Out on Holidays and Back Home for Cake

Well hi there!!!

It's been a long time. Hope you've all been well. For those of you who follow this blog, my sincerest apologies for not posting sooner. It's been a busy past week. Last Tuesday I left on a trip with two of my dearest friends. Considering we had two weeks off from school, they planned a trip to Amsterdam and Munich, for the Oktoberfest. Let me tell you, it has been one of the most amazing trips I've ever taken.

So many adventures and new experiences...photos of absolutely everything. These are the moments that we live for. Staying at a hostel for the first time (wasn't half bad...except for a mouse in the room hahahaha) and taken a look at the Sex Museum, Amsterdam quickly became a city we love. 

Huge I AM AMSTERDAM sign in Museumplein

We also visited the Van Gogh museum, a place I'd definitely recommend to go if you're into art. We had huge pancakes at the Pancake Bakery and we also visited Anne Frank's house...a sad place that holds so much history. Walking around mid morning through Vondelpark was amazing as well. We have to tell you, we had never been to a city where cycling is so popular. More bicycles than cars, but it makes sense, seeing as the city isn't very big.

We left Amsterdam and headed to Munich, for the Oktoberfest celebrations. What an experience!!! We definitely have to go back. We stayed at a lovely Bed and Breakfast, where we welcomed in as family. The owners have the most amazing dog: and old lady named Terry, who's a. She's thirteen years old and cannot be in better shape. We stayed 3 nights in Munich and drank enough beer to last a lifetime.

The whole ambience of the world's most famous beer festival was incredible. Everyone was dressed in the proper bavarian garments, meeting new people and drinking beer, all the while bands playing folklore music. 

Ein Prosit!! I foresee myself attending the Oktoberfest in the coming years. Worth the time!!!

Ein Prosit

We left Munich with sad faces but happy hearts. The trip went by in seconds and we found ourselves on our way back to merry ol' London: Home! I didn't realize how much I missed my bed until I came home and passed out. But our holidays and celebrations weren't over. Thursday we hosted a birthday celebration for Juliana. One year older and wiser, we made her the princess for a day. Gladly I found myself baking her a cake that all too familiar with me: Red Velvet.

Yummy right? I have made this cake for many special people

The recipe I used has never disappointed and the result was magnificent as always. Hey, you have to stay true with what works. So I made my way to The Ten Bells pub (after an hour of rain and trying to hail a cab...) in Commercial Street. It was the venue chosen by the birthday girl and we've had a many fun nights there. We seemed to attract the crowd behaving like kids again, with balloons and what not. 

A friend of ours also happened to arrive back to London the very same day, so we had double to celebrate. The candles were blown, a wish was made and the cake was shared. Ju, I hope you had a great time, because we all did!!! We love you.

I found the most amazing candles: Angel Flames!!!

Having received our schedules for this next phase on our culinary adventures, we're glad to have concluded our holidays on such a high note. A new chapter begins for us and we all hope we hold on till the end, when we receive our diplomas and can officially be referred to as CHEFS!!!

So all in all, a busy, happy and festive holiday/break with good food, drinks and most of all friends.

Heading out now for dinner and I'll be back soon. Have a good night!!!

The messy chef, Kendra, Ju,the birthday girl and Juliana 

Until next time xx

Weekend Celebrations and Holiday Packing

Hi there!!!

This past weekend was a busy one, with much to celebrate. Apart from continuing rejoicing over our certificates, my little country, Honduras, along with our Central American neighbors, celebrated our Independence Day on Saturday, 15th of September. To commemorate our triumph, a mass was organized and the small community of Hondurans here in London got together. 

With latino music and delicious homemade, Honduran food, we honored our beautiful country. We can all agree that once we leave home, the first thing we miss is our food. Tamales, pupusas, pastelitos, rice and beans...wow. I salute the women who prepared our feast. A big thank you to the Embassy of Honduras for organizing such a wonderful night.

Pupusas, tamales and rice and beans...yummy

And what a night is was as not only did we celebrate our independence, but our Ambassador, through Presidential order, awarded the medal of Best Artist of Honduras to Mr. Miguel Angel Ruiz.

