Here is the last part of the day for Chef Jenni and I hoped you have enjoyed what a day in her life as a pastry chef is like. You can see it is not easy but I can tell you from speaking with Jenni, she loves her work. I guess you would have to if you plan on doing this for a living. This has been a great description of just one professional cook’s experiences and I hope to bring you more in the future.

Again, if you like what you read and are thinking of going to baking and pastry school, be sure to check out my culinary arts school resource center. And be sure to read my interview with Chef Jenni here.

1:40pm:

Rum caramel. Get the sugar going. Go see Larry at the bar and hit him up for Myer’s Dark Rum—just 2-3 ounces. Keep an eye on that sugar. “Order in ugly ends X3.” “3 ugly ends, heard. One more order of ends all day, chef!” “Heard!” Throw those 18 ends in the oven. Check your sugar. Still okay.

Order in: pig tails! Pig tails, heard. Drop the pig tails. Set up your plate. Check the ends. Check the sugar. Ends go to the window. Check the pig tails. Check the sugar. It’s getting close. Turn it down and rescue the pig tails from the fryer. Powdered sugar, and off it goes. Check the sugar. It’s starting to turn. Let it go. Let it go. Let it go. Stir and let it go. When it starts to sting your eyes, it’s just about there. Let it go. There!

Off with the heat and in goes the cream. Jump back—it splatters and spits and steams like Vesuvius! Add some salt. Stir and stir. Once it has calmed down a bit, add the rum and stand back again. Let it cook for a minute and let cool. Go pour layer 3 on that semifreddo so it will be freddo by service! Label and refrigerate that caramel. Order in: ugly ends! Ugly ends, heard; 86 ugly ends. 86 ends, heard!

2:05pm:

Timer goes off for financiers. Take them out. Mignardise time. What’ll we make today? How about mango pate de fruits? Get out your puree, pectin, sugar, citric acid and corn syrup. Here we go. Where’s that candy thermometer? Oh, the bar needs sour mix? Lucia, could you make the sour mix? Where was I? Get that silpat ready for the pate de fruits. It takes forever to get to 107 degrees C! “Order in: chocolate caramel ice cream!” “Ice cream, heard.” Turn down the induction burner. 3 scoops in a cold bowl. Croquant as a garnish. To the window. Back to the pate de fruits. Turn up the heat. Stir and stir. Done! Pour and let set.

2:40pm:

Set up the biscuits for Lucia to bake for dinner service. 4 trays of 48. Work in the walk-in where it’s cold. Put the panned biscuits back on the speed rack, and back out into the hot kitchen.

3:00pm:

How are we looking? Ice cream base? I’m on it. 48 yolks. 1 gallon of milk, plus a bunch of cream for good measure. Sugar, salt and vanilla. Heat. Temper into yolks. Cook to 160 degrees. Strain and flavor. Portion, label and freeze.

3:30pm:

Line individual tart pans for Alsace tarts for garde manger. Freeze so they can be baked off. How many today? 16! 16, heard. Thank goodness I froze some brisee on Saturday. I’ll have to make some more tomorrow. Put it on the list.

3:45pm:

How’s it all looking for dinner service? You’ve got 16 orders of pretzels all day, 48 orders of biscuits. Brulees are done. Financiers are done. We’re good on cinnamon rolls, triple chocolate and chocolate peanut butter terrine. Don’t cut that triple chocolate until service time since I just did the last layer at around 2:00. Pig tails are fine. You’ve got what you need for sundaes if anyone wants one and you’re fine for root beer floats. Do you need me to do anything else to make your service life easier? You’re good; okay.

4:00pm:

Check off what we need for The List for tomorrow.

All right, then. I am out. Have a lovely evening, all!

If you ever thought of working in a restaurant as a professional baker or pastry chef, you will enjoy this third segment of “A Day In The Life of a Pastry Chef” from Chef Jennifer Field. It details just some of the tasks Jenni is involved with in a typical working day at The Ravenous Pig restaurant in Winterpark, FL. And if you are interested in learning more about becoming a professional chef or going to culinary arts school, check out my Cooking School Resource Center.

The photos were taken by Jenni at the restaurant.

12:00pm:“Order in: ugly ends and ugly ends again. That’s two all day.” “2 ugly ends, heard.” Throw 12 in the oven and get out your cinnamon roll dough. It’s been in the fridge all night, and it’s ready to go. Wash your hands. Mix up your cinnamon sugar and butter, divide your dough in half.

“Order in: ugly ends!” Ugly ends, heard.” Send the 2 ends to the window. Drop 1 more order. “Order in: pig tails!” “Pig tails, heard.” Drop 4 pig tails in the fryer and set up your plate. Get your chocolate sauce and a glass with a liner for the tails. Ends are hot? To the window.

