Olive Internship - Day 8

This morning was quite busy; there was a lot of prep work to be done. 

First, I made Chocolate Ganache (dark), the usual way. Boiling of cream and glucose poured over chopped dark chocolate, stirred until melted, and strained to make smooth.

Then, I helped Chef Babul prepare a Mango Mousse, and some Almond Cream.

After that, Chef Sumanthu got me started on the cheesecakes. Keya made the batter (she added lime and orange zest for tanginess) while I prepared the bases. Since these were individually baked cheesecakes, I had to measure exactly 20g of crumble into each mould and level it with a flat presser. Then I filled 90g of cheesecake batter into each mould and placed it in the oven to bake.

I broke for lunch with Keya, we went down to Monkey Bar again.

Over there, we ordered Wild Mushroom Bruschettas which had about 4 different types of mushrooms and a sliver of molten cheese on top, Cheese and Vegetable Wontons with Sriracha sauce (of course), Italian sausage filled Pirogies, and finally a flourless ‘XS Chocolate Cake’ served warm with a scoop of vanilla bean ice cream.

After lunch, we made a sort of a Strawberry Cake, where we sliced strawberries and placed them over a layer of sweet milk bread and almond cream.

The last thing I needed to do was make Tiramisu! I have made this at least 5 times already, since I’ve worked in the kitchen so I could finish it relatively quickly. 74g Kahlua, 84g egg yolks, and 94g castor sugar, whipped over a bain-marie. Add 250g mascarpone cheese, and fold. Add 6g gelatine (dissolved in 24g warm water), fold and strain. Then add 250g whipped cream (whipped to the same viscosity as the coffee mascarpone mixture), fold, fold, fold, wrap and place in the fridge.

I was done, so I cleaned up and went home.

Olive Internship - Day 7

Today I went out for lunch with my cousin sister Keyaa, and my friend Nayna. We had Chinese food! I ate the most amazing Hunan Chicken Wonton Soup, with Spicy Dragon Rolls and Fried and Chilli Chicken Wontons.

 

The kitchen felt quite empty tonight, since there wasn’t anyone in the bakery. However, Chef Babul was there and we got started almost immediately.

First, we made a Pistachio Ice Cream. We prepared the normal vanilla bean ice cream recipe except substituted the vanilla beans with crushed pistachios.

Then, I had to zest and juice an orange to make orange sorbet. In the sorbet, we added CMC powder which acts as a stabiliser to hold the ice crystals in the sorbet together when frozen, and Milk Powder to thicken the sorbet liquid and give it a distinct creaminess.

Next, I made Banana Puddings.  I sliced thin rectangles of banana cake (the one we had made a couple of days earlier and kept in the deep freeze) and placed one each in six rectangular moulds that I based with cling wrap. Next, I piped Almond Cream over it to form another layer after which I sprinkled shards of toffee. Then I caramelised banana slices in a sugar-butter caramel sauce, and placed a few pieces in each mould. I crumbled a bit of the banana cake over this, and covered it with another slab of banana cake. Finally, I piped another layer of the almond cream over the top to cover and sprinkled white crumble on it.

After this, I went to the main order rail with Chef Babul and watched him plate the signature ‘Snicker Bar’ dessert.  He first placed a glazed log of peanut butter mousse and adorned it with several other components such as a ring of dark chocolate and nut praline, caramel coated popcorn, and chocolate crumble.

Finally, Chef Babul and I candied Rose Petals. It is actually an easier process than I thought it would be. First we peeled the healthiest looking petals from roses, then we lightly beat egg whites, just enough for froth to begin to form. We brushed each petal with the egg white, shook them in a dish of castor sugar, and placed them on a baking sheet to dry out.

All the work for the evening was done, and I could go home.

Olive Internship - Day 6

This morning, I went to the bakery quite early; at 8:30. There was nobody except Chef Sumanthu, the man who bakes all the bread. He made me a cup of coffee, and we began to make the first batch of bread. We started with Wholewheat Onion rolls. once we formed balls and laid them on a baking sheet, we left them out to double in size. Chef Sumanthu then poked each roll with his finger, and put a teaspoon of caramelised onions on top of each.
Then we made Pumpkin seed rolls. Chef Sumanthu brushed the tops with olive oil to help the skin become slightly crunchier.

Pumpkin Seed rolls (left), Wholewheat Onion (right)

In all the bread dough, Chef Sumanthu adds 2 grams of gluten, and 2 grams of bread improving powder. This helps the bread develop maximum flavour.

