or not is another matter. But I find days like today (when I don't have any classes) to be good days for brainstorming, researching and reading -- thinking about ways I would plate my desserts, and researching ways to achieve certain effects.

That's the joy of being a student with time to contemplate the techniques taught at School. I am grateful for the mental and psychological space to reflect on my own development as a pastry student.

Right now, I am intrigued by the idea of Golden Ratio in Aesthetics (phi), something Chef CF mentioned briefly in a lecture last term. I would love to understand it fully and have it applied to plating designs and cake decorations. Hmmm...

Random Reflections XI: Making Progress

Last night I was looking through photos of my creations in Basic and Intermediate Pastry, and it occurred to me that I'd actually made quite a bit of progress in the 7 months I'd been learning to bake. I admit some days it feels as if I had made no progress whatsoever, but really, I have learnt so much. And there is still so much more to learn -- that is what motivates me to want to keep going with it.

I started learning to cook when I was about 9. I remember I had to stand on a footstool just to be able to reach the top of the gas stove easily... Both my parents worked and didn't have much time or energy for cooking, so they were happy I could help with one of the household chores (i.e. cooking).

Personally, I think I decided to learn to cook because my taste buds insisted I do something about the boring (but nutritious, as my mum would insist, to this day) food that my younger sister and I were served.

The only problem was, there was no one in my family who could really teach me to cook (beyond the basics, that is). So how did I learn to cook? From cookbooks, mostly. I used to pore over the cookbooks that my dad had given my mum, probably in the hope of inspiring her to cook. By the time I was 12, I could cook a fairly decent family meal. That's when I declared I wanted to become a chef. But my parents objected - they had decided a commercial kitchen was no place for a girl. No amount of pleading and pestering on my part worked.

Anyway, off I went to university at the age of 17. Fortunately, I found I enjoyed teaching, and that was what I ended up doing for a while. However, 20 years after I started university, I was still harboring dreams of becoming a chef. I took some amateur (evening/weekend) cooking classes in Sydney, but felt I wasn't learning enough of the proper techniques. So, I made the decision to go to a proper cooking school. Here I am at LCB Ottawa.

On reflection, perhaps my mum's view of a commercial kitchen environment was tinted by her own experiences of working in a restaurant as a server and kitchenhand while supporting herself through university. I don't doubt that commercial kitchens can be a pretty brutal and dysfunctional work environment, but not all kitchens are like that. In case she hasn't realized, academia can be brutal and dysfunctional too. Trust me on that.

Some people ask me if I think it is too late for me to become a chef now. I don't think so. Some doors might be closed to someone my age, but others will open -- it is up to me to make the best of my opportunities. I am realistic about my abilities and chances. I don't care about fame and fortune -- I'd have taken up acting instead of cooking, if I sought such things. I just want to be a competent chef, someone who can work with raw ingredients and make a useful contribution in a kitchen. That is why I appreciate being taught the proper (and appropriate) techniques at School.

Some of my mentors have said it would take at least 4 to 5 years of proper training and practice to become a competent chef. That is fine with me.

People often ask me if I have any regrets about changing careers, and my answer is "nope". Why not? Because, I know in my heart that cooking is something that will always sustain my interest. It has for 30 years, and it will for another 30 (that is if I get another 30 years - one never knows, right?).

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PS. I don't regret going to university, and I don't feel that my parents were wrong in sending me to university. I just want to follow my dreams now.

Random Reflections X: Attention to Detail and High Standards

I was volunteering in Production Kitchen yesterday, and I was sent upstairs to deliver some supplies (e.g. flour and other baking ingredients) to the pastry kitchen. It was early in the morning (around 7:15am, one hour before class starts), and there was no one around, so I took the opportunity to take a few photos of the practical kitchens (see photos below). I seldom see the kitchens in this state -- so quiet that you can hear a pin drop, so I couldn't resist it (by the way, I always have my camera in my pocket).


