Days 74, 75, 76, and 77. Thanksgivings.

Days 74, 75, 76, and 77. Thanksgivings. This morning on my walk to the tube station, I saw a lady hunched over a toddler, with his pants down. Apparently he couldnt hold it and she had him pee in the gutter. Nice. Happy Thanksgiving to me. And with that.... Monday. We were greeted a bit too early in the morning on Monday with a technical class, flower making. You would think that it would be hands on, but no, we sat and watched Chef New make flowers for two hours straight before he gave us a break (after I kindly asked if we could have one). It was rather boring, and not much audience participation as we were all really tired did not make a good combo. When class was to end at 11, and Chef was still going, and the whisperers behind me were complaining, I spoke up after Chef said, "Alright and next I'll show you how to dust a flower and after that how to touch up a flower." "Chef, you do know that class ends at eleven right?" "Yes." "I just wanted to let you know its after eleven and there might be another class needing the room." "Oh well arent you one for keeping with the clock today." He looks over his shoulder and looks at the clock, "I see you all don't want to be here, well class dismissed." Gasp. Gulp. I'm an idiot. "Chef, that was not my intention, if you need to show us something please do, I just wanted to make you aware of the time." "No, no, class is over. You all can go now." Everyone just sat there trying to decide if we should get up or not, luckilly the clackers behind me got up, and so did everyone else. I apologized to him after class, but I dont think he took my sincerities. He said that he was glad I said something because he didnt realize the 'time had passed so quickly' but judging from his behavior, it was a lesson of I need to be quiet. We had two more classes in the afternoon/evening with a three hour break so the lunch bunch headed off to a dutch pancake house. Maine said he was craving pancakes so we went. They were more like 16" open faced crepes with canned food on top. Luckilly it was £5 Monday Deal there (normally 9.85) so we werent out too much money. Funniest line from lunch, after Poland gave her lunch order to the waiter, he told her that one was not able to be made gluten free (which she needed), her response "You just crushed my world." -- Wow a world being crushed over a lunch order is pretty funny. In the afternoon we learned to make a cake with a really long french name, that came down to white chocolate mousse, covering a layer of pistachio sponge, and fruit jelly, with a surround of tempered chocolate squares in dusting powder. The jelly has a thickness/texture of a thick slice of ham, and white chocolate should be called why-bother-it. I did love how my chocolate squares turned out, we had a variety of colors to choose from, so I swirled coppers, golds, and ruby dust around and made a pretty nifty pattern to swirl tempered chocolate all over. My landlady and flatmate were impressed with it. I was glad to hand this one over to them. It was gone in two days. I think they liked bothering with it. Tuesday. We had Chef New for our next demonstration. He saw me come in, as I was rolling my eyes in dread for the awkwardness that was about to ensue for three hours. "Michelle, no hard feelings yah? It was good of you to tell me the time. I had no idea it was that late." "Chef I promise today I wont say a word, and I will just sit here and listen." California snorted from beside me. "Whats so funny? Me and no talking don't go together?" I asked her. "Yes." Was her one word reply. I kept my word, and did not say a thing the entire class. Maine leaned over to me a couple of times and asked me a question, and I would whisper back "Ask Chef." :) It was Chef New's first time doing this demonstration of chocolate candies, and he didn't have time to give us a break. For three hours we watched him make chocolates. I never reminded him of the time, said a single thing or asked a question the entire class. At our practical that night, Chef Yes was in the kitchen with us. I really like him, he is thorough, honest, and gives good advice. He had sat in on the candy making class demonstration. "I know Chef New told you to do it this way, but don't, I will show you how to do it better." Ha! It was an interesting evening. I asked Chef yes as I was stirring my chocolate ganache filling, "Chef, what do you recommend instead of alcohol in these chocolates? [As 3/4 chocolates had a booze of some sort] I thought it was weird that Chef New said lime juice or 'any fruit juice.'" "Yes, don't use fruit juices. If anything, use the zest and just eliminate the alcohol all together. Juice will curdle the chocolates." -- Umm thanks Chef Yes for good information, and Chef New might have to go back to the books. Ha!! My chocolate piping (the X you see on instagram/facebook) on my candies turned out amazingly well. I was really quite pleased. Even more pleased with my restraint from eating them...moderation. Wednesday I took a jog/walk my regular route. Malta invited me over to study at her place. She made decorations for a wedding cake a we studied and chatted. Then we headed over to school for our only class of the day, a demonstration on Chocolate work....our first time. This was lead by none other than Chef New for the third time this week. We watched him as he tempered chocolate, used colored cocoa butters to fill in the character, and set up the show piece. There was a lot of chatting going on in the room, I couldn't help myself (I cant be silent two demonstrations in a row) and kept asking him questions to keep him engaged with his audience instead of his silent concentration. We were told that we could do any character we wanted. In our manual, there was Fred Flintstone, Simba, Rescuers, and other characters to choose from. I asked California (sitting next to me) what character she was going to draw/use. (she is an artist/worked for Disney/makes costumes). She said she didnt know. I dont know why a picture of my nephew William popped into my head. It was from last years NYE party, and we were up past "midnight" eating cookies. I dont know what compelled me to ask California if she could make a sketch of "the picture" I wanted to use. Her face lit up and said she would do it. Sweet. Got home before 10pm, wrote some emails, and headed to bed. Thursday. Saw the toddler peeing on the street curb. But before that instead of exercising I decided to make myself a mini thanksgiving. One potato in the pot, portabello mushroom gravy, honey glazed carrots, and Quorn 'chicken' made for one fabulous meal. Headed to Malta's after that for more studies. I had a mentoring session with a chef where I can talk one on one and work on my concerns and improvements. It was good to voice somethings, and know how to get others resolved. I keep falling asleep. This is boring. After that came time to do our chocolate work. California did an amazing job with the sketch, and my chocolate work ended up being better than expected (1/3 of the class threw there's in the bin afterwards as the colored cocoa powder did not stick to the tempered chocolate) again I am falling asleep. It was so fun to peel back & see how the face and cookie came to be. I got "ooohhs and ohs" from my fellow students. It was a better day.