His excellency, Mr. Ivan Romero awarding the medal to Mr. Ruiz

Mr. Ruiz very graciously and humbly accepted this honor, although he said he did not deem himself the best artist of our country. If you are interested, please check some of his beautiful works. 

http://www.pintoreslatinoamericanos.com/2012/09/pintores-hondurenos-miguel-angel-ruiz.html

Sunday came quickly and I found myself wanting to bake yet again. This time I went a little more basic and baked brownies. Yum! I hadn't baked them in a long time and the results were great. I used the wrong chocolate though, and the texture resembled both a cake and fudge...an amazing combo!!!

What do you think...? Great, oh yes...

I packed a few to give away Monday, which turned out to be a day of goodbyes. Today I leave for a week of holidays and sadly I had to say goodbye to two great friends who return home this week. Firstly to Val, my russian friend: Val, we'll miss you terribly and again, we wish you the very best in your future. And secondly, to one of the people I love the most, Carmela, my spanish friend. I think we've said goodbye to many times, but you'll be coming back soon. :)

My surprise for Val along with brownies...nicely wrapped up :)

So Val and I went for lunch to a Japanese restaurant here in Camden, Bento Ramen. I've been several times to both their locales (Bento Ramen and Bento Cafe) and the menu is so varied you need to try many things. I had a lunch special: Chicken Teriyaki. Ok, so not very original in my choice, but hey, it was good. I couldn't finish is all, so I packed it up. Val had Sweet and Sour chicken, which she said was good. 

Chicken Teriyaki Set

Definitely check them out if you're in the area. Food is delicious and it's not expensive.

Bento Ramen

29-31 Parkway

Camden Town

NW1 7PN

020 7485 9933

http://www.bentoramen.co.uk/

With this, I take my leave. Gotta finish packing up. Wish us luck!!! 

Until next week then. 

xx

2/3 On The Road to Success

Hey guys,

Happy Friday to all!!! The weekend is here and we have much to celebrate. We received our Intermediate Patisserie certificates yesterday and we couldn't be happier!!! We are 1/3 away from the finish line, when we will receive our Patisserie Diplomas in December! 

Time has flown by and we barely noticed it. We feel more and more at home at the institute and I hate to think of how hard it will be to leave when we complete Superior Patisserie. The Chefs have grown accustomed to us and I'll even go out on a limb and say they like us (they'll deny it till the end...) hahahahaha. 

Can you believe it :D

After a lovely speech from Mrs. Gray, the school's director, we were awarded our certificates and then treated to a morning cocktail of champagne, juice and school made canapés. The weather has been nippy of late and yesterday we experienced one of those beautiful autumn days. Blue skies and chilly weather. The perfect match for a happy day. 

Still, melancholy hung in the air. My partner and beloved classmate, Valeriya, has finished her time here in London and returns to her home in Russia next week. As the chefs and other classmates signed the beautiful poster a friend made for her, we reminisced of our crazy times in the school kitchens. The three musketeers will no longer be a trio. Still, we wish her the very best on her future endeavors and we only hope to see her succeed in her next chapter. Best of luck Val <3

The Three Musketeers <3

So, we continue the London Adventures...

As a culinary capital, there are thousands of restaurants to choose from. Yesterday I had the pleasure of going to two great places.

My friend Kendra works part time at the pan-asian cuisine restaurant East Street. I've been there a couple of times and have ordered the same thing each time. So I changed yesterday. Having craved a yummy green curry for so long, the recommendation on East Street's dish was spot on! Oh, green curry, how I love you so. If I could marry you, I would. 

If you like pan-asian cuisine, I highly recommend East Street. The food is amazing and the service 5 stars! ;) Check it out:

Yummy in the Tummy!!!

                                                         East Street

3-5 Rathbone Place  London W1T 1HJ

                                                                      020 7323 0860

Feeling like a boa, we went to the Thursday market in Covent Garden. We sat down for crepes, and I still cannot believe I gulped one down. Well, half of one. I shared hehehehe. Dark Chocolate, Grand Marnier and unrefined sugar made a good combo. So check out    

Crème de la Crêpe for some awesome savoury and sweet crepes. Yum!

Gagan's Banoffee Pie Crêpe 

Crème de la Crêpe

                                                    29 The Piazza Covent Garden, London

020 7836 6896

I went home feeling comatose after so much food and thankfully I had 4 hours before dinner. 