Room 2C: The Pastry Practical Kitchen


Room 2B: The Cuisine Practical Kitchen


One of the things that struck me as special about Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa is how clean the practical kitchens are. I know firsthand just how messy the kitchens can get after a practical class -- trust me, a practical kitchen can look as if a cyclone or tornado has just been through; you might find melted chocolate where you wouldn't normally expect to find chocolate -- but each morning the kitchens are immaculately clean again.

Of course, the chefs train us to clean really well after each practical class -- you will incur the wrath of the chefs if you don't do your part in the clean-up after a practical class. But the School also has commercial cleaners come in to clean the kitchens several times a week. I think it is important to stop and consider what we take for granted at School; it occurred to me that commercial kitchens in the real-world are seldom as clean.

It is the attention to detail and high standards that I really like about this School. We are supplied with good tools and equipment to practise with, and we work in clean kitchens. After we graduate and we go out to work in a commercial kitchen, it is up to us to pay attention to such details and to apply those same high standards.

Here's another example of paying attention to detail: During my practical class a couple of weeks ago, I was scaling (measuring out) the ingredients for making caramel. As is my habit now, in order to save time, I would scale the sugar and water directly in the same pot (instead of measuring the water and sugar in two different containers and then putting the ingredients into the pot). My mistake was to scale the sugar first, and then add water on top of the sugar. This is apparently a no-no here at LCB because the sugar could burn more easily when it is in direct contact with the pot. You should have seen the reaction from the chef when he witnessed me doing that (sorry, Chef!) ... The chefs here insist on the proper way to do things, because that little detail could be the difference between a great result or a mediocre result for the cake (or whatever). This is more so for pastry than for cuisine, I believe.

These are just some of the really valuable lessons I am learning, even though I am not always aware of them. When I reflect on what I have learned at School (which I do at least once a week), I realize this is all part of the rigorous training I wanted and expected from LCB, and that is why I know I will miss it when I finish my courses here.

However, the learning continues...

Random Reflections IX: How I Learnt to Make a Marzipan Rose

Because I was struggling to make a realistic-looking marzipan rose for my Fraisier recently, Chef N was kind enough to give me a step-by-step demonstration. The following are some of the photos I took to help me remember the steps for making it.

These first two photos simply show what you need to make the centre of the rose. To make a petal, you need to flatten a ball, so that you have one end very thin and the other end quite thick. The thin end is the top of the rose; the thick end is always the bottom of the rose.





The next two photos show how you form the centre of the rose. First, you roll the petal tightly to form the very centre, and you flatten the base so that you can sit it on the table. Then, you add two more petals around the very centre, as shown in the subsequent photos. In other words, the first three pieces of marzipan petals are used to form the centre of the rose.





This photo here shows the shape of the petals you need. The top petal is round in shape, and is used for the outer layers of the rose. The bottom, tear-drop shaped petal is only used for the centre (which you saw in previous photos).



Here, you can see the round petal is wrapped around the centre of the rose, but one side of the petal is left open (for overlapping with the next petal).



The next three photos just show how to build up the rose, as you continue overlapping the petals. Use about 5 round petals to form a nice rose shape.







This long, oval-shaped marzipan ball is for the final petal. It needs to be wide enough to almost cover the outside of the entire rose, to finish off the rose.



Now you compress the base of the rose slightly (to make the petals unfurl a little), and then cut the rose itself off from the base with a paring knife.



Use your fingers to curl the petals outward very gently. This gives the rose a more realistic look.





This final photo here shows what can be made using the basic principles above.



Acknowledgment: Many thanks to Chef N for patiently showing me how to make beautiful marzipan roses.

Random Reflections VIII: LCB Knife Kit

Last night I was hanging out in the dining room with some of my housemates and watching some of the Basic Cuisine students practise turning vegetables -- this was their first week at school, and they were taught how to turn carrots and mushrooms.

As I watched my housemates use their paring knives and bird's beak knives, it occurred to me that, as a pastry student, there are many items in my Wusthof (actually, it is "Wüsthof" or "Wuesthof") knife kit that I do not use (or seldom use). I decided to go through my knife kit and see what they were.

