Metaphysics in Chocolate.

The past few months have been the craziest and busiest months of my life. While everyone was recovering and getting back to the grind from the festive season, work was cracking the whip all through Valentine's Day and Easter. After the crazy season subsided, I found myself sitting with a friend of mine discussing life. Mostly over the fact that we are all so busy nowadays that we just accept and tolerate things because we start to believe that it is just a part of life.

And I agree. Life IS hard; juggling interpersonal relationships, family, work, love and taking care of yourself is really tricky especially when you try to keep things on a balance. You just can't make everyone happy and a lot of times there are so many sacrifices that you have to make in order to make things work. You know how the saying goes "Some things got to give"?  Well, they really do and the people who really want to be part of your life - they tend to stay. 

Anyway as the conversation went on, one thing that really struck me in our conversation was when he stated that "I guess that's just how work is, no one is ever really happy with work and I haven't met one person who can honestly say they love their job". 

But the thing is, I do. I love my job with all of our ups and downs and frustrations and the demands and sacrifices I have to make. Chocolates taught me a new outlook in life  and just like Fernando Pessoa said, "There's no metaphysics in earth like chocolates". But then again I guess if you make stuff like these for a living, you'd love your job too.

Chasing the dream...

Depression hit hard as soon as I got back to Sydney. I guess Melbourne always had that effect on me or any kind of holiday that I come from on that matter. I don't know what it is about Sydney that just make people so hard hearted and cold. Other people might disagree but Sydney has definitely changed like it has lost a part of it's soul, for me anyway.

I was just about to give up on being a Pastry Chef and already considering other alternatives when I stumbled upon this ad looking for an apprentice Chocolatier. And it was all alarm bells a-ringing and more. Could this be a sign? And before you know it, I scored an interview the following day, a trial the following week and the job days later. It was probably one of the best days of my life!

It was nothing like I have ever imagined. It's a lot of hard work, training and more training. Working with chocolates required more than talent, it required a lot of patience, skill, a lot of love and a whole lot of passion. For the first time in my life I actually have to work for something, work really hard for something. It required a lot of humbling down and a lot of motivation to keep myself going.

A dear friend told me something once which I never really understood at the time- "It's important not to get ahead of yourself. Be humble and never think you are better than what you think you are."  And if you don't either I suggest you work with chocolates. Because one day you'd think you can temper perfectly and the next day you might not be able to. Chocolates require a lot of trust, intuition. instinct and it involves a whole lot of science. I definitely understand what she meant now and I would take it with me wherever I go, especially working in an industry where ego always tend to over-exceed talent.

So here I go one step at a time to reaching the wonderful dream..

White chocolate lotus 

Tea Inspiration ...

A few weeks ago, I found myself wandering about the Queen Victora Building while waiting around for one of my friends. I always like to wander inside the T2 store as I find its entirety to be aesthetically pleasing... the aroma of teas, the dainty little tea cups and tea pots and the strategically placed multicoloured tea boxes that are stacked on top of one another. Everything about the store is just a delight to the senses... well at least for me anyway. So as I reached the counter ready to make my purchase with the amazing (& ABSOLUTELY AMAZING.. may I add) box of Sencha Quince tea, something from the corner of my eye stole my focus --- French Earl Grey Chocolates.

image by Fractal Theory

These were in fact tea infused chocolates, I thought they were quite interesting so I picked up the thongs and tried the delightful treat. It was as if a lightbulb moment happened and I was obsessed with this wonderfully crafted delight. However, as I was running towards the really rusty side of poverty with only $20 left I was faced with a dilemma on choosing between the tea and the chocolate. I had to go with the tea and promised myself to bolt to the nearest T2 store once pay day hits.

To my demise and disappointment they were gone the next week when I finally had the money to buy it. And to make everything else worse, they were out of stock for the next 5 weeks!!!! OUTRAGE.
So as to satisfy this craving, I thought I could probably make them myself and off I went with some couverture chocolate in hand and some amazing French Earl Grey Tea (which you REALLY must try, It's a MUST. A MUST. As in get it here.. NOW) off I went to some amazing chocolate venture.

Et voilà!!

French Earl Grey Chocolates. 

The Westin

In October 2011, I received fantastic news that The Westin Hotel in Sydney will be taking me on as one of their trainees. The only downside to this is that I would not be getting paid, it's something that I didn't mind to begin with as I was in it for the experience. Finally I would be able to conquer my fears of stepping into the real deal - I'll be back in the kitchen once again. This time around it's different though, I'll be in the Pastry Kitchen.

Under the supervision of Head Chef Mark Tok, I began my journey to gain as much experience as I can. Sure there were nerves and there were mishaps along the way and there were insecurities about not being able to perform, but all in all it was an amazing experience! We were able to do absolutely anything we wanted to do to gain skills. The pastry kitchen were filled with very inspiring pastry chefs - Long, Nicky, Thomas, Chris and Paul along with Mark who I would very much aspire to be - extremely skilled, creative, passionate, filled with wisdom and knowledge and hard working. It was exactly where I wanted to be. I had learnt so much working for them for two months and enjoyed myself so much that I would at times even stay longer in the kitchen to play with chocolate, make Zimtsternes and anything and everything else.

Sadly enough as Christmas was approaching and I was juggling studies and two jobs with one of them being unpaid, when an opportunity for a paid job was laid before me I had to take it and bid farewell to The Westin.

Gateaux, Gateaux, Gateaux!!

Gâteaux are usually cakes which consists of genoise sponge, a buttercream, mousse or parfait filling which can have a cream, ganache or a jelly topping. It can have a variety of components in which you can play around with different flavours and textures, however there are also gateaux which are made out of pastries such as puff pastry and choux pastry.

The following cakes are classic gateaux with tempered chocolate garnishes. 

A wonderful accident of a cumin infused chocolate & roasted hazelnut brownie and chocolate mousse with a dark chocolate glaze... 

Chocolate Mousse Gâteaux 

Hazelnut meringue layered with coffee buttercream & finished off with a dark chocolate glaze garnished with a gold leaf .. 

Opera Gâteaux

Jaconde with passionfruit curd, passionfruit mousse & passionfruit jelly garnished with white chocolate & berries

Passionfruit Mousse Gâteaux

Passionfruit Mousse Gâteaux assessment piece

and for a pastry based gâteaux .. what else but a St. Honoré.. 

Hunter Valley...

Early August marked the Annual Chocolate Festival in the Hunter Valley. There's the annual Callebaut chocolate scuplting competitions and gateaux competitions with prizes to win a trip to Belgium, workshops, amazing food (especially that amazing Cheese Kransky we just happened to miss out on) and The amazing Australian Pastry Team conducting chocolate and sugar demonstrations.

As the next following weeks' program were to prepare and produce gateaux, me along with the pastry girls Jenny, Kim and Charlie went off on a road trip to Pokolbin to seek inspiration and inspired we became.

Masterchef...

In 2009, Australia held its very first Masterchef. Although the show was entertaining to say the least - I found myself almost resenting the whole idea of the show. Having had experience in the
'real' kitchen, I found the entire thing unrealistic and exasperatingly glamourised.

Nonetheless - I am a sucker for challenges and when the show finished, A really good friend of mine - Kat sent me the recipe for one of the 'challenges' in the finals of the show:

The Aria Chocolate Tart - How can one resist such a tempting challenge and put a little twist of my own in the recipe... So here I go!

The Aria Chocolate Tart ala Francesca - Hazelnut base with Tia Maria infused chocolate custard topped with chocolate glaze, cocoa powder, icing sugar/spun sugar & strawberries.