At 8:00 pm I found myself in Drury Lane (I wasn't looking for the muffin man...) walking to Sarastro. Being the first to arrive, I had time to appreciate the decor of the place. Absolutely fantastic! I felt part of an Arabian Night. With cushions and velvety materials, the booth like tables felt like small lounges. Most of them were surrounded by arched windows, resembling arabian architecture of old. Our table was set high, to appear as a balcony within the restaurant. The food is Turkish oriented with a mediterranean twist to it. The food is ok, but the atmosphere is great!!! Thursdays feature live music and after dinner we joined the crowd for a conga line and dancing. I definitely suggest you check it out.

Arabian Wine Nights

Sarastro

126 Drury Lane  London WC2B 5SU 

020 7836 0101

Busy day right? When the company is good, the day is great. Hope you guys enjoy the weekend.

Until next time.

xx

To Drinks, Cakes and Long Weekends

Hi there!

It's been exactly one week since my last post..my apologies. So much has happened in the past few days, I don't know where to begin.

My beautiful Frog Prince

Friday night, my friend and I met for dinner at a Peruvian restaurant next to London Bridge station, Tito's. The ceviche we had was really good and I think we'll be going back at some point. Not to mention, we hadn't had pizco sours in a while...yum. Then we headed up to Camden Town for some after-dinner drinks. Next time you're in the area, check out The Camden Head. Great atmosphere and great drinks!

Tito's 

4-6 London Bridge Street  City of London, London, Greater London SE1 9SG020 7407 7787

The weekend flew by afterwards. Saturday was a relaxing day, with not much to do except clean my very messy apartment and a late lunch at Byron. I'd been meaning to go for a while, as we'd heard some good reviews on the chain. It was a good burger. Can definitely see myself going back. I had the yummy cheeseburger with a side of awesome onion rings. Call me fatty, but I do love onion rings :D !!!

Sunday, I met my friends here at the Camden Market for a late lunch (yes, I loooove to eat) and drinks after. We had cocktails at Bar Fifty Five (they have a great happy hour: 2 for £8...trust me the drinks are AMAZING). We then headed to the Thames Festival. The fireworks finale was beautiful. I love fireworks! They remind me of Christmas and my late grandfather. He loved fireworks too!!! 

Sunday Happy Hour @ Bar Fifty Five

Monday was by far the longest day. Four of us met in Windsor and went to Legoland!!! It was so much fun!!! I felt like a kid again. Have you ever been? My absolute favorite part was the Star Wars Mini-land Experience, depicting through Lego structures, the plot of Episodes I - VI. The weather wasn't on our side sadly, but we had loads of fun. We left late in the afternoon and had dinner in Southall...mmm, Lamb Pasanda. It was so good...

A Lego Chef :o 

So slight recap on the culinary world: Last week we started with decorating the celebration cakes. Mine was basically finished, it just needed some spark. Yesterday we came back (those who weren't done) and finished them. What do you think of my finished piece?

He looks much better, right?

And guess what?! I passed my final practical (exam)!!! This means I passed my Intermediate Patisserie course!!! Tomorrow morning we shall receive our official certificates!!! I am so happy, we all are. It seems we came here a month ago and we're already 2/3 done. I cannot wait to begin the Superior Patisserie course. Sugar work, chocolate work, more bread making and workshops, workshops workshops!!! 

Beginning of my roulade...

So, since last week, you know I've gone back to baking at home. Yesterday I made a wonderful Lemon Meringue Roulade, recipe by Mrs. Mary Berry. I took it to school and it was gone within 15 minutes. The recipe is very simple. I always find roulades so elegant, so when I read meringue roulade, I thought : Wow, this will be complicated; far from it. With less than 10 ingredients and being completed within an hour, the result is magnificent. Apart from strudels, I had never made a roll before. Trust me, this recipe is a keeper. 

This is a blogger's page with the recipe. It's true to the one I made if you wish to try it, which I truly suggest you do.

http://allthethrees.co.uk/index.php/2012/03/lemon-meringue-roulade/

It looked so pretty... <3

Busy week, no? I hope your week so far has gone by well. I'll see what I bake next and I'll try to keep posting on a more regular basis. Until next time then.

Sweet Dreams xx

Creative Crafting

Hi there!!!

