Chocolate truffles are bite-sized chocolate confections, made by piping chocolate ganache into small spherical shapes, coating them in melted chocolate and covering them in cocoa powder. The name ‘truffle’ is derived from a species of highly valued edible fungi that grows underground, which the chocolate truffle resembles through its organic shape and appearance.
Holiday Desserts with The French Pastry School
Techniques, tips and recipes from world-renowned Pastry Chef Jacquy Pfeiffer
Bittersweet Dark Chocolate Truffles
Salted Butter Caramels
Caramels are a popular confection made by combining caramelized sugar with cream, butter, and flavoring. The mixture is then cooked to yield a soft, dense, yet creamy consistency. Our Salted Butter Caramels are flavored with the prized fleur de sel, or sea salt, hand-harvested in Brittany, in the west of France.
French Meringue and Almond Macarons
A macaron is a popular French cookie with a delicate texture and is made by combining meringue with a mixture of almond powder, confectioners' sugar, and food coloring. A flavored ganache, buttercream or jam is used to sandwich the cookies together, while the color and decoration of the shell are used to distinguish each flavor.
Butter and Vanilla Shortbread Cookies
Our Butter and Vanilla Shortbread is a delicate and rich dough made by using the sanding method. This type of cookie has a characteristically crumbly, or short, texture, which is a result of its high butter content. In general, before baking, it can be scored with the tines of a fork, rolled with a textured rolling pin, or pressed into a mold for a decorative pattern.
How to Roll Dough
The key for successful rolling is cold dough. If any dough becomes too warm it will stick to the work surface and tear when moved. The higher the fat content, the quicker the dough softens.
Cherry Pie
Cherry pie is a symbol of American culture and is frequently prepared on July 4th to celebrate Independence Day. Consisting of a flaky crust encasing sweet or sour cherries and finished with a decorative crust, traditional lattice, or streusel topping, cherry pie is widely recognized as a homemade favorite.
French Vanilla Ice Cream with Raspberry Coulis
Ice cream is a creamy, dairy-based frozen dessert traditionally made from a mixture of milk and heavy cream, egg yolks, sugar, and flavoring. It is simultaneously mixed and cooled to below freezing, or churned, to create a smooth and rich frozen cream. Ice creams are the main component in frozen desserts such as ice cream sundaes, Vacherin and Baked Alaska.
Traditional French Baguette
The traditional baguette is one of the most well-recognized bread in the world and considered to be a symbol of French culture and breadmaking. This bread has a long and slender shape, golden crust, and characteristic slashes on the surface. The baguette’s crisp exterior and the soft, chewy interior are perfect for sandwiches and tartines.
Baked Pear and Almond Cream Tart
Our Baked Pear and Almond Cream Tart is a traditional French pastry that is included in the classical tart family. The flavors of almond cream paired with baked fruit and a sweet tart shell are comforting and pleasing at any time of year, as the pears can be exchanged for other fruits of the season.
Speakers
Jacquy Pfeiffer
Chef Jacquy Pfeiffer’s exceptional career began with an apprenticeship in Alsace at the famous Jean Clauss Pâtisserie. Following his apprenticeship in Strasbourg, Pfeiffer went on to establish himself as a leading figure in the art of pastry working with some world-renowned families and establishments. Some of these include the Royal Family in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; the Sultan of Brunei; the Hyatt Regency, Hong Kong; a prestigious pastry shop in Palo Alto, California; and both the Fairmont and Sheraton hotels in Chicago, Illinois. These experiences led Chef Pfeiffer to teach and consult in numerous of the most prominent properties and companies worldwide, such as the Ritz-Carlton and Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, the Atlantis Hotel in the Bahamas, and the Adolphus Hotel in Dallas, Texas. In 1995, Jacquy Pfeiffer along with Sébastien Canonne, founded The French Pastry School where their team is devoted to imparting excellence. Today, The French Pastry School is considered one of the leading pastry institutions in the world.
Chef Scott Samuel
Spanning nearly 30 years, Chef Scott Samuel’s distinguished culinary career has included leadership roles in culinary innovation, instruction, operations and program development. Before joining Rouxbe as the Vice President of Culinary, Scott served as the Director of Culinary Innovation for Zipongo, a digital health company focused on making it easier to eat well. Prior to Zipongo Scott worked with The Culinary Institute of America as the Executive Chef of the college’s Strategic Initiatives Group and as an instructor in the culinary arts degree program where he coordinated the food operations for the culinary college’s industry leadership conferences, including Menus of Change, in partnership with the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. Scott earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Hotel & Restaurant Administration from Washington State University and spent a summer studying at the Cesar Ritz Institute of Hotel Management in Switzerland.
