Quest for the Best

 

best

/bɛst/ Show Spelled [best]  

adjective superl. of good with better as compar.

1.

of the highest quality, excellence, or standing: the best work; the best students.

2.

most advantageous, suitable, or desirable: the best way.

3.

largest; most: the best part of a day.

adverb superl. of well with better as compar.

4.

most excellently or suitably; with most advantage or success: an opera role that best suits her voice.

5.

in or to the highest degree; most fully (usually used in combination): best-suited; best-known; best-loved.

We have been trying to focus as much as possible on recipe testing. The rental kitchen is working out pretty good. If you are looking to start a small business with a little bit of money its good to go. This time we took on some cakes and tarts.

We have been trying to perfect a pate choux recipe ( I want them to look like FAUCHON pinterest.com). ( The below was a nice try but no cigar). I have been making pate a choux for years with the same recipe with decent results but was never 100% happy. There are recipes with whole eggs, 1/2 eggs 1/2 yolks, some with whole eggs and egg whites, some with bread flour, some with pastry flour, some with milk some with water, some with butter some with shortening. There are some with baking powder and some people steam them slightly before baking. What I want is a consistent smooth shape, not cracked and rough. I want the shell to actually taste so good that you would want to eat it without the filling and glaze and I want it to be nice and hollow to allow for the proper filling to pastry ratio. The "Quest" continues.

We did another tasting for my one partner and his wife. Things went pretty well again with a few comments. We presented the cannoli cream again which they seemed to like but (I think it still needs to be perfected). Vanilla birthday cake- great, mocha torte- great, lemon tart- great, Lady finger cake- great, coffee cake- not so great, tiramisu torte- needs work. It's really nice to have people to taste your food that actually have a palate for it. We get great feedback and it is really making us better.

 I am also on a quest to create the best coffee cake ( presenting a  few day old one was not a good idea). Talking to everyone in north Jersey they all say that B&W bakery in Hackensack has the best yelp.com  . I disagree, the crumb was to thick, not enough cake and I could feel the shortening coat the roof of my mouth. For those of you who are not familiar with coffee (crumb) cake there are two types yeast raised and cream cake style. To me yeast raised coffee cake is not a cake but a Danish. When I think of coffee cake I think back to being a kid and walking to 7-11( to buy my mom cigarettes and using the leftover change, they were .75 a pack) and buying drakes or Entenmanns. The cake is soft but slightly dense and buttery and the crumb is thick but not to thick, crunchy on the top and soft toward the cake part and doesn't all fall off when you bite it. So far I have made about 6 or 7 different kinds and am still working on it. It WILL be the best, look out B&W.

 

 

                                        Can't wait to get into my kitchen and bake for real.
.

Stainless

WOW! what a crazy week. Most of the major equipment got delivered and totally transformed the space. Now the reality has set in that this thing is moving forward and we may actually get open by June ( come on Rockland electric!)

The ovens are so big that they would not fit through the door. We removed the window and built a ramp so the truck could back right  up into the store.

Then at zero dark thirty the troops from all bake technologies arrive to delivery the massive pieces.

 

 I have to give it up these guys were awesome and I highly recommend this company.

 

Now with the big items in other stuff starts to arrive pastry display cases, candy stove, range, gelato machine and my shiny new precision mixer

 

 

Now with all the stuff in the building it looks like a completely different room.

 

 

Ansam Kitchen and Ventilation are next on the list to install the hood system. These guys are awesome as well but are all business. They had the whole thing delivered and installed with a quickness and they had the cheapest price I could find.

 

 

 

 

I'm ready to start baking!!!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Vendors

Now with construction well under way I need to start lining up my vendors. Up to this point we have been purchasing everything at restaurant depot. This place is crazy they have everything from marscapone cheese to walk in refrigerators and at great prices. I will probably get a good amount of things here.

 

 

From being in the business for a few years I still have some connections with pastry specialty vendors.

 I plan to use parisgourmet, they sell MEC111 gelato flavorings, trablait coffee extract, cocoa noel chocolate and a few other items I like

. I will also purchase some stuff from qzina which sells basically the same stuff as paris gourmet but their prices are pretty reasonable. They sell chocoa , cocoa barry, valhrona and callebaut chocolate, I will probably get cocoa powder, pate glace, glucose, transfer sheets and a bunch of other things from them.

 I think a big part of our operation will be the gelato. I bought a case that can hold 6, 5 liter pans and we also plan to do gelato pops.

I will get most of these supplies from .pregel america. I like this company and have used them a lot in the past. I even took a class at their training center in North Carolina. They have free shipping to NJ.

For uniforms we decided on happy chef their selection isn't the greatest but they are very reasonably priced and local in Butler NJ (and the High Point Brewing companyramstein beer is next door) Chefworks has a bigger selection but are way more expensive.

To clean the uniforms, side towels ( don't bring them home and put them in the laundry basket in the bedroom your wife will get quite pissed)  and other items we are going with yankee linen . Even if you don't use their uniforms and you buy your own they will come clean them.