In the next three photos, you will see the equipment list that I received from Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa (click on photo to see a larger image).






When I first got the list, I had no idea what some of the terms meant (e.g. exoglass spatula 30cm). It was part of the learning process to figure out the official names and common names of the tools -- the list gives the official names of the tools, but the chefs often had common names for them. For instance, the exoglass spatula 30cm is better known to us as the "white plastic spatula" (for making pâte à choux), which we use in lieu of a wooden spatula (because wooden spatulas are apparently not as hygienic).

Here, you see the knives and kitchen tools that we get in the knife kit. I found that I mainly use the tools on the left side of this photo - just about everything from the extreme left, up to the vegetable/fruit peeler. The tools on the top and right of the photo are probably more for cuisine students.


Common names [and official names] for the tools (from left to right): offset spatula 25cm [bent spatula], flat spatula 25cm, bread knife 26cm [super slicer], chef's knife 23cm [forged cook's knife], paring knife 9cm, bird's beak knife 7cm [forged turning knife], kitchen scissors, peeler, [crimper], [channeling knife], [forged meat fork], [apple corer], [cleaver 16cm], [melon baller], [sharpening steel 26cm]; (the 3 tools at the top of the photo): [zester], [forged filleting knife 18cm], [forged boning knife 14cm].


(From left to right): LCB piping bags, white spatula [exoglass spatula 30cm], brush, [digital thermometer], whisk 25cm, plastic scraper, piping tips/nozzles, silicon spatula, trowel, décor comb. The last three items were not included in the kit - I had to buy these "extras" myself (either from the supermarket or from the LCB boutique). The blue silicon spatula, which I purchased from Loblaws, is useful for scraping dough or meringue from the mixing bowl, the trowel is used for tempering chocolate, and the triangular décor comb is used for making chocolate decorations.

The chefs here don't really care where you buy the extra tools from, as long as you have the tools required to do the job. Many of us have other useful tools in our toolkits as well. I actually have a microplane (for lemon zest), a small sieve (to strain lemon/citrus juice), icing spatulas of different sizes, a lighter (for lighting the torch for crème brûlée), extra pastry brushes, pastry/pizza cutter, stainless steel ruler, spare piping bags, etc. in my toolkit.


These are the piping nozzles supplied in the knife kit. I discovered that, so far, I have only used the two plastic nozzles on the right -- the St-Honoré tip and the E6 star tip -- and a couple of the round stainless steel ones. Chef H usually asks us to use the 10mm round tip for piping (creams, lady fingers, dacquoise, choux pastry, etc.).

Not shown in the photos here are the trussing needle, table fork, soup spoon, coffee spoon, and the digital scale. The scale supplied in the kit is Salter digital scale Model 6055 (5kg capacity), which requires two CR2302 (3V) batteries to operate. It is a very useful kitchen scale, and I have used it in every single practical class, as well as the production kitchen. I always carry spare batteries in my toolkit for it.

The balloon whisk and Wuesthof knife case are shown in this post: http://my-canadian-sojourn.blogspot.com/2008/11/random-reflections-ii-whisking-by-hand.html

So, that's basically a quick overview of the tools I carry to school with me every time I go to class or production kitchen. I don't use the Wuesthof knife case that came with the knives because it is too small for extra tools, and because things can sometimes fall out of the pouches -- a housemate lost her trussing needle that way; I have a large metal toolbox for all my tools, including all the optional extras, now. [Aside: The metal toolbox only cost me about CAD$20 from Walmart South Keys.]

Random Reflections VII: The Butchart Gardens

Today I was browsing my digital albums and came across the photos I had taken at the Butchart Garden, Victoria, BC, in late August (when I first arrived in Canada). I love visiting gardens all around the world. And I have to say this is probably one of the most amazing gardens I have ever had the good fortune of visiting. It was so impressive that I went there twice in two days, never mind the entry fee of CAD$26 each time. It was well worth it. The first day was sunny, the second rainy, but it did not deter me. Here are some photos to show you why I was so impressed, and even then, my photos don't do the gardens justice. (You can click on a photo to see a larger version of the photo.)