So, today began the decoration of our wonderful  celebration cakes. You'll have to apologize for the lack of pictures this time. I was having a blast molding my decorations that I completely forgot to take photos of the steps.

So, my two ideas were: London (I'll elaborate...) and a Frog Prince theme. I chose the latter. Both ideas are really nice, but molding the frog seemed more interesting. I will, however, make a London theme cake at home...at some point...eventually.

The cake itself is a fruit cake we baked a couple of weeks back, and was left to mature in the school fridges with some alcohol. It's a really small cake, approximately 16 cm in diameter. We cut off the dome so we could work with a flat surface, filled the holes from missing fruits with marzipan and proceeded to cover the cake in a marzipan layer. Having done this, we then covered it with regal icing or rolling fondant. Some finished today, some, like me, will finish the cake next week.

The first step we took was making the decorations. Some of my classmates were eager to try out the sugar paste techniques in flower making and went ahead. My idea didn't really require much of this, other than the lily for the lily pad. So I began by coloring my regal icing with green and molding my frog prince. It seemed easier to do than it actually was, but it was fun to see it progress step by step. It looks funny too and nothing like the designs by which it was inspired.  But hey, it looks great on top.

I molded the frog, the eyes and the crown (twice). I set them apart to dry and I cut the cake. After our break, we covered the cake in marzipan. Seeing as I wanted the cake to resemble a pond, I colored my regal icing a teal blue, and the marble effect if provided was perfect.  I covered the cake and smoothed it down. Since the cake is small, we placed it on top of a larger cake round and we also covered this with the fondant. I made this icing a different blue. I then assembled the cake on the cake board and colored some icing in a brownish color. I molded pebbles with it and glued them with royal icing at the base of the small cake.

When the whole "base" was done, I fixed the loose parts on my froggie and placed him on top of the cake. Next to a lily pad and a pile of gray stones, it looked great!!!

Would you kiss him...?

I made a slight mess with the royal icing and breaking a petal off the lily, but everything has a solution and I managed to save it. I could have been done with it, but the Chef agreed the frog was lacking life.  It needs more color to it, more shades, something to give it that spark of life. So the next workshop I will do this and hopefully the finished cake will come out fantastic.

What do you think of it so far? Yes, I know...the frog does look weird.

He'll come to life next week :)

Practice makes perfect and I'll get the hang of molding with the fondant. For now, I'll settle happily for my frog and hope I can turn him into a prince next class.

Until next time!!!

xx

Cookies and Cake? Not bad for tea, right?

Welcome back!!!

And we continue the culinary adventures here in London. The oatmeal cookies were a hit at school today. Luckily I still have some at home to enjoy with coffee or tea. 

Today we had the written final and I guess we were all taken by surprise with some of the questions that came up. Sure, they tell you to review everything, but you only take notice of the study guide they provide. Serves us right I suppose. Still, it went fairly well and I'm sure we'll all pass. 

Happily, the forecast stayed true and we experienced lovely weather throughout the day. Sunny and yet chilly, summing up to almost the perfect day. Personally I love days like these especially during autumn. The sun and the cold add on to the beauty of  the changing colors of nature. We'll see this magnificent display here very soon. 

Sugar paste flowers, petals and leaves...

Weirdly, classes continue after the exams. We have our final "practicals" this week. Some started today; my class starts tomorrow. We will begin the decoration of our celebration cakes. Our teaching chef completed his during the demo, but we have been allocated 3 classes for it, a total of 7 hours and a half. A bit much I think, but it all depends on the complexity of the decoration you wish to give it. I have two ideas in mind, but I suppose one is considered to simple and will not help practice my skills. So I'll choose the more "complex" one. I'll post the picture of the finished cake soon.

The Chef's finished piece

Having finished early, I came home a tidied up a bit. My flat is small and it still surprises me how quickly it can become a pigsty. And I baked cookies today as well. On the menu:

TRIPLE CHOCOLATE COOKIES

It is a recipe I've been using for a little over two years now and the results are mouthwatering, DELICIOUS, heaven. For me at least: I am a chocolate lover and weirdly, I don't usually eat what I bake, but cookies just do it for me. The perfect size and flavors all compacted into the perfect little dessert.  What do you think?