The last bread we made was Tomato-Pesto Rolls.
The dough was very pale and soft, and Chef Sumanthu rolled it out to about 1.5cm thickness, and used a round cutter to cut circles. We laid these out on another baking sheet, put half a teaspoon of pesto sauce on each, and finally a thin slice of tomato absolutely on top, covering the pesto.
Then we left it aside to rise.

Then, I churned the previously made Vanilla Bean ice cream in the PACO machine. Churning the ice cream is important, as it keeps it soft by constantly moving it around. If it wasn't moved around so much it would just freeze into one solid ice crystalline structure. Churning the ice cream in the PACO machine also helps make it creamy.

My work with Chef Sumanthu was done.

Then we (Keya- the other intern, Chef Babul, and I) began to make Tiramisu. This was made the usual way; kahlua, egg yolks and castor sugar over a bain-marie, and whisked until thick. Fold in the mascarpone, and fold in the whipped cream after that (both liquids have to have equal viscosity).

Next, I made Chocolate Ganache. It's very simple to make, all it requires is cream, glucose (or corn syrup as a substitute), and chopped dark chocolate. First I boiled together the cream and corn syrup (we ran out of glucose to use), then I poured it over the chocolate, and kept stirring till it was all melted. Then I strained it, wrapped it, and put it in the fridge.

Once that was done, we started on the Chocolate Mousse.

For this, we beat egg yolks and castor sugar over a flame until all the sugar had been dissolved, then we folded in melted chocolate, and then whipped cream. This was wrapped and kept in the fridge.

Then, using the Vanilla cupcake sheet cake I made last night, we made an Apple Crumble Cake. Over the sheet cake, we spread previously made Almond Cream, and sprinkled diced apples which we rolled in cinnamon sugar. Over that, we crumbled sweet pastry with our fingers, and put it in the oven to crisp up. 

Finally, I made Pastry Cream. I never realised how much I actually enjoy making it, and how quick I've become with more and more practice.

I boiled the milk, sugar, salt, and vanilla bean over a bain-marie, and tempered it with a mixture of egg yolks and cornflour. Then I strained it, and directly placed cling wrap over the surface to prevent a skin from forming and ruining the texture of the cream. 

The pastry cream would then be used to fill the eclairs that Chef Girish had made for the party yesterday. 

Since it was already past lunchtime and all the work to be done was done, Keya and I headed down to Monkey Bar for lunch.

We ordered starters, a burger, and peach iced tea. The starters were small but filling enough. The first one was a soured cream and chilli Pierogi dish served in a cupcake pan which I thought was a fun idea.
The second was a plate of "Spiked Nachos" which basically had jalapeno peppers, molten cheese, tomato salsa, avocado, re-fried beans, and spring onions.
The third starter was a plate of "Kung Fu Rolls" which was a mixture of lightly spiced noodles and vegetables in springroll wrappers and deep fried. They were crispy and delicious, and they were not greasy at all.
I ordered a cheeseburger with coleslaw and fries. The fries at Monkey Bar are hand-cut, and are crunchy on the outside yet not greasy at all, and that is why I like them.

When we were done, and completely satisfied, we paid the bill and left.

Olive Internship - Day 5

Last night was my sister Alia's 12th Grade final Graduation ceremony, and it was a Sunday so I had the day off. She looked beautiful in her sari, and we are all so proud of her! There was a dinner too; crispy potato wedges, salad, herb rice, paneer stroganoff, and mushroom quiche.

Alia and I

Tonight, I finished work fifteen minutes early.
When I first entered the kitchen, I noticed a pan on the counter. Chef Girish was experimenting with some leftover eclair dough that he fried and immersed in a spiced berry liquid.

Chef Girish had made eclairs for the party tomorrow, and said that he would fill/ice/garnish them tomorrow, on the day, so that they remained fresh.

First I made a large vanilla sponge sheet cake for tiramisu, which is basically the same recipe as the lady finger biscuits except they are piped out. The batter only has eggs (separated), sugar, and flour. It is very aerated and dry, which is why it is soaked in coffee to moisten it up.

Then Chef Babu and I made another sheet cake but with vanilla cupcake batter. This was made the usual way, cream the butter and sugar, add the eggs one at a time, add the yoghurt, add the flour, baking powder, and salt, and beat for a minute. At this stage, you have to add all the flour at once. If you beat it for too long after you add the flour, the batter gets tough.
There was some batter leftover so I mixed it with about 10 grams of coffee decoction, poured it in a loaf tin and put it in the oven.

Next, Chef Babu and I made Herb Butter which is rolled in butter paper and packed in a cylindrical shape, and frozen. When they serve it, they just slice a round and serve it with meats, etc. For this, we beat 500g butter with 15g chopped parsley, the zest and juice of 1 lime, and 15g mustard.

After that, Chef Girish and I made Mango Parfait.
They are testing out a new dessert I mentioned in my post on Day 1, with the mint and vanilla bean marshmallows. What they do is they mix the mango parfait with orange sorbet and place a cube of it in the middle of a rectangle of marshmallow.
When beating the egg whites, it is important to add castor sugar because if you don't, the egg whites get whipped to their last peak and immediately split whereas the sugar holds them together.
When beating the egg yolks and the sugar, you have to keep beating till it becomes extremely pale (off-white almost), creamy, and doubles in volume. This helps in forming the texture of the end result.
When you fold the egg whites into the egg yolk and mango mixture, you have to do it gradually, in sections however when you add the whipped cream after that, you have to add all at once.

Finally, Chef Girish and I made a Berry Granola.
I mixed oats, pumpkin seeds, flaked almonds, sesame seeds, and crushed pistachios in a bowl. In a separate saucepan, I added olive oil, brown sugar and honey, and brought it to a boil. Then I mixed everything together, laid it out on a baking sheet and put it in the oven.
When I took it out, I crumbled it using my fingers and added the chopped berries.
Chef Girish even packed a bit for me to take home!

The granola mix before and after baking.

I was done with all my cooking work, and went to the order rail to assist Chef Babu in plating.
Tomorrow evening, there is a party at Olive and one order called for a layered Chocolate Ganache Cake. Chef Babu left it to me to assemble it.
First I placed a round of cake on a base. Then I poured chocolate ganache over it and spread it around. I piped lines of caramel sauce over that, and sprinkled some sea salt. On top of that, I smeared some chocolate mousse. Then I crumbled some dark chocolate, almond and pistachio praline over it. Chef Babu gave me a bowlful of thin brownie pieces which I assembled fittingly (almost like a jigsaw puzzle) so that they formed a layer of their own. Then I placed another round of cake, poured and spread more chocolate ganache, and repeat the whole process once more.
Once that was done, I covered the top of the cake in chocolate ganache, wrapped it, and placed it in the deep freeze.
I was free to go home.

At home, I found my post-dinner dinner on the dining table; Crab Risotto Roulettes. (We made fresh crab and spinach risotto day before yesterday and had some leftover, so we formed balls, rolled them in corn crumbs, and pan fried them).

And my day was done!

Olive Internship - Day 4

This morning, Chef Babu first got me started on the Salted Caramel ice cream. We prepared it the usual way except before tempering the egg yolks and castor sugar with the boiling cream mixture, we caramelised grain sugar in a pot and added butter to make a sticky caramel sauce which we then added to the cream mixture.
Once we tempered it with the egg yolks and castor sugar, we returned it to the heat and it quickly started to thicken up.

Salted Caramel ice cream cooling in an ice bath at the back, Espresso cupcake batter, and Apricot chocolate setting.

When that was done, we glazed frozen sticks of peanut butter mousse with dark chocolate and left them to chill. These sticks are used as a component in Olive's signature 'Snicker Bar' dessert.

Then, we began to make macarons. Something I have personally wanted to make for a long time. They do not require many ingredients, and Chef Girish said that the two real hard parts were (a) getting the temperature of the sugar-water solution right when heating and (b) the last stage; when you mix the almond meal and egg whites with the sugar and egg whites.
When you under mix the batter, the macarons do not spread and come out tasting like cardboard whereas when you over mix it, they spread out too much and lose their shape.
We made two colours, periwinkle (which belongs to blue and purple families), and light pink.

When piping macarons, it is important to keep your piping bag completely upright. For support, you could place your index finger right next to the nozzle to stop yourself from piping at different angles. When you are done piping the macarons, tap the baking tray against a hard surface (like a kitchen counter), and set aside for 10 minutes minimum, to allow the macarons to form a skin on top which helps form the shell when baking as well as provide the top with smoothness.

We then broke for lunch. I went to a place down the road called 'Monkey Bar', and had a peach iced tea with a hearty bowl of prawn and chicken Laksa.

To fill the macarons, we made an Olive Oil Ganache with white chocolate.
Since we ran out of glucose, we used corn syrup instead. It can be used as a substitute however it doesn't always have the same effect on foods as glucose does.

Then, while Chef made Apricot chocolates (photo attached above), I made coffee cupcakes for a party order.

These cupcakes remain moist and soft for a longer period of time because they contain yoghurt. Chef Girish told me that adding either yoghurt or mayonnaise helps prevent the cupcake from hardening very soon, without affecting the flavour of the cupcake.