The sign you see when you first enter the garden.


The magnificent Sunken Garden that Jenny Butchart created.


A brief history of the gardens. You can find more information if you type "Butchart Gardens" into your search engines.


This shot shows you why this part of the garden is called the Sunken Garden.


Look at the wonderful autumn leaves in the gardens!


The Ross Fountain on Day 1 (sunny).


The Ross Fountain on Day 2 (rainy).


One of hundreds (if not thousands) of rose plants in the garden.


A two-toned dahlia. One of my favourite shots of the Butchart Gardens.


One of many tuberous begonias I saw in the gardens.


I simply loved the vibrant colours in the gardens.


See the contrast in colours? It cannot but capture your attention.

I hope the photos have brightened your day. I wish everyone a Happy New Year!

Random Reflections VI: What I Took For Granted in Australia

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I went to the local supermarket Loblaws (10 to 12 minutes' walk from Wilbrod House) today to do some last-minute grocery shopping.

Here are two photos of the winter landscape, as I trudge through the snow on my way to the supermarket:

I am on Wilbrod Street, looking east towards Charlotte Street (not visible in this photo)


Looking west towards the University of Ottawa, as I stand outside Australia House

As you can see, it is simply easier to walk in the middle of the road, where the snow has been cleared. Just as well Wilbrod Street is a one-way street.

I realised how much we take for granted in Australia. The footpaths are generally well-maintained, and we don't have to worry about snow (except if you live in a very cold place in Australia). Not that I'm complaining about the snow here in Ottawa (it's still a novelty to me).

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At Wilbrod House, we are doing a cooking challenge for Christmas Eve: Everyone has to make a dish that is not from their country/region of origin and that they have not ever made before. I decided to make a mushroom strudel (with filo/phyllo pastry) for the cooking challenge. That's why I went shopping for groceries today.

When I was walking home, it suddenly occurred to me that the herbs and vegetables that I had bought might be frostbitten by the time I get back to Wilbrod House... It is so different from Australia, where I used to take an esky to the supermarket, to make sure meat and dairy products I buy are kept cold.

Anyway, the herbs and vegetables were fine, because they were outside in the icy (-17 degrees Celsius) conditions for only a short time.

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Speaking of dairy products, I am still shocked by how expensive dairy products are here in Ottawa, compared to what I can get in major cities in Australia. The two blocks of unsalted butter (454g each, or 1 lb. each) you see in the photo below cost me about CAD$10. It's the same with milk and cream. I reckon they are about twice as expensive as in Australia. It's another thing I took granted when I was in Australia -- cheap dairy products. /sigh/



As a pastry student here at Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa, I use a lot of butter, milk and cream in baking, and that means I have to spend quite a bit of money on ingredients when I am practising my baking at home (in Wilbrod House)... That's something to think about if you are coming to Ottawa to study at Le Cordon Bleu.

And one other thing: It could be because I am used to the dairy products in Australia, but I think the butter, milk and cream in Australia taste better (or rather, they have a stronger flavour) too.

Oh, I miss Australia!!!

Random Reflections V: Production Kitchen (Photos)

Here are some pictures of the production kitchen at Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa. The production kitchen is one of my favourite places; I can work calmly and quietly here.

Random Reflections IV: The Pastry Chefs at Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa

I've been in Ottawa for over 3 months now, and as I reflect on how much I have learnt in that short time, I am grateful for all the things the LCB pastry (and a few cuisine) chefs have taught us.

At LCB Ottawa, there are basically 4 pastry chefs (Chef H, CF, N and T) who teach the pastry courses, plus Chefs CP and A from production kitchen, who teach some components in the pastry courses (e.g. Chef CP teaches the Bread Workshop in Intermediate Pastry and Chef A teaches Fruit Carving and so on in Superior Pastry).