Chocolate heaven...? I think so :) 

Mmm...the smell of cookies in the oven...it just doesn't get any better. Look at them...puffing up in the oven...don't you just want to grab one? Hehehehehe... try them at home. Mind you, this is NOT my recipe, the only added thing has been my skill of not making them uniform...everything else belongs to the chocolate genius below.

Triple Chocolate Cookies by Chef Douglas: 

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Triple-Chocolate-Cookies-232391

The recipe yields 16 cookies...that bogus, unless you make massive, colossal cookies, in which case, totally true. It yielded 38 perfectly sized, yet abstract shaped cookies with two tiny cookie buttons. Those tiny ones are only mine...don't ask for one because I will not share them ^^.

I might enjoy them with my morning coffee tomorrow. We'll see. I hope you guys had a lovely Tuesday as well and don't hesitate to try this recipe at home. It's flawless and absolutely worth it.

Have a good night.

Sweet Dreams xx

Back to Basics

Hi there!!!

Hope you had an easy Monday. 

So, tomorrow we have our written final for Intermediate Patisserie and I guess we're all excited because we're basically through with the intermediate phase. Not to mention we had extremely good weather today and it's expected to continue throughout the week. 

Pâte sucrée, pâte brisée, pâte feuilletée...it never stops

Not that you can count on the weather here really...it's very temperamental. Still, lots to look forward. I mentioned previously we get to decorate our celebration cake this week. In fact, we have the demonstration tomorrow and the workshops for my class begin on Wednesday. Can't wait!!! Hopefully it'll turn out as I have it planned. I'll keep you posted on that.  

My color-coded flash cards...felt like high school again

As much as I wanted to focus on the studying, it was a bit hard. The day was too pretty hehehehe. But I did manage to get through the material between yesterday and today and so I decided to bake at home, nothing school related, after so long. And as promised, I baked cookies. I had not baked in the longest time something that I truly enjoyed and reminded me of home. It was a back to basics 

The recipe yielded 42

There truly isn't anything better than the smell of freshly baked cookies. When they're puffing up and releasing such a sweet aroma into the room...wow. I baked Oatmeal, Chocolate Chip and Pecan cookies...so yummy and chewy :D. I'll post the recipe later on so you can try it at home. 

Chewy oatmeal heaven...ahh

But I take my leave. Gotta get that beauty sleep. Good night to you all.

Sweet Dreams xx

Sunday Studies

Hi there and welcome back.

September is here and I finally had an afternoon tea...after 5 1/2 months here. It took me long enough, but hey, I did it. And it was lovely. We had it at a restaurant called Bill's, the branch located in Brewer St. It's quite cozy and has a rustic look to it. The staff is nice and the service is good. Not to mention they have really good food, and a seasonal menu. What's not to like? 

We got there 9 minutes before they stopped serving the afternoon tea, so we took it to be an early supper. Trust me, it fills you up. With finger sandwiches (egg, salmon, cucumber and ham/tomatoes), scones with clotted cream and jam and a variety of sweets, it's hard to keep your stomach empty. This is not counting the enormous pot of tea of your choice next to it. 

That's my friend Saskia :)

Another great thing: it's only £10.95 per person. Not a bad deal considering all you get. And it was yummy!!! Absolutely perfect.

Interested? Check it out: http://www.bills-website.co.uk/

Could not finish the pot...

But that was Saturday. Today was a quiet day. The sky was rather gloomy, but I love gray days. In fact, it was a great day, considering I spent a good part of the afternoon studying. Our written final is Tuesday morning and we have a lot study. Ingredients, quantities, methods...got to learn them all. Wish us luck. We won't know our results until next week and by then, most of us will be fretting. But we have a celebration cake to keep us occupied in the kitchen.

Weeks ago we prepared fruit cakes, which we left to mature with alcohol in the school fridges. They are to be used this and next week, when we decorate them with fondant. This will definitely be the most creative cake we will have made this term. I have a few ideas in mind. You'll see the finished cake next week :). And these workshops will be our last classes in the Intermediate Patisserie. I still cannot believe 5 1/2 months have flown by and we now have our Basic Patisserie diplomas. This seemed far-fetched a year ago but here we are. It makes me truly happy.

Tomorrow I shall continue studying and since I have no class, I'll consider baking cookies for a change. I'll let you know how that goes. 

Stay tuned for more and as always,

Sweet dreams xx