Pate Brisee and Pate Sucree

Today we made lots of things, but no finished product. It was a little disappointing in that regard, but we are definitely learning some great stuff. We each made a batch of pate sucree (translated means "sugar dough") and a batch of pate brisee ("broken dough"). The brisee is not sweet, no sugar, and the butter is left in larger chunks purposefully (flaky dough method of mixing) in order that it will produce a flakier dough. This type of dough is often used in savory pie crusts. The pate sucree is a typical sweet, tart dough. The butter is really smushed in (the mealy dough method). We also made fruit curds (lemon, lime and orange) and frangipane fillings, which are nut-based pastes that often fill tarts. We're going to produce some desserts tomorrow! In other news, I made my first roast chicken today! I usually just eat the chicken breasts, but the meat fabrication classes taught me to appreciate the whole chicken. It was roasted, skin on, with a herbed olivada rubbed under the skin. I also made a wheatberry salad that was awesome. Todd's working on his book and I'm catching up on some schoolwork and studying. Brian, Lorie, Lauren and Emily arrive on Saturday, so I want to be able to spend as much time with them as possible while they are visiting. Here are a few pictures of my classmates (Lisa, Angela and then Angela, Gabriela, Shannon and Marie).