Taking shortcuts make up some of my shortcomings when it comes to cooking. I’m never one to accurately follow recipes and I shy away from recipes that require you to “beat egg whites till stiff peak”. That’s just too much work for me. I’m also one who would rather buy a slice of pie than attempt to make one, until recently, because banoffee pie got too expensive for me to indulge twice a week. :lol:
When a slot at Le Cordon Bleu’s Keep Calm Workshop opened up, I decided to see what the fuss was all about. I missed the first day of class because I was down with high fever and flu, but recovered enough to attend the second half of the class where I attempted a passionfruit raspberry tart – guided by Sapna Anand.
You’re basically given the recipe but no instructions whatsoever – Le Cordon Bleu students are expected to pay attention in class and take down notes. Difficult if you’re easily distracted, like me. But I persevered and ended up with an almost perfect tart. At least I would like to think so, after slaving away in the kitchen for 4 hours.
Making the passionfruit gelatin was tricky, and the meringue required “beating till light and stiff”. Good thing Le Cordon Bleu has awesome equipment. Else I’d be dead tired using a hand mixer! Managed to pipe the tart properly using a simple “beads” technique and finished it off with a blow torch. #callmenigella :D
Anyway, the tart was delicious. The pastry crust was pretty darn good, if I may say so myself. Thanks to Sapna’s guidance (and a lot of her patience), I was able to follow the steps properly and rather enjoyed the process. But at the end of the lazy, I’m still a lazy bugger and if you were to ask me to choose between making a tart or buying one, I would pick the latter.
But…now I know I actually can make a tart, and eat it too. Hahaha! Thank you Le Cordon Bleu Malaysia, for the opportunity. And thank you Sapna Anand, for being so patient with this noob. :) I went home with a yummy tart and a Le Cordon Bleu apron to show off in my kitchen lol.
If you’re interested, Le Cordon Bleu is launching a weekend cuisine class that runs every Saturday for 18 weeks (5 months). Class will commence in April 2015. Download the registration form here if you’re keen.