Days 71. 72. and 73. Piping Like Its Hot.

Days 71, 72, and 73. Piping like its hot. Friday we had a split day at school, 1130-230 demonstration class (ended a bit early), and then 630-930 baking class. We made something with a really long french name, when translated means chocolate sponge with chocolate mousse and caramelized pear. There was a job fair at school for the in between hours, so a few of us just stayed at school, studied a bit, and just had good old conversations....like without our phones. We (Maine & I) did show the old commercial "Pardon Me....do you have any Grey Poupon?" & the Wayne's World spoof on it to our european friends who thought it was hilarious. Job fair was good, a lot of UK businesses present, a cruise line, and Hilton Worldwide....lots of options, just have to figure out what world I want to venture into. The baking class went pretty good. We had Chef Arizona with us again. I asked him to pipe me some pattern options as I didnt like what was shown in demonstration class, and I knew he wouldnt like them either. I showed him a pic on my phone of them, and his silence confirmed his dislike. It was a simple pattern, nothing too outrageous, simple lines and waves. I am a minimalist when it comes to piping designs. Always have been. I rather the cake speak for itself than me ruin it with fluff. After class, I took the cake to Mindy's...her last night in London. A crew of six had been to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park (look it up for more info) and they met me at Mindy's place to eat cake and talk. Everyone loved the cake. And I got the hook up with all of Mindy's unused groceries!! Yahoo! I looked like a homeless person carrying home my duffle from school, and two large reusable grocery bags full of stuff. Nevertheless, I was so thankful and happy to have groceries that I didn't have to buy. I was so tired, I was the first to leave the party, but everyone else pretty much followed me out the door.


Saturday, a friend (I met through Mindy who is born & raised in England) who works as a food scientist for a cheesecake company got tickets through her work to go to the "Taste of London" food festival for free & asked me if I wanted to go. An event that normally costs 25 pounds just to get in the door? Um yes please. Sign. Me. Up. It had 20 restaurants with smaller versions of all their food for $5 and under to try, plus a gazillion food stands with tons of free samples, workshops, and demonstrations. We went to two demonstrations, one of a Peruvian restaraunter, whom we went to their booth and got fried-to-order pumpkin sweet potato doughnuts with corn maize honey spice glaze. So good we got them 2x. The other demonstration, I was more fascinated by the sous chef, then I was the main chef. The duo did a "chef off" and made 12 dishes in 60 minutes, that's amazing all by itself, but what is more amazing is that the sous chef had 1 and a 1/2 arms. One regular arm, and the other one was only half formed, but he still had a hand, right below the elbow joint. I was amazed at watching him work. His adaptability to cooking without assistance and making things work for him in ways I couldn't fathom. I didnt catch his name, but he was really impressive. He started out in pastry, and moved into cuisine. He'd been doing it for 13+ years and loves what he does. I could see it in the way he cooks, and the way the plates were presented. Sitting there I thought about me getting frustrated making a cake, and this chef improvises to get it done. This guy does hard things everyday. I can do hard things too. We were are the event for six hours! There was so much to see and do. I was exhausted and home by 630 and did not want to eat or do anything else for the rest of the night.

Sunday. The usual. I made a grilled cheese & grilled onion on rye for lunch (smitten kitchen has a good recipe for one). So yummy. Then after that I made roasted veggies and turned half into soup (as my landlady commented to me the night before I had a lot of unused food around. um yah thanks for eating all of my sun dried tomato focaccia when I said you could have a slice, and you eat it all. Maybe she thought she was helping me out. :} I hid the rest of my bread btw). I caught up on my notes from classes, studied a bit, and then made French Toast casserole (in muffin tins to portion it out for my morning breakfasts) with my leftover caramel pears (from my cake Friday night). It was a day of cooking and studying and relaxing. Really needed a day of rest. and now a new week begins.

Days 68, 69, and 70. This week has been too fast.

