As my classmates know, I have a love-hate relationship with chocolate. I think it’s an admirable art form, and when tempered properly (i.e. heated and cooled in a precise way so as to cause the melted chocolate to recrystallize in a particular state that has shine, snap, smoothness and strength . . . don’t even get me started on my fascination with the physical chemistry of it all), chocolate is amazingly versatile. It’s great as a standalone confection, as a flavoring for other desserts, and as an architectural building block and design element.
But man, chocolate can be finicky when the kitchen is warm or humid, and messy without commercial kitchen equipment (my biggest complaint really). Writing this post reminds me of some frustrating chocolate structure-making, so let’s just get on with the photo recap without further ado:
A few highlights from Units 9 & 12 of pastry school:
