jimtrue.com : school : CUL249 : Week 7 - Mousses, Souffles and Custards

Posted by Jim True on February 26, 2010 1:27 PM. Last Updated February 26, 2010 1:27 PM

Disclaimer for all material noted here is at the bottom of this web page.

Week 7 - Mousses, Souffles and Custards

Chocolate

1. Cacao Tree
2. Pods
3. Cocoa Beans
4. Nibs
5. Chocolate liquor/cocoa mass and cocoa butter
6. Cocoa Powder

• Bloom: Is incorrectly tempered or improperly stored chocolate, developing a grayish surface
• Fat Bloom: Is when cocoa butter crystals rise and crystallize on the surface of the chocolate, can be retempered
• Surgar Bloom: Is when moisture collects on the surface of the chocolate and blends with the sugar, leaving a white sugar film; cannot be retempered
• The ideal room temperature when working with tempered chocolate is between 68-72ºF with low humidity
• Chocolate needed for mousses, creams, ganache and baking requires no tempering
• The bowl should not come in contact with the water to avoid overheating
• Steam or water should not enter into the chocolate or it will seize
• Stir chocolate while tempering, avoid incorporating excess air = thick and unmanageable
• Do not heat chocolate over 120ºF
• The water should be at a simmer: 140ºF
• Never cover the bowl, as this will cause steam = seizing
• Chocolate quality depends on appearance, smell, break and texture
• Properly tempered chocolate has a snap and a crispness to it
• Dark Chocolate Couveture
• Melt: 113-120ºF Cool: 78ºF Temper: 86-90ºF
• Milk or White Chocolate Couveture
• Melt: 104-115ºF Cool: 78ºF Temper: 87ºF

Bittersweet Chocolate

• Contains at least 35% chocolate liquor plus additional cocoa butter, sugar, flavoring and sometimes emulsifiers
• Semisweet will be sweeter than bittersweet
• Use interchangeably

Custards and Creams

• Custard
• Consistency depends on the ratio of eggs to liquid (whole eggs or yolks); the more used, the richer the end product and the type of liquid used (cream vs. milk) will result in a thicker product
• Stirred
1. Vanilla custard sauce
2. Pastry Cream
3. Curd fillings
Sabayon
• Baked
1. Creme caramel (flan)
2. Creme brulee
3. Cheesecake
4. Bread pudding
5. Rice pudding
6. Quiche
• Souffle
• A custard base (pastry cream) thickened with flour and lightened with whipped whites (to stiff peaks with a portion of the sugar for stability)
• Creams
1. Bavarian
2. Chiffon
3. Chantilly
4. Mousse
• Softer and lighter
• A base for a sweet mousse contains custard sauce, chocolate or fruit puree
• The base is lightened with whip cream, whipped whites, whipped yolks and cooked into a bombe mixture
• If used as a filling, it may contain a small amount of gelatin to stabilize the mousse

Pasteurization

• The process of heating something to a sufficient temperature and length of time to destroy pathogenic bacteria
• Is recommended when the preparation requiring eggs will not be cooked
• Milk: 161ºF for 15 seconds
• Eggs: 140ºF for 3 1/2 minutes

Gelatin

• A natural product derived from collagen, an animal protein
• Granulated: Softened (bloomed) in cold liquid
• 4 x's its weight of liquid for at least 5 minutes
• Heated to dissolve
• Then added to warm liquid
• Sheet: One sheet weight 1/10 oz or 3 grams
• Softened (bloomed) in ice water for 15 minutes
• Squeeze out water and add to hot liquid to dissolve
• ** Can be interchanged weight for weight with granulated

Sugar Syrups

• Simple/Stock or Dessert = moisten cakes, sauces, sorbets and beverages
• Cooked syrups = Melted sugar cooked until it reaches a specific temperature
• Cold water will dissolve up to double its weight in sugar
• Once the solution boils, do not stir or it may cause recrystallization or lumping
• Light, medium and heavy syrup

Disclaimer: These are MY notes taken from classroom lectures while I'm in the classroom. While I'm perfectly happy to share my notes with my classmates and I know I take very good notes, you should still make every effort to attend the class and TAKE YOUR OWN NOTES. I will not transcribe everything the instructor says in the classroom, and I will NEVER post pre-exam reviews. My notes will not replace the value of actually attending class and taking your own class notes.I also cannot attest to their accuracy, other than they are what was provided in the lecture; you should not reference my notes as "expert opionion" by any means, and if you notice an error or omission, please do me the favor of e-mailing me with the correction and I will re-post my notes. End of Disclaimer.