Days 68, 69, and 70. This week has been too fast. Tuesday. I dont know how I manage to fill my mornings, but somehow I do. Oh yes. I remember. Ironing. It takes me an hour to iron my uniform. Luckilly British morning shows keep me entertained while smoothing out the wrinkles of my shirt, pants, apron, tea towel, dish towel, and hat. School was the last of our three exam dishes. The Alhambra. Chocolate Sponge cake with chocolate ganache inside & masked/frosted, with a chocolate glaze over the top, and decorated with a marzipan rose & chocolate piped "Alhambra" on top. Everything is made from scratch & it tastes like old fashioned chocolate cake. Not complaining, its just a chocolate cake with a lot of work going into it. Demonstration class was good & Practical class was the most calm I was out of all three. Yes, there was going back and forth between the oven & chiller to get my ganache just right but overall it went alright. Its a relief to get the cakes done sometimes. I also tried really hard not to get dirty/chocolate on my freshly pressed uniform. At the end of class, I looked down and discovered chocolate was in between my apron & my shirt....so both were dirty!....and then there were spots on my towels!! Ugh! After class I texted a friend to see if she wanted some cake. She met me at the tube station, we walked to her place, had a slice each, I gave her 1/2 of the cake, and took a piece home for myself to eat later. Once I got home, I put my uniform into a bucket of water to soak out the stains. Wednesday I met up with Mindy for one last traveling adventure. She heads back to the states on Saturday. We took a train to Oxford. Yep, the Oxford. It was one place that was left on her list to see. It was an amazing city, so much history and architecture. Mindy planned on us taking a morning walking tour, but not enough people showed up, so they told us to come back at 2pm. So we had a few hours to kill. We ventured around to a church, that we found off free wifi telling us the top 20 things in Oxford from a place that served the worst smoothie I've ever had (water & berries in a blender is not a smoothie people). That was the worst sentence ever written. It is late, give me a break :). At the church we were told by a nice Canadian who worked there that the to climb the tower it would cost money, but the church was free. We walked around the church, and after we left the church, the Canadian pops out of the church and says, "North American discount to climb the tower for free." Luckily our faces do not define our ages, and as we looked like college students, he took pity on us. We climbed to the top and had an amazing view of the city. With the Canadian's help, we picked out some places to go to once back down on the street. We stopped for lunch in what I think is the oldest church in Oxford or something like that. Really cool, really nice lunch (Cheese bread, soup, and salad). We ventured into a gift shop at the library in Oxford (the library is student/appointment only). Crazy cool to think about all the authors that have been there. C.S. Lewis, JRR Tolkien, Charles Dodgson, Oscar Wilde. Amazing novels from men and women who studied here. On the walking tour, Oxford University is filled with Colleges, and from your application to Oxford, it is determined for you what college you will be studying in. Much like the sorting hat in Harry Potter. Crazy. The walking tour was nice, but not a lot of content. We headed back to London after the tour. I had one 6:30pm class to attend. It was a tech class where the chef made a 'celebration' of canapés for completing the week of making exam dishes. Mini Beef Wellingtons, Salmon Rolls, Ham & Mustard mini croissants, cheese sticks, and veggie pizza bites. Came home, and washed my uniform that had been soaking overnight to get the chocolate out....Luckily 98% of it did come out, and what didn't come out is barely noticeable. Thursday. My mornings slip by so fast. I was to meet Malta to study, but I forgot I needed to iron my uniform again. I did manage to join her for lunch before heading to school. It was Boulangerie day at school. We learned how & made three kinds of bread, Rye, Focaccia, and Baguette Viennoise (braided breakfast bread). It was a nice practical, because we actually had time to stand around and wait while our breads were proofing and baking. The focaccia I have made at home using the worlds best brother's recipe is a lot different than the one I made in class. Mainly because this one has eggs in it. Chef Bread said that if it does not have eggs in it, it is not focaccia. He said that focaccia is to be thick, and crusty, more dense than ciabatta, and my perspective had always been the opposite. Nevertheless, they were all amazing. I have bread to last me for weeks now. Yay! Tomorrow we start 'early' at 1130. Its now 2am wish me luck in getting to class on time. hahahaha. time keeps on tickin tickin tickin....into the future......

Day 67. The day I became a stalker.

Day 67. The day I became a stalker. Monday morning I got up and baked some cookie dough for Vermont's birthday. I had two issues with it. One, I thought my landlady had measuring spoons, but only had "teaspoon" and "tablespoon" no 1/2 1/4....what i needed so I guestimated there and then when it came time for baking....the oven only has options of 1..2..3...4..5..6..7..8..9...not actual degrees of temp, just numbers, so playing around with that was fun too. They weren't the most attractive to the eye, but they were mighty tasty. Class was a Tech class, where were learned about Tarts and Tortes. Only there was no lesson other than the 10 seconds Chef Touillee used to say that Tarts are one layer, a crust and topping, while Tortes are multi layered. He then spent the next three hours making three tarts and tortes that looked better than they tasted.....but I'll now move on to the more pressing matter of me becoming a stalker.

 Some friends and I went and saw the musical "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" this evening. It was wonderful, magical, and fun. The sets, costumes, effects were all amazing. It was truly a delightful show. After it was over, we headed to the stage door, as one of the girls I was with really wanted her picture with Charlie. We were the only ones hanging around the stage door besides a man and lady who looked like they were there to pick people up. I asked the man if he could take a picture of the four of us holding our [golden] tickets near the marquee sign, and he said he would take it. He said that the kids would be coming out in a few minutes. I didnt think to ask him if/which kid he was waiting for. 

As the musicians came out, I would say "Good Job!" --- it was sweet to see their smiles. One of the grandma's came out (yes they had the bed with the 4 grandparents in the show) and I told her she did an amazing job, she was pleased and thanked me for coming. She then walked over to her bike on the bike rack and hopped on and off she went -- an actress who commutes by bike how cool is that? 

Moments later out came Charlie, he hopped over to the lady that was waiting with the man, "Hi Mum!" they hugged, and off they walked to the nearby car. Vanessa was taking pics of him with her phone like the paparazzi. I slowly walked behind 'Charlie' and his mom, and saw him get in the car. There was scaffolding on the theatre building, I leaned over the scaffolding, made eye contact with Charlie as he was buckling his seatbelt, and gave him a big thumbs up. He grinned back, and gave me a thumbs up.

 "Excellent job! You really did great!" I said to him through the closed car window. I didnt think he heard me, but next thing I knew he rolled down the window and said "Thank you."
 "How long have you been acting?"
 "Six months as Charlie and I have six more months to go." His mom then told him that I asked how long he had been acting. "Oh! I've been acting since I was seven, so three years now."
"Well you certainly were amazing and we all thought you were fabulous."
Freak I was having a conversation with a ten year old in the back of his car. Meanwhile, Vanessa is still snapping pictures of him.
 "Would you mind getting a picture with my friend? She would really like one."
 'Charlie' looks at his mom and before he gets a reaction from her he says "Sure!" He hops out of the car and onto the sidewalk with four thirtysomethings to take a picture. I was a giddy little school girls. I took a groupie of us, forgetting that Vanessa wanted a 1:1 picture with him.

I was also oblivious that the other kids were getting into cars near us. "Hey Zach! Come get in the picture!"
'Charlie' called over to another kid....aka Mike (the kid that shrinks into the TV) and he joins the picture taking too!

 Oh my gosh I am an idiot for stalking little kids, but they were amazing! It was a cherry on top of the night. I dont even remember saying thank you or goodbye to Charlie or Mike. I was just fascinated that they would take a pic with random people. I thanked the girls for putting up with my shenanigans and they were glad I was bold enough to talk to the boy through the car's window. Its good to be a stalker....now if only I got a picture with Willie..... oh well there are plenty more nights to be hanging outside the theatre doors at 10:18pm on a Monday night. And with that, Goodnight into a world of pure imagination.