For paper goods I am going to try Imperial Bag & Paper . I have never used them before. I requested a price list and the guy his taking his sweet ass time getting back to me. We shall see. I can get most of the stuff at restaurant depot anyway.

For other bakery items like frozen eggs, sweetex, almond flour etc.. I am trying a local distribution companyA. oliveri and sons . As I tend to be anti corporation (sysco, US foods) I'll give them a shot. Hey one small business should help another ( my one good deed for the day)

I think that's about it. I ordered some stuff online
http://coffeesleevemojo.com/
http://www.uprinting.com/
http://www.printmyribbon.com/

 

 

 

All Aboard!!!

Full steam ahead!!!
A few short hours ago I was sitting on my ass bitching about how nothing is getting done and BADA BAM! A shit storm of activity starts going on at the shop ( thanks to my partners lighting a fire under the contractors ass, sparked by one of my pain in the ass emails :)

Sal and I went over this morning to the sound of power tools, contractor trucks lined up outside, saw dust flying, electricians wiring stuff and guys in the basement messing with the gas line. I was so pumped up I almost started break dancing ( not really well maybe just a little)

 

Then I'm thinking to myself HOLY SHIT! I have a million and one things to do. My partners would like an opening in mid May and it's now almost mid April. Set the cruiser to light speed chewie here I go.

JOE

So at least for me the most important part of a pastry shop besides the pastry of course is the coffee. It is usually and should be the first thing you smell when you walk in the door. I believe the smell will generate sales and impulse buying and maybe even draw people in from the streets. With that being said my partners and I really wanted to take the coffee experience to a higher level. When we were in Italy we were amazed at the coffee culture and the quality of the espresso ( regular coffee does not exist there unless you want sanka and dirty looks from the waiter) Sure there are famous brand like ILLY cafe but we want something different.

I did some research and found a local coffee roaster here in NJ. We took a trip to Leonardo NJ to visit jerseyshorecoffeeroasters. We pull up to this trippy painted building that looks like it used to be an old pizzeria.

I meet one of the owners and we get a tour. There is a small roasting machine and buckets of roasted coffee beans on the floor. It smelled glorious. We tried several different kinds of coffee and espresso and picked out some winners. They will make a custom blend for us so I am planning to tweak one of there existing blends to make it our own. I feel by getting freshly roasted coffee with a great blend we will set ourselves apart and not be like" that guy" down the street. And did I mention we will only be doing decaf, regular, espresso and cappuccino   so if you want your caramel pumpkin macchiatto with soy milk froth get on the train and buy a one way ticket to screw you town ( I'm sure there is a starbucks or Funkin doughnuts there}

With the coffee sourced now I search for the perfect brewing machines to do"our" blend justice

Specialty coffees represent 37% of US coffee cups and are considered the highest quality in the world.

The retail value of the U.S. coffee market is estimated at

$30-32 billion dollars, with specialty comprising

approximately a 37% volume share but nearly 50% value

share.

40% of 18-24 year olds said they drink coffee daily, up from

31% in 2010 and on par with 2009’s 40%, while 54% of 25-

39 year olds said they drink coffee daily, up from 44% in

2010 and on par with 2009’s 53%.**

58% of consumers aged 18+ drank coffee yesterday, compared with 56% in 2010, 59% in 2009, and 60% in 2008.**

There are two primary types of coffee, Arabica and Robusta, and the vast majority of coffee used in the specialty industry is of the Arabica type.

The absence of defects is critical and in practice, according to SCAA protocols, a single coffee is cupped at least fifteen (15) times by professional cuppers trained to identify flaws, ensuring there is no bitterness, harshness, sourness, or other off-putting flavors or aromas. A skilled cupper should be able to detect these defects in the cup.

Thirty-six (36) aromatic profiles have been

identified and can be attributed, both

positively and negatively, to the flavor of a

coffee.


Much like wine, coffee flavor is affected by soil, altitude and other climatic factors and in Ethiopia alone there are reportedly over 10,000 varietals.
2

Baby Steps

Finalllly! Some construction has begun. The drama with the electric company still goes on but I am being assured that we are on the list and will have 3 phase electric shortly. In the time being we are going to start to get the building ready. Everything needs to be rewired and the plumbing needs to be upgraded.

 First off I had the floor installed. As I said in a previous post we went with the DUR A FLEX poly crete system. DMA contracting installed it and did an excellent job thanks Domenick & Domenick!

 

Now we have to get the framing on the walls and then the building inspector has to give the ok. Who knows how freakin long that will take.

Now that the floor is in I am working on getting all of the major equipment scheduled for delivery. Another obstacle being that most of it wont fit through the door. Luckily the contractor has access to a fork lift. When the deliveries arrive we will remove the front window and place everything inside, But before this happens the hood must go in and before this happens the building inspector must check out the wall framing and before this I may go insane.

Since the upstairs is tied with with red tape bullshit the walk in box is being delivered and installed in the basement. Of course there was some issues. The plumber didn't remove some pipes and some other stuff had to be done (my fault for assuming the contractor knew what he was doing) So they have to come back later in the week to finish.

