Positive Mental Attitude

Time has certainly flown by and another class is complete.   Those of you who frequent Flour Bloom probably noticed that there were not as many posts during the advanced patissierie class.  My days were jam packed with preparing to run the 2011 San Francisco Marathon.    I did not have many opportunities to pull together any new blog posts, but hopefully you had a chance to try out roasting a chicken and enjoyed the photos posted on our Flour Bloom Facebook Page. 

Last week I started my centerpieces & celebration cakes class.  During the next several weeks I will be focusing on improving my baking techniques and learning how to work with fondant, gum paste, and pastillage to make flowers & molded decorations.  These decorations will be applied to the baby shower, sweet 16 birthday & wedding cakes that we will be making.  Additionally, I will be making a sculpted pumpkin cake and ending this class with a sculpted purse cake.  Undoubtedly this class will test what I have learned over the past 7 months, as well as my patience and confidence.  

Typically I fret over things I cannot control. It is not out of the norm for me to feel a bit anxious about this class.  I tend to burn a lot of energy  worrying on almost every aspect in life except when it comes to running.  Recently a friend of mine sent me this quote which I found to be inspiring and helps me to overcome being such a worry wort.  

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” –Buddha

As a long time runner, I am a big proponent of positive thinking, which I also refer as PMA (positive mental attitude). All throughout high school I participated in cross country and track.  Nothing was more exciting to me than the challenge of training for a race.  All the hard work definitely prepared my body to endure a hilly and strenuous 5K or a mad 1600M sprint around the track.  However, if my mind was not in balance and filled with PMA it could easily tell my body to quit and give up.  Of all the many pep talks before a race, the one thing that lingers most is this one piece of advice:  

 before any race, imagine it...visually see the hills, the challenges, the excitement of rounding the corner near the end and then successfully crossing that finish line.  If your mind believes that it can accomplish it, your body will easily follow through.   

Interestingly, one of the reasons I chose to run the SF Marathon was because I literally dreamed that I ran the race.  I thought to myself,  if the mental aspect of a race is the hardest part then actually running the 26.2 miles will be a breeze!  I'd be lying if I said the race was easy.  It definitely was difficult, but not once did my mind tell me to quit or allow the pain that my legs felt get in the way of finishing the race.  I had already done it in my mind.  I was determined to get my body to do the same.  I truly believe that my positive thinking led me to run this much more difficult race 30 minutes faster than my previous marathon time.  

Although this blog is about food, its is also about the journey.  When I started school again, I felt like I was at the starting line of a race.  I had those jitters, a moment where I thought I was crazy for doing this and some excitement of doing something I had always wanted to try.  Now that I'm reaching the last stretch of school I'm ready to throw out the remaining negative jitters, apply a little more PMA to this class and cross that "finish line" knowing that I did my best.  I have already started visualizing the cakes that I plan to make and imagining the great sense of accomplishment I will feel during these 6 weeks.  

Positively the Best Granola. Ever.

We all know that breakfast is the most important meal of the day.  I truly believe it and one way to start the day with some PMA is to definitely start the day with a cup of coffee & a light breakfast.  One of my go-to breakfast items is homemade granola, greek yogurt & honey.


I haven't shared a recipe in awhile so I've decided to post what I feel is honestly the best granola I have ever had.  I'm definitely a granola snob and seldom come across one that I like.  I found this recipe from my Bon Appetit Cookbook, but have slightly adapted it. 


I tend to mix up the dried fruits depending on what I have in my pantry, but typically utilize dried cherries.  I just found some dried strawberries from Ikeda's Market in Auburn, CA and am looking forward to trying those out in my next batch.   

Dried-Cherry Granola--yields 7.5 cups

2 1/2 cups     Old fashioned oats

1 cup              Unsweetened large-shred coconut (approx. 1/2" wide)  I use Bob Red Mill's Brand

1 cup              Coarsely chopped pecans

1/2 cup          Pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)

3/4 tsp          Saigon cinnamon

1 cup packed  Dark brown sugar

1/4 cup            Water

3 T                    Vegetable or canola oil

2/3 cup          Dried cherries (I always use the brand Mariani Premium Dried Cherries)

1/2 cup          Dried apricots (additional dried fruit is optional)

Preheat oven to 325 F.  Either grease large sheet pan or I prefer to utilize a sheet pan lined with a SilPat.   Combine first five ingredients in a large bowl.  Stir to combine.  


Add brown sugar, water and oil to a medium pot.  Heat until mixture reaches a boil.  Remove from heat and pour over dried ingredients.  Using a fork, stir granola mixture until all ingredients are well combined.  Spread out evenly on a baking sheet.  


Bake for 15 minutes, remove & stir mixture with a spatula.  Return it to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes.  Next, add the cranberries and then bake for about 10 minutes longer or until oats are a golden brown.  The more that the mixture is stirred you will have less granola chunks.  I prefer my granola to resemble cereal.


Once cooled, store it in an air tight container.  I usually add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of granola to 6 oz of Fage 0% Greek Yogurt and drizzle it with either local honey or Savannah Bee Company's Tupelo Honey (one of my favorites).  

Putting the "right brain" to work

Last week I started my 4th class at Le Cordon Bleu:  Advanced Pattisserie (aka Plated Desserts).  I will be honest.  I do not proclaim to be the most creative person.  In fact, if I had to describe myself, "creative" probably would not land on a list of top 100 descriptions of Evangeline.   The best way to describe me would be to use an acronym:   OCD...optimistic, conscientious & dedicated.  You might think the acronym represents something else.  That too, I'll claim as a pretty accurate description of me; especially considering that lately the most stressful thing in my life right now is coming up with creative ways to plate my desserts.  (I know that last sentence probably makes you want to slap me.)  To say that I obsessed last week over plating ideas is truly an understatement.  