Days SIXTY FIVE AND SIXTY SIX. Markets and Food. Food and Markets

DAYS SIXTY FIVE AND SIXTY SIX. Markets and Food. Food and Markets. I met Mindy at a tube station 10am on Saturday. We went to a Christmas Market that was next to the Thames near the Tait Museum. They were cute little shops/popups shaped like gingerbread houses that each had thier own unique items (paper starts, wood tie anyone?) very fun, didnt buy anything. I'm cheap. What can I say? After that we decided to walk to Burough Market and see what they had their. Madness. More people than ever before, shoulder to shoulder, but seriously the best food stalls in the city. Amazing. For example, there was half a wheel of some swiss cheese (12"diameter wheel) that is placed under a broiler, the melted cheese is swiped off the wheel and onto a plate of roasted potatoes, yummazing. Picked up some vegetarian indian food and a brownie as well to share too. Still on the lookout for a great brownie. As we were leaving the market, we ran into a couple from church and ended up talking to them for nearly an hour on a street corner. Random. If two markets isnt enough...why not one more?!? Sloan's Square for another market....more fabulous food stalls, wishing I hadnt eaten so much at Burrough, but good to know about for next time. There was a grocery store next to this street market that has an american section, and Mindy needed to buy stuffing for a Thanksgiving Dinner happening that night. A box of Stove Top costs 3.95 pounds!! Outrageous! Christmas decorations are popping up everywhere, some in random places, some in cool places. No need to wait tell after Thanksgiving here, because there is no thanksgiving to wait for bring on the decorations! After Sloan's we walked to Harrods as Mindy wanted to get a gift for someone there. Seriously M&D missed out on all the Christmaslands that have popped up since they were here in Harrods. They had a whole Chirstmas Village on Level 4 ....where entire rooms were themed & decorations were amazing. There was an advent calendar house (like a doll house size) where behind each window was an ornament to place on a tree.....oh and it costs 12,000 pounds. That is not a typo. Twelve thousand pounds. It is made of Wedgewood, yes I touched it, and no I was not arrested.

 After Harrods, we stopped by Mindy's really quick before we headed to a British Thanksgiving dinner a friend of ours was hosting at the church. I didnt know if I wanted to go or not but I wanted to see how a Brit handled hosting an American holiday. It was to be dinner at 5pm, but the person bringing potatos brought raw pototoes, so the eating wasnt until 7pm. Say what? It was a long day...and I just wanted to eat and go to bed...but I was a curious trouper. It really was typical thanksgiving dinner, plus yorkshire pudding (greasy german pancake) and sausages, and what we thought was pumpkin pie was actually sweet potato. Afterwards we were headed to the Cinema but exhaustion won out. Watched a movie at Mindy's and then I headed home...super tired.....but yet I still set my alarm for 2am to get up and watch the Phoenix Temple Culturall Celebration online....sleep was needed more but it was fun to watch through half opened eyes what was happening back home.

 Sunday. The usual. Malta had texted me on Saturday asking if I wanted free tickets to the BBC Food Show that was happening at a convention center for Sunday. She couldnt go. I picked up the tickets, texted some peeps from school to see who wanted to go and California came with me. There was tons of food, cheese, chocolate, beverages, ice creams, and samples. Lots of samples. My school also had a booth there, so we stopped by to say hi to a couple of our chefs and they told us they had demonstrations later, so out of obligation we went and watched them in the midst of rounds going around and getting goodies. Once home I was hungry to eat something in size larger than my pinky nail. I made salsa for the first time in London. I had the ingredients, and the time to make it. It tastes so good. I was going to have a bean burrito, but I couldnt find a can opener to open the beans, so I made a cheese crisp, but as I was making the salsa I was also making the crisp, and I burnt the crisp, so I looked in the fridge to see what else i had, found a veggie sausage, heated that up, ate bell pepper slices (in the place of tortilla chips) and salsa, ate the sausage and then ate the burnt cheese crisp (now as crispy as if it were chips) with more salsa. Creative use of ingredients for sure. I must be tired if I am detailing my meal. I also made chocolate chip cookie dough too. It is delicious to eat. I'll bake some tomorrow for Vermonts birthday. Talked to peeps on FaceTime, and instead of studying I am going to go to sleep and think about if you guys liked my Sunday Dinner.

 Don't believe me about the advent house? Check out: http://www.harrods.com/product/iconic-24-piece-advent-house//000000000004143276

DAYS 62, 63, and 64. Night Classes

Days SIXTY TWO, SIXTY THREE and SIXTY FOUR.  Night Classes.  This week has been nothing but being at school until 10pm, getting home around 11 and detoxing from the day tell I should be sleeping, but instead am interneting tell the wee hours of the nights.  Luckilly I am a night owl, and it gives my days time to be lazilly filled with nuances.  Wednesday was a demonstration and a practical for an exam dish.  I do much better when I learn about a dish one day, have time to process it overnight, and then go in the next day and make it.  This was not one of those days.  We went straight from learning about it to making it (as is done most days).  Fraisier.  It reminds me of the Boston Cream Cakes my sisters would get for their birthdays when we were kids.  It is a sponge cake cut in half, the bottom half is lined with strawberries around the edges, then cream is filled in around the strawberries, the top half of the sponge on top, and a marzipan disk with piping and a rose on top.  I was extra jittery starting this one, and it showed.  Whisking my eggs & sugar together (a task I've talked about before that I love Kitchen Aids for)....I over whisked, the chef helped me make another batch of eggs & sugar, and in my hurry to catch up I over folded the flour in and when I baked it my sponge flopped, and was two inches tall rather than being four inches.....oh and it was crumbly, not cakey [oddly enough the next day it tasted great & was cakey].  My base of the cake was a bit wobbly (the bottom of the sponge has to be the top of the cake for the flat surface) like a boat's bottom (not really that bad but it was a bit rocky pun intended). We put a ring around the sponge base to make placing the strawberries easier around the edge of the cake & fill with cream mousseline.  I had to be really inventive with the strawberries/filling as the cake had shrunk, so the ring was a bit large for the cake, but somehow I managed.  At this point I really didnt care what it turned out like, but I made do and kept going, made my flour, piped some decoration & spelled "Fraisier" on top and was thankful it was all over.  Chef Yes was complementary of my cream mousseline and said for what I had been dealt, I handled it very well.  I think he knew I needed some positive reinforcement after a hard three hours.  He gave me lots of tips for the sponge as well which I will use from now on.  I was on the verge of tears by the end of class, but encouragement and smiles from my classmates helped a lot....and their amazement that I could turn a bad thing into an okay thing.  

