Pastry Chef Online: How to Think Like a Pastry Chef
How to Think Like a Pastry Chef
Valentine's Day
Easter
Mothers' Day/Fathers' Day
Thanksgiving
Christmas
New Year's Eve
Valentine's Day
Think red and white. Or sensual juxtaposition of textures and flavors--crispy vs. silky, tangy vs. sweet, chocolate and fruit. Valentine's Day might be a Hallmark holiday, but it sure does give us a chance to enjoy some decadent desserts!
I think about panna cotta with berries--a red and white beauty that won't be too heavy if you've had a big meal.
Maybe a lovely slice of cake with a complementary icing would be nice? How about a slice of chocolate cake with raspberry buttercream and maybe some raspberry sorbet?
Get literal and make a passionfruit curd tart. Garnish it with some Italian meringue.
Please, have fun with this!
Easter
Some of the world's great breads were born to celebrate Easter. I know, I know--I said I wasn't going to have any information about breads on this site. I am making a wee Easter egg-ception (sorry; couldn't help myself). So sue me. After you lick that icing from that hot cross bun off your fingers.
Here's something to remember: most all Easter breads have ingredients that are symbolic. Eggs symbolize rebirth and renewal. Honey and other sweeteners symbolize, well, the sweetness of life. Poppy seeds symbolize the "blessed sleep of the dead." I don't so much love that one, but I did enjoy that line from The Wizard of Oz, "Poppies will make them sleep!" At any rate, lean doughs were for lean times and enriched doughs were for celebrating. Start your own Easter tradition with a basic sweet dough recipe and use add-ins that mean something to you. Or, make a classic. There are plenty from around the world. Here's a list to get you started.
the aforementioned Hot Cross Buns (England)
Paasbrood/Paasbrodt (Holland) Maybe that's where the name of that Paas Easter Egg Dye comes from?!
Babka (Poland)
Tsoureki (Greece)
Chourek (Armenia)
Cresca (Italy)
Koolitch (Russia)
How about this? Make a Trinity Loaf out of any sweet dough. Divide it into three balls and bake them together like a clover. When you serve it, serve a thin slice cut from each of the three sections.
Mom and Dad. They love you; they raised you. They may have even taught you to love food and cook. Now's the time to say "Thanks!" with a lovely dessert. What's their favorite flavor? Their favorite kind of dessert? Find that out, and then go from there.
Thanksgiving
Oh, Autumn. How I love thee! There's a chill in the air. The leaves turn golden and auburn and crimson and cinnamon. Time to warm up with a fall-inspired dessert. Thanksgiving can be a tricky one--the traditions have been passed down in your family. They are sacred. The tooth-achingly sweet pecan pie. The pie that's called pumpkin but just tastes like spice. Mrs. Whoever's Apple Pie in a box (gasp)! Whatever your tradition, take it and elevate it. People will whine. Until they taste the New and Improved Traditional Thanksgiving Dessert!
Think about a pumpkin flan or cheesecake as opposed to the pie. Use the pecans in a pecan financier and serve it with bourbon-spiked poached fruits and some ice cream. Take that traditional apple pie and turn it into individual free-form galettes. Do they like cake? Maybe apple spice cake with maple buttercream would work. Be creative and think outside the Thanksgiving box. The relatives will forgive you and might even thank you.
Christmas
Another holiday blessed (burdened) with sacred family culinary tradition. It happens in the dead of winter (in the Northern hemisphere, anyway), so it can take some creativity to use seasonal ingredients. There's always chocolate! A tradition in my family has always been an English
or Christmas pudding. It'll kill you, but if you only eat it once a year, it's probably okay. How about a trifle? Couldn't be easier: you need cake, custard, liqueur or simple syrup, fruit or jam and whipped cream. Layer cake cubes sprinkled with liqueur or a flavored syrup in a large pan/bowl with fruit and/or jam, homemade custard (vanilla or chocolate) and top off the whole thing with whipped cream. Endless variations are possible--it's the seven layer salad of the dessert world!
New Year's Eve
Ring out the Old; ring in the New. One of the most festive of the holidays. You probably won't hurt Aunt Sadie's feelings if you don't serve her Jell-o mold, so New Year's Eve can really be a time to let out all the stops, whether it's just you and your sweetie or a roomful of dear friends, New Year's is a pure celebration, a looking forward to a new year brimming with potential. New Year's is a sparkly holiday--your dessert should sparkle, too!
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