Although I know Chefs CP and A from production kitchen, I have not been in any of their classes yet, so in this post, I will just focus on the four pastry chefs (all of whom are French) whose classes I have attended.

Chef H is basically in charge of the Basic Pastry course. I think most, if not all, of my classmates will agree with this: Chef H is an excellent teacher. He always begins each lesson with a lesson plan on the whiteboard, and tells us what he plans to cover in the 3-hour demo class. He also writes down what he expects us to do in the practical class, to help us organise our time in the practical kitchen.


Chef H in a demo class.


I find Chef H scary because he is so strict and does not tolerate any nonsense from anyone, but I really respect him. He maintains discipline in all his classes. If a student is 15 minutes late to class, they don't get to come into the classroom -- he's locked the doors by then, and no amount of pleading works. No one gets away with falling asleep in his demo classes either (you have to be in his class to know what he does to students who fall asleep; I won't discuss it here). The thing is, most of our Basic Pastry demo classes started at 8:15am, and you can imagine a few sleepy heads dozing off every now and then -- even I nodded off briefly in one class, after a particularly late night studying for an upcoming written exam. While Chef H did not punish me during class, I got the feeling he asked me to cut up the demo cake for everyone at the end of class as a way to indicate to me he knew I had nodded off and that I had to make amends for that "sin" (he'd never asked me to cut up any demo cakes before that day, or after that day, for that matter -- he usually goes with the two students he'd unofficially "appointed" as cake servers from day one).

Throughout the term, Chef H gave me encouragement when he thought I needed it (to overcome my fears and disappointments), but he also pushed me to try harder on certain things, and he didn't beat around the bush about it. I think it's his uncanny ability to help all of us develop as pastry students (i.e. his ability to reinforce desirable behaviours and eliminate undesirable behaviours in the pastry kitchen) that makes Chef H a much-loved chef instructor. He has his little idiosyncrasies: he often says things like "I'm a little allergic to X" (in his French accent), where X is the behaviour he does not want to see in the kitchen. It is a most unusual way of warning students not to do something, but I always remember his warnings because of the peculiar way he phrases them. :D

In contrast, Chef CF is not a strict disciplinarian. His classes are highly entertaining because he talks a lot about what he's encountered in real-life kitchens. And he often ends his classes with a Q&A session, where we can ask him all kinds of questions about what we have learnt so far and how to avoid certain pitfalls. What I like about Chef CF is his sharing of the little tricks of the trade for doing certain things or fixing certain mistakes. These are valuable skills that took him years to learn/discover, but he happily shares them with us. I have also found him to be quite patient with students, or at least, with me anyway.

Chef N is one of the younger members of the pastry teaching team. He is not much older than me, I think. There is no doubt he is an extremely talented and creative individual. I've always appreciated how pretty his demo cakes and chocolate showpieces looked, even though there were a couple of demo cakes that didn't turn out as well as he'd like them to be because of (1) lack of time (too many things to cover in a 3-hour class), and/or (2) what looked to me like his nervousness due to the lack of experience with coordinating his demo and baking at the same time.

One of my housemates told me Chef N only started teaching at LCB Ottawa six to nine months ago, so he is a little inexperienced in that area. However, over the course of a term, I have seen him develop as an instructor, and he is improving all the time. He will be the chef in charge of Intermediate Pastry next term (where we will be doing a lot of chocolate work and mousse cakes), so it will be interesting to watch his development as a teacher.

Anyway, I personally think Chef N is the most artistic of the four pastry chefs when it comes to chocolate work. He is also very good at explaining things to you if you have a one-on-one situation. His spoken English fluency is probably the best of the four pastry chefs.

Chef T is one of my favourite chef instructors. Like the other chefs, he is extremely talented, and produces really beautiful cakes/pastries. As I have mentioned before, he speaks very little English, therefore many of us have difficulty communicating with him. We often rely on a few francophone classmates to translate for us. However, Chef T is such a lovely and easy-going person. He is always encouraging -- when he shows you a technique, he does it with a big smile, to make you feel that even the impossible is possible. And he is always teaching us easier or smarter techniques for doing things. He does not actually teach the demo classes, but he does supervise some of the practical classes, where he can give one-on-one help. And it is in the practical classes that I learnt a lot from him. Because he doesn't know how to explain the techniques in English, he simply does a slow-mo demo while you watch, and I find I can pick up the techniques quickly from that.