Thursday we only had one class at 630pm, so that meant lots of time to do nothing.  I kid.  I was a bit down from the fiasco of a cake the night before, so my jog turned into a long walk.  I came home and worked on marzipan flowers and piping for a couple of hours, and worked on my notes.  I headed out for a treat before class.  I have a cookbook back home called "Plenty" by Yotam Ottolenghi.  It is filled with pretty dishes, and fancy things I dont have time to make.  Well, he's based in London & has three restaraunts!  I dont have to cook it, I can just eat it!  I stopped into Ottolenghi and picked up some take away (sold by the pound) of Eggplant with Tahini & a wild rice salad....oh and a brownie.  All were really good, simple and clean, good for you kinds of food.  The displays for the food were amazing and it was a feast for the eyes and for the belly.  

Class that evening was a demonstration on our next possible exam dish, the Opera.  Chef Arizona did the demonstration...he's never done one of ours before.  He was very fast and was a bit all over the place.  I had been reviewing this cake during my afternoon studies, and was frustrated that he was not going in the order listed in our exam book but at the same time fascinated with how fast he moved....like he was in a busy hotel kitchen trying to push the order out, only it was our exam dish.  During our break I had a nice conversation with Maine.  I told him about my frustrations over the cake the night before and during the demonstration.  He kindly reminded me that it is just cake, and not life changing events.  We are improving.  We could have never made what we are doing now in the first few weeks of basic, and we need to be proud of the simplest improvements.  It was just the chat I needed to keep going.  

Opera is a multi layered cake incase you have never heard of it.  Sponge cake on bottom, brushed with soaking syrup infused with coffeee, topped with chocolate ganache, another layer of sponge brushed with soaking syrup, topped with coffee buttercream, topped with another layer of sponge, thin layer of ganache, a layer of chocolate glaze, and chocolate piping on top.  I didnt stay for the tasting after class as I am no coffee drinker.

After class, Malta and Dehli and I on the way to the tube decided to go grab dinner.  Malta was craving Gyro, so we headed off to a place she thought of, to find out it was closed.  We ended up eating at Union Jacks.  The only restaraunt I have been to 3x since being here.  I got the tomato soup with toast again, as it was 930pm.  It was a good time chatting and laughing the night away.

Friday morning it was constant rain for hours.  I had an appointment to get my eyebrows waxed, and the bus ride that was to take 30 minutes took 50.  Whoops.  Dang rain. For such a rainy city I would expect people to know how to drive in the rain better.  Perhaps more people take taxis on rainy days hence more traffic.  On the was back home, I stopped along North End Road with the farmers market stalls and bought some produce.  Seven bell peppers for one pound.  Cilantro (I finally found the real stuff!! they call it corriander here) for 50p, a dozen eggs for 2pounds, green onion 50p a bunch, 14 bananas for 1 pound.  Thats $8.41 in American dollars.  For all that produce!  What a steal!  Malta told me to go to an Arab market if I ever needed Olive Oil.  I found an arab marked behind the food stalls.  $5.03 for a litre of Olive Oil....um yes please.  Cant get that at Costco.  Sign me up. Yep. Thanks.  Some girls from class were going to go to a street market, but with the weather, they cancelled it, or so I thought, but two decided to go once the rain stopped.  Malta, Dehli, and I decided to go for macaroon's at the best place in London before class.  Poland and California found out, and joined in after they went to the street market.  The macaroon I ate (salted caramel) was probably the best I have ever eaten, (next to my own of course;)) it was smooth, creamy, and just right.  Some of the girls were daring in their marcaroon choices (pumpkin & corn, white chocolate & truffle), but I kept to the classics...I have a dark chocolate one saved for breakfast I suppose.  After we picked up the macaroons, we headed off to find a coffee shop for the girls to get caffinated before class, and ended up at a chocolate store, (across the street from Ottolenghi where I was the night before). I got a hot chocolate and an Almond Praline covered in chocolate.  When my Hot Chocolate came, it came with a homemade black currant marshmallow....for not liking fruity desserts, it was really good.  

On the way to school we debated which chef we would most like to have with us vs least like to have.  They all have pros and cons to each of them.  Some grade stiff, some are picky about organization/hygene, some are friendly, some were drill sargents in a former life.... you get the idea.  We got Chef Arizona.  The one who marks lower than all the other chefs...he has very high standards, and for a world winning sugar sculpter he should, just not with us beginners.  I gave myself a lot of pep talks before entering the room & calmed my nerves before I baked.  Miraculously, it was a smooth night.  Sponge was made well, my soaking syrup I brought drinking chocolate powder to add to it instead of coffee, ganache good, and my buttercream (with chocolate extract and a bit of cocoa again) didnt turn to soup or yellow, so that was an accomplishment.  I thought my layers were good....I didnt realize they were wavy tell chef told me at my critique....I didnt understand tell I went home and started eating it and saw the sponge waves.  Before piping "Opera" on it, I had Chef come over and give me a tutorial on chocolate piping.  "I have not been proud of my piping before and you havent liked my piping either based off the scores you've given me [yep, I went there/said that; Malta who was next to me laughed], so could you please show me how to pipe properly?"  -- It was a nice minute with him learning, and at my critique chef said that the piped word "Opera" was superb (never heard that word out of him) but the overpiping needed some work.  Freak. The man said something of mine on the cake card was superb.  I'll take that and forget everything else that he told me.  Haha. 

After class I was so tired, I tripped and almost fell, but I recovered.  I came home, made a snack, and am now writing in the wee hours of the morning.  Seriousy time passes to so so so so fast here.  But. The. Cake.  Oh my goodness, it is so good, creamy smooth velvety yummy.  Probably my favorite dish so far we've made.....all because of the twists of more chocolate and no coffee make this chocolate loving girl happy.  

And with that one of my eyelids is closing to off to bed I go.  

Days 60 and 61. Lets Do This

Days 60 and 61.  Lets Do This.  Day SIXTY Monday was hard to get out of bed, but I had to remind myself that I needed to do laundry as all my school clothes needed to be washed and ironed for class this afternoon. That turned into cleaning my room, making food, ironing,and other stuff around the house to keep me busy until I was shocked to see the time.  I've never left so late, and I still made it on time.  First class of the day was a tech class, where we watched Chef make some confections.  He didnt teach us anything about them, he just made them.  He said that we would make them in superior, so why we watched him make them I have no idea, but they were mighty tasty.  Caramel Mou, Nougat (way better than a Big Hunk), and Fruit Jellies.  The caramel mou I could eat by the bucket full.  It was not chewy like the store bought caramels, but when I bit into it, it melted in my mouth.  Ahhh....so so good.  After that in our next class, we made our Sabrina Cakes.  It could have been better, it could have been worse, but we did it.  It still doesnt taste like much....double the fruit when (if) I ever make it at home.  Came home too late, ate cake too late, talked to Lisa too late, but it was all worth it.

Day 61.  Tuesday. I got up and jogged this morning.  It was good to get out on the old trail today.  I was afraid it was going to be too cold, but once jogging starts, I am quick to warm up.  I love the jogs to clear my head, and get me ready for the day.  We had two classes today, a demonstration, and a practical.  In demonstration, it was a recap on somethings, and new things as well.  We made fruit cake....for the love of anyone who loves it....bless you.....it reaks of rum...and the candied jellies are no good either....the chefs are baking/keeping it for us tell the term ends.....they have so much alcohol in them it preserves them indefinately....think about that the next time you eat one.  We also made a pastry crust, why I dont know because we didnt make anything to fill it with....I took them home to make banoffee pie or something.  Also, we piped rosettes and shells, practiced our chocolate/icing writing to put on cakes.  Two of our upcoming exam dishes have writing/piping on the top of them.....so practice is really needed...as well as spelling practice.  Fraisier.  Not Frasier or Fraiser...I had to practice this a lot.  We also made marzipan roses.  A marzipan rose is also on two of our exam dishes.  It was nice to have practice time today, because it is nice to be familiar with the parts before the whole dish is presented, starting tomorrow.  Came home, had another piece of cake, instead of studying I am going to bed.  This blog is getting boring.  Too tired to write about the funny stories.

Days 56, 57, 58....and 59. Be proud.

Trying to get back to regular life after all the traveling around & visitors has been quite the adjustment.  I am tired everynight when I go to bed, but when my head hits the pillow, I am wide awake.  Grrrr... hence my lack of blogging.  

Day 56.  The Visitors left in the morning, they were satified with eating the Devonshire Splits I had brought the night before, for breakfast.....no need to leave the hotel, but we got out for a few minutes to take pictures of ourselves before they hopped in a car & took off for the airport.  It was lovely having them here in my little world across the pond.

I headed for home after they left to drop off the bus, only to be halfway there when the tube I needed was having issues & did not come for 20 minutes, so I turned around and went to school.  As I was exiting the station for school, the tube's speaked system came on and announced to evacuate immediatley, that they were closing down the station.  Ahhh what? Yep.  Totally closed it.  Classmates were being dropped off a station away and either walking it or busing it.  Good thing I didnt catch that train I needed afterall.  The classes that day were pretty uneventful.  They were both Technical classes, no baking day.  First class was about our final exam dishes (which I promised myself I would start studying earlier this time) & the other class was about wine pairings.  I just sat there again and watched their faces as they paired wine with smoked salmon, chili pepper, lemon wedges, endive, and parmesean cheese.  I enjoyed the cheese.  In between classes, a few of us went to lunch at an italian place.  It was the first italian I have had since being here.  Pretty good.  After classes were done I headed home with my overloaded bag.  I tried to take it nice and easy, and go to sleep fast, but that didnt happen.  

Day 57

We had a Tech class on food storage & preparation.  It is as exciting as it sounds.  Went to Byron's Burger for lunch & I got the mac & cheese and fried zuchini strips.  Sweet and totally healthy.  For our demonstration class we had the chef known for breads teach the class.  If anyone could teach us proper dough, it would be him.  I felt for the guy though, it was not his day.  He put some breads into the proffer, and instead of setting it for 30 degrees Celcius, it was set at 300.  Quite the difference.  So the tops were burned, but he slow cooked them to survivable/edible and went on working.  Chef was not please with his work.  I was impressed.  He shaped 4 varieties of brioche dough in thirty minutes.  That's impressive.  After school, I did a little grocery shopping, and worked on my notes for class.  I was still really tired, but head on the pillow = wide awake....and I had class at 8am the next day.....

Day 58

Crossaints. Brioche. Danish.  It was worth getting up for to make/bake these items....just a bit hard at 8am to do.  When I saw my dough (that I had made on Wednesday), it had been resting on the counter for a bit and looked like it was going to explode inside the cling wrap and I wondered if it would turn out to be anything.  Well, it turned out amazing things.  Chef Touillee let us alone to do our own work, rolling doughs, and placing whatever toppings (fruit, nuts, chocolate) we liked.  He only cares about getting breakfast out of us....aka crossaints.  He ate 14 by the end of class of various sizes and shapes.  As I was looking at mine and discouraged that they werent as big as other peoples, or as pretty, the thought just as quick as the first came to me that "I freaking made crossaints.  They turned out!  I've never done that before in my life!  Be proud!  You did something you never thought you could do.  Good job!"  And with that I was over how everyone elses breads turned out, and proud of my own.  