I am perplexed that when confronted with a dessert and a plate I lock up.  My brain freezes and I encounter what I'm dubbing as "platers block." For some strange reason I can't seem to find inspiration to pull the items together to create an "expensive" looking dessert.  In spite of my love for eating desserts, passion for baking, and zeal for photographing them I am learning that plating requires the use of a whole different part of my brain. Literally.  

I decided to take a few online tests to see if my gut feeling was right.  Sure enough, the first test I took rated that I was 58% left brained.  Thinking that maybe I was one of those "middle" brained people I decided I needed to take a second test.  This time the test consisted of 18 questions in which I unknowingly selected all the "left" brain responses .  If I averaged those scores it would make me about 78% left brained.  To be honest, I believe it!  

According to my new instructor, each of us will begin to develop our own style for plating desserts over time.   I find it interesting that the Chef believes that each of us has the capability of being creative.   What he said  reminded me of a quote by Michaelango,

“In every block of marble I see a statue as plain as though it stood before me, shaped and perfect in attitude and action. I have only to hew away the rough walls that imprison the lovely apparition to reveal it to the other eyes as mine see it.”

  Michelangelo started with something as simple as marble, but he knew that inside was a beautiful sculpture just waiting to be revealed.  In some way, I feel like I can relate to this quote.  I'm looking forward to chipping away the rigid pieces of my brain and unleashing my creative mind.  I know that deep inside there is some creativity within me.  I do have at least 22% of my "right" brain functioning.  I  just hope that this class lets me reveal it for others to see. 


For now, here are just a few of the desserts I've plated & presented to the Chef:

Creme Brulee

My first plated dessert of the term:  Creme Brulee served with
tuile cookie, caramel lattice & chocolate sauce

Creme Caramel with Blueberry Coulis & Candied Orange Peel

Here's what I presented to the Chef...I was not happy so when I got home...

I served Kurtis this version.  I liked this one MUCH better

Cheesecakes

Plain Cheesecake rolled in graham crackers drizzled with chocolate sauce

Plain Cheesecake rolled in graham crackers topped with blueberry coulis
& served with toasted graham cracker crumbles.

Baking Principles & Viennoiserie: Not a Gluten-free zone

Left to right:  Epi, Baguette, Fougasse, Boule.
Bottom:  Epi

I knew I loved bread before beginning my second class in the Patisserie & Baking program with Le Cordon Bleu.  However, I didn't realize that I would LOVE making it just as much, if not more than I did eating it.  

The first day of my Baking Principles & Viennoiserie class was a complete 180 degree turn from my previous course.  I said good bye to sitting in the back row and farewell to the teacher from Hades!  Despite the large class size, 30+ students, I managed to snag a front row seat so I could see and hear my new instructor much better.  

I was thrilled to hear that my Safety & Sanitation instructor would be teaching the LCBK 110 class. I love her method of organization, her demo style & most importantly I respect the way that she provides feedback when things become chaotic in the kitchen.  Instead of yelling or being negative, she chooses her words carefully, respectfully, but also with authority.  Just her saying "I'm disappointed in you," would make you feel bad.  But enough about the chef...I bet you're wondering what I have been learning.

Baguettes

One of the first things taught is that all bread contains four basic ingredients: flour, liquid (water/milk, etc), salt, & yeast.  Simple ingredients, but a tricky process.   One of the most critical aspects of good bread is ensuring proper gluten development. Gluten is responsible for structure in bread.  Since gluten is critical, I must warn you, the next several weeks will not be a gluten free zone.  

Many of you have probably seen more and more items labeled and highlighted as "gluten free".  It has become quite the craze and even news worthy.   In fact, a man was just sent to prison for lying to his customers about the authenticity of his "gluten free" products. Gluten is primarily found only in wheat flours, but is slightly present in rye & barley.  Gluten is actually made up of two proteins, glutenin and gliadin, and only formed when the flour is combined with a liquid.  To develop the proper amount of gluten, I am  practicing kneading my dough by hand.  There's no shortcut in this class...mixers are not allowed.   Although it seems like a mundane and tiresome task, I have found that kneading fresh dough is therapeutic and sometimes quite the work out.  

White pan bread: Decorative rolls

One other fun fact that I learned is to be kind to my dough when a recipe calls for "punching" it. Instead of aggressively   punching the dough to release the air, all you need to do is to place the dough onto the counter and gently flatten it so that some of the air is released.  Then you fold in each side of the dough towards the center.   Turn the dough over, cover & and let it rest.  

In addition to learning about gluten and how to properly punch dough, I have been introduced to fresh yeast.  Since this isn't readily available at local grocery stores, it will take me some time to convert the fresh yeast measurements to instant yeast and practice the recipes before I can share them.  I promise, once I figure it out I'll be sure to share some of these great recipes I've learned.  However, if your grocery store has fresh yeast, grab some and send me a note on where you found it.  If I had a choice, I would never use dry yeast again.  

Amish Pretzels

I have learned so much in this class that I can't possibly write it all down.  I can say, though, this is going to be a great time.  In a week and a half I've prepared  baguettes, epi, decorative breads, white pan bread, amish pretzels, Italian bread, milk bread, focaccia, and a sourdough starter!   AND THATS JUST THE BEGINNING...during the next month I'll be making the following breads:  whole wheat, rustic sourdough, ciabatta, challah, brioche, croissants, cinnamon rolls, danishes, bagels and chinese steam buns.   No doubt, I'll be putting some miles on my running shoes because I  plan to savor and love every. single. calorie that I consume during the next month!