What LCB Ottawa has is an impressive team of pastry chef instructors, with complementary personalities and teaching styles. I have no regrets in deciding to travel such a long distance to learn from them.

Random Reflections III: Shawarma

When I first got to Ottawa, I heard my housemates mention the word "shawarma" many times. Eventually, I learnt that it was Lebanese food, and that one of the best shawarma restaurants in Ottawa -- Shawarma Palace (on Rideau Street) -- was just a couple of blocks away from Wilbrod House.

[Aside: There are many, many shawarma places in Ottawa. One of my housemates joked that Ottawa must have the highest concentration of shawarma restaurants in any Canadian city. And I suspect she might be right. :-)]

In Australia, a place selling shawarma would be better known as a doner kebab shop/restaurant. I had always liked doner kebabs when I was in Australia, so naturally, I was keen to try the food at Shawarma Palace. The few times I had walked past the restaurant in the evenings, it's been packed (there were long queues for takeaways too), so that told me that the food must be excellent or, at least, consistently good.

Anyway, I have been there a couple of times since early October -- a couple of times with my housemates, and a few times on my own. I found the food there to be quite fresh and really delicious. I like the chicken shawarma and the flavorful side dish of rice. The hommus is especially good, but the tabbouli was a little "sandy" (the taste was fine, but somebody should have rinsed the parsley thoroughly)... Still, I can see myself going back there for more hommus and chicken shawarma in the future.

Random Reflections II: Whisking by Hand

I was cleaning my balloon whisk today and I realised with some sadness that we won't be using it in Intermediate Pastry (because we get to use a mixer). I think I will miss my balloon whisk.

At the beginning of Basic Pastry, I could not believe we would have to use a balloon whisk to whisk egg whites into Italian meringue by hand. In addition, we had to use our fingers to check whether the syrup for the Italian meringue has reached soft ball stage. I found I couldn't do either very well; I even told the chef I couldn't do it. But the chef forced all of us to persevere. Now, after weeks of practice, I cannot imagine not whisking Italian meringue by hand, and I'm not afraid to dip my fingers into the syrup anymore. Once you know how to do it, it really isn't that difficult. You just have to break through the psychological barrier in your mind.

When you are making Italian meringue, you have to watch your hand motion. The bowl of egg whites is tilted at an angle, and you use a smooth but large circular motion (with your elbow hardly moving), and you need to make sure you are not whisking from side to side as you tire. When you are whisking with the balloon whisk, the aim is to incorporate air into the mixture, so that it is light and fluffy.



Here, you can see my balloon whisk, next to the regular whisk, which is next to the offset palette spatula. These are three of the most commonly used tools in Basic Pastry, in addition to the weighing scale, plastic scraper, pastry brush, piping bags and piping tips.

Random Reflections I: Note-taking

Today I was tidying up my room and putting my notes in order, and as I flipped through my notes for Basic Pastry, I realised my note-taking style changed dramatically over the course of 10 weeks.

In Weeks 1, 2 & 3, I was writing everything down in my notebook, and then re-typing my notes at home (see photo below).


However, mid-way through the term, I decided it was easier to take notes in this way:


I basically have two columns. The left column is for ingredients, and the right column is for the process (what to do with the ingredients). For the process, I write abbreviated notes, because we learn many of the basic techniques early on (e.g. blanchir, which basically means "creaming") and we use these techniques often, so there's no need to write them out in full.

I ended up preferring handwritten notes, because I remember them a lot better. When I close my eyes, I can almost see my own handwriting (like a picture/image), whereas all the typed notes just look the same to me (in my mind, the black words on white paper just blend together and I cannot remember much).