We had a demonstration class after that, where we learned about the Genoise Sabrina.  It is a cake really only known in LCB world, as part of the original film Sabrina was filmed as LCB in Paris, and a Chef made this cake afterwards to celebrate the film. Very intricate details on this one, and the work put into it is more intense than what it tastes like, so we shall see how it turns out.  After school, I headed home with my loads of crossaints, pan au chocolats, brioche loaves, bread loaf, and danish pastries, no room to pick up some more groceries, my hands were full.  I got home, and my landlady told me about a fireworks display that was going on for "Bonfire Night" (aka Guy Fox Night) at a nearby park, and asked if I wanted to go.  I said sure.  The fireworks were a few hours away, so I did some laundry and organized my room (aka made a mess).  I realized it was raining.  My obervance of the outdoor weather conditions needs improving.  I asked my landlady if they would cancel the fireworks for the rain, she said that it is a paid event and so they would never cancel them.  She was shocked when I told her back home things are cancelled due to the weather.  She also said that it was raining like a monsoon 30 minutes prior and she wasnt feeling well enough to go.  Luckilly I had texted Mindy to join us, so I went and met her.  The paid event was only allowing ticketed members in, so we (with another 100 or so) walked to a place where we could see them outside of the park.  About five minutes into the display, the fireworks stopped.  A man on an intercom came on and said "The cell phone that was sending the signal to the fireworks ran out of money on it, so if anyone has a ten pound cell phone top up card to let us use it would be greatly appreciated."  Seriously?  A fireworks person didnt prepare enough credit on his phone?  Ha!  The fireworks were back up and running a few minutes later for a stunning display behind a tree.  After that we got come crepes and talked before going our seperate directions.  I was so tired when I got home I fell asleep three times while bloggingg...so this entry has taken days to complete :)

Day 59. Sunday is Sunday.  I took my danishes/nut bread to church because it dont need a zillion calories on my hips, and they were gobbled up in no time at the end of Relief Society.  Tonight I am headed to Mindy's for dinner with some other people, review my notes for tomorrow, and prep for the week.  Really exciting I know. But first I need a nap.

Day FIFTY FIVE. The Day I Wore Out the VIsitors

Day FIFTY FIVE. The Day I Wore Out the Visitors.  We had a lazier morning...getting up at 730, and enjoyed the almond cream puff pastry.  First up, the Churchill War Museums.  I thought Dad would really like those, and he did.  So much information about Winston Churchill's life and the bunker that held Churchill's peeps during the War that ran the country.  So fascinating that government could run from a simple small, cramped place.  One of many quotes I liked from it, "Winston had very simple taste, expensive."

After that we took a walk through St James Park....it really is a pretty (trees, plants, paths, people, pond, ducks, swans, geese and the like) & leisurely place.  And the visitors pace was getting slower, but the kept going,... to Buckingham Palace!! Ta da!  We were lucky enough to see the tail end of the changing of the guard ceremony (the bands leaving the palace).  I've never seen that before....pretty cool.  

The Visitors persevered as we continued on walking through Green Park this time to catch a bus to lunch, and a bit more walking :) .  Essex at school had recommended a place to me that I had been wanting to try, and once we sat down I told the Visitors it was vegetarian.  Surprise!  They didn't seem to mind. They both got the Burger special of the day, Eggplant, Chickpeas, Spices patty with Basil Mayo for dipping the fries.  I got the Risotto Ball (softball size) on a bed of Roasted Tomato cream sauce and sautéed spinach and asparagus.  Both were really good.  

The Visitors were troupers by this point, and they could go back to the hotel and take a nap, or walk/take a bus to see my school, and they chose the school.  They got to meet some of my classmates & got to see me in my uniform.,,,then I went to class and they were off.  [They went to the British Museum, hotel, I Instagramed them from class and told them to go see the building across the street from the hotel as it is the oldest department store in London....and some places for dinner.....and guess what!  they walked to dinner!!!  Wahaca. The mexican food place....they came back and packed their bags and waited for me to bring home a treat from school....]

School for me today was making croissant dough and brioche dough (to be used on Saturday...sorry Visitors)..... and Buns....hot cross buns and a strawberry jam and whipped cream filled ones (I think they are called Devonshire's).  I got to take the buns to the Visitors, and they said we;d wait tell morning to eat them.  We talked for a bit before heading to bed...which is where I am sitting, when I need to be lying down.  Its been good & fun having the visitors here.  I hope they sleep the entire flight tomorrow.

Day Fifty Four. The Day the Visitors Saw It All

Day FIFTY FOUR.  The Day The Visitors Saw It All. We started off the morning a bit earlier than yesterday. We got to the Tower of London early to avoid the crowds and long lines....and it worked. We were able to walk by the frown jewels four times (could have done more rounds) with no queue waiting. Dad and I ventured to the white tower in the middle....too many stairs for mom....it was filled with Armor of Henry the VIII and others. We walked around a bit of the wall, before being satisfied with our time at the tower. Next up we took a river cruise, (courtesy of our Hop on Hop Off tickets) down to Parliament. We actually went inside Parliament and watched a live session! How cool is that!?! Imagining Margaret Thatcher down there and all the others before and after was amazing....we listened about a Burroughs concerns over needed funding/safety. After that we ventured to grab some sandwiches which we ate at Trafalgar Square, I walked Mom & Dad into the National Museum to the impressionists and I was off to class. [Parents did amazing things: the museum, tried to find the hop on/off bus & when they did it was for only one stop to see Downing St & the Horse Guards, then they walked to Westminster Abbey for Evensong. Then they walked back to Trafalgar square. Ha! That's what I wanted them to do the day before but they "didn't want to walk that far" and today they did it twice...then they took the bus back to the hotel & then went out for dinner & came back to the hotel and awaited their dessert. They had quite the jam packed day].

