Summertime Snacks

Hello friends, for today's installment of "True Life: I'm a Tuscan Pastry Nerd" I'll be featuring a recent inspiration of mine;

Italian Summertime Snacks

For my first experiment, i decided to give the ol' Chocolate Sausage a go. No no, i'm not talking about trying any weird Tuscan sexual exploits... I'm talking about a confection, made of ganache, nuts, and sometimes dried fruit, enjoyed by Italian children everywhere. For my first iteration of a Chocolate Sausage recipe, I tried Gina DePalma (pastry chef of Babbo)'s recipe. She seemed to have a pretty obvious grasp of Italian food (combined with an American palate) that logically leads me to believe her recipe'd be pretty good. Well, take it from me, the recipe IS good, however it really needs one small alteration: Make a Sabayone with the Egg Yolks & Sugar. Don't leave 'em raw!! Unfortunately if you do, the sugar is quite percieveable and provides (for me) an unusual texture. Obviously this is a personal beef, but hey, you're here readin about me, so tough!


(Choc. Sausage....mmmm)

Ok, now that we've crossed that bridge, lets get onto the next experiement:

In Italy, especially Tuscany, it's quite common for kids to grow up snacking on Orange Segments, drizzled in Olive Oil and served with a tiny PINCH of salt. Now, to an American, this is an odd combination, but (of course) once you put it together it's pretty damn good!

Well, once I heard about this, the wheels starting turning and soon enough, I had a plated dessert. So, without further adue, i present to you, a Blood Orange Cake (iced with an Orange Zest Glaze), Orange Paste Frolla (brushed with Olive Oil), a White Chocolate Olive Oil Ganache, and Mascarpone Cream. Garnished with Blood Orange Segments and (fancy) Olive Oil.



deeeeeeeelicious.

The plate came out great, and of course, I love the way they all look together.

Buon Appetito!

You guessed it.....

HAPPY B-DAY MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Love ya! =)

Ciao Fancy!

Oh me oh my....

Well friends, it's been a week since I last wrote to you, and I must say it's been an interesting week. The last class group was exceptionally fun, and I'm really happy to have spent time with such a stimulating group. Honestly, I've gotta say that the experience here, from their side, pretty much depends entirely on their desire to learn. I think more than ever I understand what it's like to be at the front of the class, gauging student questions and responses and trying to cater to an entertaining environment from them to learn. Also, it's become apparent to me that all a class really needs is the right personality to lead the charge and the rest will follow. Even the most quiet and reserved of people seem to come out of their shells when a certain type of enthusiasm is in the kitchen. It's definately an intruiging idea and i'll definately be trying to keep an eye on what that exactly is defined by in the future.
Anywho, long story short, i had fun and hopefully so did they.

On a related note, we also had a visitor last week. Her name is Fancy Fabreeze and she is FA-BU-LOUS. (2 snaps, and a twist)

To say it bluntly, "Fancy" is quite the "lady" as she is actually one of my roommates HILARIOUS cross-dressing personality. (Yes, you read that correctly. I must say, Tuscany sure has a way of opening people up.) "Fancy" is a character he's developed over the last few years in his vacation town of Provincetown, RI, which (as you may or may not know) is a prodominatly gay community. She has appeared many times there and is certainly the life of the party. Much to our surprise, this group just seemed to have the right chemistry to evoke her presence. And so, without further adue, i present to you, FANCY FABREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEZE:




Wow wee wee wow!

Yeah, well, after that I can certainly say we ended the week on a high note. I think everyone in the school was dying of laughter and couldn't stop taking pictures. "She" definatley was the hit of the week, and very possibly, the most memorable woman i've met in Italy.

Until nex time... CIAO!

Absolutely beat....

Ok friends, usually I have the stamina to endure a full day's work and type a bit to you to regarding my time here in Italy BUT this week I've taken on a new job in addition to my own. Now, instead of working solely in the kitchen, i was enticed (financially =P) to drive some of the students 'round the area as their tourguide during our off hours. Fortunately, the students are a blast, and I actually really like exploring the area in Sandra's fully-loaded and nearly-brand-new Toyota Land Cruiser. However, at the end of every day i basically do a face-plant into bed and wake up dazed, half dressed, and completely disoriented. (HAH! just like home right??)

SO, despite itemizing my current schedule to you all (which was my original idea) I've decided to simply post a few entertaining pics of recent history and a fantastic recipe for a Dark Chocolate Mousse that I used to compose the dessert below.

I certainly hope you all are well, and will definately get back on the literary horse as soon as my brain has time to catch up to my body.



(Left: Blood Orange Curd, Italian Meringue Tart, Right: Agatha, Kitchen Terror!)


"Chocolate Almond Tower"
(Concept and Design courtesy of me, Joshua Rosen)

Dark Chocolate Mousse
Yeild: 1 - 9” x 3” round cake

Amaretto Liquor (ie: Disaronno) 0.5 oz
Eggs 4.8 oz
Sugar 3 oz
Dark Chocolate, Bittersweet ( ≥ 60 %) 8 oz
Butter, soft 1.6 oz
Heavy Cream, whipped to soft peaks 8.25 oz

Method
1) Whip cream to soft peaks and reserve in refrigerator
2) Melt chocolate to 110 F. Add butter off heat and stir to melt butter.
Reserve chocolate mixture @ 110 F.
3) Combine eggs, sugar and liquor in a kitchen aid bowl and set on top of a double boiler. Whisk CONSTANTLY until the mixture reaches 145 degrees.
4) Remove the bowl from the pot of boiling water and whip (with the mixer) on high speed until thick and cool.
5) In a separate bowl, fold 1/2 of the egg mixture into the chocolate using a whisk
Once homogenous, fold in the remaining egg mixture followed by the cream
6) Pipe or pour into desired containers and refrigerate as necessary.

Enjoy!!