The War of The Roses!

What the hell is it with all these roses?  I learned how to make a tomato one many moons ago and left it at that.  These past three weeks I’ve worked with molten lava sugar, marzipan and butter...over and over and over again.  Is there some sort of culinary school fetish I don’t know about? Perhaps they are applying the 1,1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 9  Fibonacci code to torment us for shits and giggles.  Suffice it to say, I was the worst in my class at making said blossom from sugar and marzipan; but for some odd reason, my butter roses were pretty good.  Who woulda thunk it?

I’ve had my share of culinary dreams during my last 12 weeks here; however; none of them were nightmares until I started Advanced Baking and Showpieces. The worst was when Chef Wolf had to expel me from school due to thorny issues and then he was excommunicated to Boston.  WTF? Of course, the morning after said excommunication nightmare, talk radio told me that those occur because you’re not meeting your own expectations.  No shit???

I’m a bit of a control freak and my inability to dexterously transfer small domes of glazed mousse onto a teeny, weeny cookie and place it on a sheet pan without sabotage drove me nuts!  Landing my offset spat plane to create a perfect plane on a turntable of cake was nearly my undoing.  Can’t forget this little gem: homework required the piping of “Happy Whatevers” and odd little geometric shapes and swirly-q stuff within the confinement of a square border!  I need a cocktail!

I question everything, especially when it comes to money I’m spending to be taught.  Who the hell needs to learn how to make a chocolate box? Or, blow air into a molten ball of sugar to make a bird or a fish? Did I really need to labor at creating those intricate and frustrating gumpaste flowers and leaves; not to mention, the unforgettable rose applications? Yes, I did! And again, oddly enough, my showpieces were my favorite things to do…and I did them well. ACI’s curriculum proved me wrong; which is why it was so very right for me (or anyone for that matter) to come to this school.

The other day, with much pride, I posted a picture of the wedding cake I made. A friend replied, “Wow! That’s gorgeous! You’re a natural!” It’s all in your instructor and I’m so grateful for Chef DeWitt.  She was on my ass constantly because she knew she would get through..and she did.

So, while not being a ‘natural’; in a pinch, I can make a piping bag out of parchment paper, temper some chocolate and decorate a client’s dessert plate; or make that simple wedding cake for a friend in need; and, I plan on coming back to Chef DeWitt’s class at Christmas time to pull some sugar and make the most glorious ribbon candy for my family, friends and clients.  While my roses may not be perfect, I’ll take the time to perfect them.  I LOVE MY SCHOOL!!!!