 For me & my class I learned how to make two things.....each with French names that I cant remember....one was a puff pastry crust, with raspberry jam, topped with another layer of puff, mouseline cream, strawberries, more cream, puff pastry, fondant and chocolate piping. No shame. The visitors and I ate the whole thing tonight. We had to...we don't have a fridge here. :) The other thing I made is puff pastry with almond cream in the middle with crimped edges. That will be our breakfast. As I have been starving the visitors for two days to get them to see all the sights in the morning. And whats better than fresh pastry? That's all for now. I am too tired to write anymore.

Day FIFTY TWO AND FIFTY THREE. The Visitors are here.

Days 52 and 53. The Visitors are here. Started day 52 at church. Then came home, packed my bag again, cleaned out some things of mine in the fridge and headed to the airport to meet The Visitors. Aka my parents. They came straight from a european river cruise and are stopping over here for a few days to see me before heading to the states. They each brought the same amount of luggage (one large & one carryon suitcase) as what I brought, and I am here for 6 months. This was fun to get around. Mom and Dad were troupers as we ventured the tube with lots of luggage. Trying to get them close to the hotel via metro was a challenge with stops I dont frequent...and stairs....I got my workout for the day that is for sure. One big suitcase up, dad brings one small suitcase up, he waits at the top of the stairs, I go back and get the other big suitcase, and finally, go back again for the little suitcase and mom waiting at the bottom of the stairs. Repeated four times at least. Yep. It was good sweaty fun. We checked into the hotel, and ventured out for dinner. My only dinner meal with them as I am in class every night this week. I took them to the first restaurant I went to here in London....Union Jacks. Coowned by Jamie Oliver & Chris Bianco (of PHX fame). Dad got fish & chips, mom got fish pie, and I got a mushroom pizza (mushroom sauce, mushrooms on top with pickled red onion and rocket (arugala). For dessert we couldnt decide, so we got two :) Brownie with clotted cream & bread pudding w/butterscotch sauce. Both were amazing. After that, we headed back to the hotel, made light plans for the next day....and the Visitors were out before my head hit the pillow.

 Day 53. I thought we could do a walking tour, but pops said he didnt want to walk. London is a walking city :) ha. whoops. ahhhh..... Bus Tour! Hop on Hop Off. Luckilly it is the off season, so a one day ticket is good for two. Yippy! A bus to take us everywhere & see all the stuff we want without a metro. We were happy. Pops and I ventured to the top of the double decker bus, and we did almost a full loop, driving by Trafalgar Square, Picadilly Square, Parliament, Big Ben, London Eye, Tower of London, Financial District, St Pauls, Westminster, Harrods, and V&A. We got a quick bite to eat in the midst of it all. We got off at Harrods & took a walk around that beast of a mall. Seriously. Amazing jewlery (why yes I would love a 10 karat diamond ring please....thank you Dior), hand bags, mens clothes....and of course the food stalls. I dont think calling it a food court does it justice at all. Its pretty much a grocery store for anything imaginable, a fish monger, sushi, steak, indian, breads, pastries, and of course chocolate. Amazing! Mom got a cronut & dad got an almond crossaint. I didnt even ask how they liked them....as we got them to go and headed to the V&A and to the church building I go to. That is where I left them and headed to school....I wished them luck and dryness as it had been raining ALL day :( [They did really well without me, went to Kensington Palace and a few other places, had dinner at a Pub, and were at the hotel by 730...tired and worn out. I must have worked them too hard].

 Today's classes were the demonstration & practical for Dobos Chocolate cake. A sponge cake, cut into strips, soaking syrup & chocolate ganache are applied to the layers & then stacked, chilled, and jedi knife cut at a diagonal to get two triangles, which were then ganached together to form a tent (V) shape. The layers then give vertical stripes (IIIII) under the tent. The whole thing is covered in ganache and a layer of chocolate as well. It was easier than I thought it was going to be, but never in my life have I cut my cake in half at an angle before. Oh! We also made puff pastry for our next dish....something with fruit....I dont remember the name. But something fruity tomorrow.

The parents got to eat my cake when I got back to their hotel...and we made plans for tomorrow.  We are venturing on the metro. Seriously please #prayfortheirfeet. They are troopers. They are great. They are my parents. They are The Visitors.

Day FIFTY ONE. PUTTERING AROUND

Day FIFTY ONE. Puttering around. We gathered our things and headed out of Oban. If you are ever there, do not stay in the Royal Hotel. It is not Royal at all. The bathroom door jams and keeps you in there with even the slightest bit of shower steam. The floors had peeling paint, and it was just great for location and little else.

 We headed off to travel down another Loch. Mindy drove like a champ and breezed by the Lach pretty fast. I think we were Loched out by this point as we didnt stop to take as many pictures as on days one and two in the highlands. We diverted back to Sterling to find a statue of some author in Sterling. We would have had time to putter around town, but finding a place to eat, finding the statue, and finding parking in a town that only uses roundabouts was quite the challenge. We sat down in a restaraunt for afternoon tea and Mindy realized that we needed to be to the airport in an hour, and we were 45 minutes away.

 Back to the car. From the exit off the highway to the airport there are SEVEN roundabouts. As soon as you got out of one, you were back in another.....we had to try 4 times before getting it right and into the rental car return. Exhausted, we boarded the plane. I sat a row infront of them by the window. As we were flying into London, I looked out my window & I felt like I was on the real life version of Peter Pan's ride. We flew right over London Bridge, Big Ben, Parliament, and down the River Thames. Seriously so cool. Wish I had my camera out to capture it, but didnt want to miss the real life experience.

 As we were getting off the plane, the couple that had been making out part of the trip whom was sitting next to me, the guy was telling her, come on its time to get off. She kept sitting in her seat. She pulled out a barf bag and silently (no noises thankfully) threw up in the barf bag. Ugh. Welcome to London. Got home just fine, talked to the world's best brother on his birthday, did laundry, watched some TV to

relax, and headed to bed....before the visitors come....