Day 7

This morning I woke up and didn't know what day it was. We hurried to our kitchens and I started to prepare my Apple Tart. I've captured it on film for you all to enjoy... and because I was very proud of it! I call it the Evolution of Tart.

Stage 1 Make pastry and line flan ring

I had to do this twice, but it was worth it. I made the pastry keeping everything as cold as possible, then rolled out the pastry into a nice circle. Once rolled out it was delicately lifted and put into the flan ring. This was the part I had to redo but it was fine second time around. It blind bakes (which is a pain in the neck) for 20 minutes then brushed with egg and put in for another 5 minutes. In the mean time I chopped up the apples, almonds and made the crumble (sugar, flour and butter)

Stage 2 Fill and Bake

Next I filled my baked tart with a mountain of apples and crumble. It was like Kilimanjaro in my oven. The almonds make such a difference to the taste. Not only did it look so delicious and rustic but it tasted just like it looked.  I don't like to admit but I did botched the sides of my tart wall. They shrunk so I had to do a little surgery before it went back in for its final bake. It turned out rustic looking which was pretty great in the end.

Stage 3 Cut and Serve

My tart came out and it looked great. It took another 40 minutes in the oven and when my apples were soft it was ready to come out. The smell in the kitchen was amazing. some others were making rhubarb pie which was more of a Kilimanjaro than mines. Can you imagine a huge stalk of rhubarb stuffed in a pie?

Stage 4 EAT

Finally it was time to serve. I sliced a generous piece and put a dollop of fresh whipped cream on the top sprinkled with crushed almonds. I got a 5.5 out of 6 (due to the emergency pastry surgery half way through) My teacher had a bite and i finished the rest off. It was the best dessert i've ever made. Very delicious :)










Besides the tart I made sweet chilly chicken wings which were a hit and some grilled zucchini. The kitchen was a buzz of activity today. Tomorrow is a lecture day so we will take a rest from the cooking. Demo today was great though. Rory is hilarious and makes watching cooking so enjoyable.  It was an Indian themed demo and we'll be replicating the dished (which i can't wait for) on Thursday morning.

Rory cooking up a storm. Can you see me sneaking a picture in the front row? 

My favorite Rory sayings from today:
Roasting Saffron.."It has a wonderful musty, mysterious taste but if you are not careful it can end up tasting like an attic."
When its time to serve: "Arrange your plate in a way your eye will respond positively to."
Food taking a long time to cook: "highly undramatic"

Least Favorite Things:
Chasing down a teaspoon at the end of the day so you can get your 'supply chart' checked.
Being made an example of what not to do! (My green soda bread yesterday) :)
Roosters in the early hours (have I mentioned this before?)