I did as much baking as we could at the house and I did not want to tackle more involved items(sponge cakes etc..). I found a place that rents commercial kitchen space in Hawethorne http://hesperidesorganica.com/kitchens.htm. So now twice a week we are going over there to do some recipe testing. Its not perfect but there is a good amount of space, walk in fridge & freezer, 20 qt mixer, speed racks and plenty of work tables.

 Another great thing is  I can store everything there all week so now I can get all of the dry storage items out of my dining room

 

 

Working on a tiramisu torte ( not perfect but getting there)

 

 

 

Buona Pasqua !!

On our trip to Italy last month we visited numerous pastry shops in Rome and Naples. Almost all of the shops were already starting to sell Easter pastries so I understood that it is a huge pastry holiday over there. We were hoping to be open this year for Easter but shit happens. Next year we will blow it out!!

Here is an interesting article on Italian Easter pastries:

Italy is known throughout the world not only for its history, art, music and breathtaking landscapes but also for its delish dishes and deserts. For example, if you are lucky enough to visit the peninsula during the Easter period, you will find that Italy has a vast range of homemade, artisan products and even commercial products that all derive from traditional regional recipes. During Easter week, typical regional pastries can be found in any pastry shop. The most celebrated are probably the la pastiera, la colomba and il casatiello.
La pastiera is a Neapolitan desert symbolic of springtime. Made of a base of ricotta cheese, egg and sugar, it also contains two crucial ingredients that render its unique and unmistakable taste: orange flower water and cooked wheat. All of these ingredients are then poured into a base of pastry dough and then covered with strips of pastry dough, exactly like a pie in America.
Often, reality mixes with legends and folklore and this peculiarity alone renders Italy rich with magic. In fact, the history of la pastiera is tied to the legend of the Parthenope Mermaid. Legend has it that the Parthenope Mermaid would enliven the people of the Gulf of Naples with her sweet song. In return, to show thanks, the people of Naples offered the Mermaid the fruits of their fertile land: flour, which symbolizes the richness and strength from the peasants; ricotta, a gift from the pastors; eggs, a symbol of life; tender wheat boiled in milk, a symbol abundance; orange flower water to represent the perfume from the land; as well as other sweet spices and sugar from far away places in the Orient, symbols of her sweet sublime song.
Touched by the many gifts, in return, the Parthenope Mermaid returned to her kingdom deep in the abyss and presented her generous gifts at the feet of the gods. Fascinated by the gifts and by the song of the Parthenope Mermaid, the gods used their divine powers to mix all the ingredients that the Mermaid received. The result: la pastiera, a desert that exceeded the goodness and sweetness of the Mermaid herself. There is even an anecdote regarding this tasty desert.
King Ferdinand II married Maria Theresa of Austria, an astere woman who reigned with the nickname of “the queen who never smiles.” Well, it is said, that one day, Maria Theresa gave in on a piece of pastiera, after Ferdinand insisted, and as soon as she tasted it, her face was quickly with illuminated with a smile. The King then declared that “la pastiera is the only way to make Maria Theresa smile and now I have to wait till next Easter to see her smile again!”
Another typical Easter desert is la colomba, named after the form it takes of a dove, the symbol of peace. The dough and consistency is similar to that of the traditional Christmas cake, panettone, made of egg, sugar, yeast and butter; however the difference is that the colomba contains candied fruit instead of raisins like in panettone. La colomba is worked in the form of a dove and covered with granules of sugar and almonds, before it is cooked in the oven and passes a long levitation time. The origins of the colomba date back to the VI century. Recently, the famous Milanese company, Motta, render this desert famous worldwide. The difficulty in the preparation of this desert is found in the long preparation time; therefore it is important to not rush the process, so that it rises perfectly.
Lastly, il casatiello is a country bread from Naples. The word casatiello derives from the word case, which in Neapolitan dialect means “cheese.” It is made up of flour, water, yeast, salt and pepper. While kneading the dough, many different cheeses are added, along with salami, cooked ham and pig lard. The dough is then worked in the form of a ring to symbolize Jesus’ crown of thorns and four raw eggs with their shell are placed on top of the ring and slightly immersed in the dough.
Il casatiello is cooked in a wood burning oven, just like la pizza napoletana, but a normal oven will do. As in many traditional Italian foods, this country bread has its share of religious symbolism. The rising dough means new life, the shape of the bread represents the crown of thorns and the eggs symbolize rebirth. Il casatiello is enjoyed during the big lunch on Easter day or even brought to the traditional picnic held on the Monday after Easter, Pasquetta.
Each recipe renders all of the 20 regions unique and adds even more beauty to the Italian culture. Happy Easter!



 Every year one of my partners donates pastries to a home for retired Jesuit's. This year we decided to make some pastries as a test run of some of our recipes for the donation. We didn't do any traditional Easter pastries but we made massive amounts ( in my home kitchen) of the tested recipes from our collection. The stuff came out pretty good and I heard it went over well.