Finally, we made Florentines using pistachios and almonds. Since there was no more work left and it was already 4pm,
I went home.

Olive Internship - Day 3

I went for my shift this morning instead of the usual evening as it is my cousin sister Keyaa's thirteenth birthday!
The kitchen was extremely busy today, and lots of prep work was to be done.

The first thing I did was make Nutella Powder with Chef Babu. We made it using maltodextrin powder, which is a substance that can convert anything containing fat to a powder. All we did was mix nutella with it, and we were done!

Second, I started on the Tiramisu. I began by making the coffee mascarpone cream filling using egg yolks, Kahlua, and castor sugar; to which I added mascarpone and whipped cream. Chef Girish told me that when folding two liquids or creams together, the best way to ensure an even texture is to make sure the viscosity of both the liquids are equal.
(I beat the whipped cream a few seconds more than I should have which made it firmer than the egg mixture so I added a bit more whipping cream to liquefy it so it was creamy enough).
Once the cream was ready I layered it with a simple Vanilla sponge cake which would also serve as lady finger biscuits, that I just brushed gently with a mixture of a double shot of espresso, kahlua, and instant coffee powder to give that pang of flavour a Tiramisu must deliver.
I then left it in the deep freeze to set.
This was extremely exciting for me as the tiramisu was going to be served to the customers who ordered it!

Next I made Spiced Hot Chocolate. I boiled milk and cream in a heavy-based saucepan with some spices that i had previously put in the oven for about 8 minutes. Then I poured it over chopped dark chocolate and stirred it until it had melted. The hot chocolate was then strained, and ready to serve. The spices really helped cut through the richness of the chocolate and the sweetness it provided.
Chef Babu said that they usually add a shot of rum or brandy to soften the heaviness of the chocolate and provide it with an even stronger flavour paired with the spices.

After that, Chef Babu made Sweet Pastry, which is used in tarts to give the pastry a hint of sweetness and crumbliness. The pastry was then stored in the fridge to rest.

Finally, we made Lemon Sorbet. We used milk powder and stabilizers to help the sorbet hold, and provide it with creaminess while still keeping it light and fresh.
I made Lemon Mousse to go with this. I used egg whites and gelatine to help give the mousse height and fluffiness as well as whipped cream. Chef Girish then piped the mousse into little tubes that would be set in the fridge and then served with Earl Grey Granita.

We finished work about ten minutes early today, so I cleaned up and left for my friend's house.

Olive Internship - Day 2

Today was a bit more relaxed but still extremely hard work. We started off by making Vanilla Bean ice cream. In the final stage, Chef Girish taught me a way to check whether the ice cream was ready to take off the heat. If you had less enough liquid to tilt the saucepan over, you could check for a thin skin on the base of the pan however if this wasn't an option, using a spatula you could test the thickness of the liquid by running your finger down it.

Next we made Dark Chocolate sorbet, with a stabilizer which would help hold the sorbet together and prevent it from watering down too easily. Once that was ready, we poured it into a container and put it in the deep freeze.

Chef Babu and I then made Banana cake, but it was a special recipe. One that was moist and spongy, and brought out the flavour of the banana although the batter was smooth because the bananas had been pureed.

Chef Girish told me that at any culinary school, the first thing they ask you to do is to make Pastry Cream with absolute perfection; and that is what we made next.
He told me that the recipe doesn't matter as much as the method of preparation.
When making pastry cream, it has to be of uniform consistency. There can be no lumps and it has to be completely smooth. While it is cooking, you cannot stop whisking it as this causes lumps to form. Chef also told me that while you leave it to set, you should cover it with plastic wrap but place it directly over the pastry cream to prevent a skin from forming over the top because of the air space.

The last thing we made, were the chocolate coated pretzels. Yesterday we made pretzels, so today we cut them into smaller bits and dipped them in melted dark chocolate, placed them on a silicon mat over a large baking sheet, and left them to set.
When I asked Chef Girish why we coat the pretzel bits with the chocolate and how they were served, he told me that the chocolate hardens outside and helps preserve the crunch of the pretzel inside as the pretzel bit is placed inside the chocolate/salted caramel mousse that could soften the pretzel in the absence of the outer chocolate layer.

Finally, since I was done with all my work I got to watch Chef Babu plate up the Cassata dish at the order rail. He first placed a round of sponge cake over which he placed a larger round of strawberry ice cream and garnished it with different, pre-prepped elements like cut strawberries, vanilla mousse, nuts, and a pinch of chocolate crumble. Chef also clipped a couple of baby pea leaves and placed them alternately over the dish. The end result resembled a vibrant garden!

I was done for the day, and headed home.