Back to the rolls. Wash your hands. Roll the dough and spread the cinnamon sugar. Roll up; cut in 12. Repeat. Check pig tails. Ready? Yes. Good. Toss in cinnamon sugar, put in the lined glass. Hit it with some powdered sugar and send it to the window. Back to the cinnamon rolls. Where was I? Oh, yeah—repeat. One more cylinder of cinnamon dough cut into 12 more pieces. Cover and let proof.

12:30pm:

Pig tails. Okay—pate a choux. Wash your hands. Put your water, butter, sugar and salt on to boil. Have flour and eggs ready. Is your mixer set up? Where’s the beater? The dishwasher has put it somewhere….creative. Search and search. Finally! It’s with the bread?! Well, that makes a lot of sense.

Alright, back to it. Don’t let the water boil over! That induction burner is powerful! “Order in ugly ends and a pig tail!” “Ugly ends and pig tails, heard.” In go the biscuits; in go the pig tails. Set up the chocolate sauce and glass. Ends are hot—to the window.

Back to pig tails. Add the flour, cook then put it all in the mixer. Add eggs one at a time until it looks…just….right. Check the pig tails in the fryer. Done! Plate; hit with powdered sugar.

To the window. Back to the…”Order in: soft pretzel and an orange-mint sorbet!” “Soft pretzel and orange mint, heard.” Hey, Lucia—if you get the sorbet, I’ll get the pretzel. Cinnamon rolls are proofed; get those in the oven. Pretzels in the oven. Quenelle of mustard; ramekin of fondue.

Back to the pig tails. Load the pate a choux in a piping bag. Snip off the end and pipe pig tails (2 curlicues, please) onto parchment-lined sheets. Get the pretzels out of the oven and off to the window. Back to the pig tails. Keep piping. It all goes in the freezer. While I’m here, let me pour layer 2 on the semifreddo. Turn the cinnamon rolls.

1:10pm:

Financier time! Do we have any ground almonds? Let’s do that, now. Again, thank goodness for the Robot Coupe. Get those cinnamon rolls out of the oven. Do we have browned butter? Yes—we did 4 pounds a few days ago. Melt the butter, mix the batter.

“Order in: ugly ends!” “Ugly ends, heard.” In they go. Cut the pineapple and toss in rum caramel. Do we have enough of that? Running low, I’ll make more in a minute. Ends are hot—in a basket and to the window.

Okay, caramel and pineapple in individual baking dishes, top with financier batter. Bake off low fan 325 degrees 16 min. + 16 min. In they go. Label and put away your batter. Glaze cinnamon rolls before they cool off too much.

I started this post yesterday with Part 1 of a Day In The Life of Pastry Chef Jennifer Field. Here is the second installment describing a typical day for Jenni at The Ravenous Pig: An American Gastropub in Winterpark, FL. Chef Jennifer is a graduate of the Orlando Culinary Academy in Florida, but if you are interested in learning more about culinary arts school or baking & pastry school, please check out my Cooking School Resource Center.

8:30am: Cheese is grated and butter is cut into the flour mixture. Now, scale out and put your pretzels in the mixer. Knead 5 minutes. Go back to the biscuits. Add the wet ingredients and get ready to roll. 5 minutes are up already?! Wash your hands, put your dough in a bowl to rise (in the fridge if it’s really warm in the kitchen). Back to the biscuits. Roll in the cheese in 6 additions. Popcorn timer goes off. Stir the corn and set it for 20 more. Wash your hands. Make the other batch of biscuits. Save the “ugly ends” and bake them off for lunch service. Put the lovely biscuits on trays to be baked off for dinner service. Mark biscuits and popcorn off the list. Wash your hands.

9:25am:

Get out your mass of pretzel dough. Divide into 48 3oz. balls. Popcorn timer goes off again. Stir and set for 20 more minutes. Wash your hands. Keep that pretzel dough covered! Don’t let the dough dry out. Have your sheet pans sprayed and covered too. Now, roll 48 pretzels—16 per sheet tray. In the freezer they go. Timer goes off again. Don’t stir, but set for 15 more minutes.

10:00am:

(Still in the middle of pretzel-dom) Thank goodness Lucia is here! Please paco the ice creams and let’s split up this list!

10:30am:

Pretzels are done. They need to freeze until hard. This makes them easier to pan up after blanching. Okay, until they’re hard, I can make the fondue. Wash your hands. Oh, wait! Do we have whipped butter for bread service? Better throw 11 pounds in the mixer with smoked sea salt and let her rip. Okay, now back to the fondue. Wash your hands. Make a basic Béchamel, add mustard and other good stuff. Don’t forget the porter reduction. Melt in the cheese toward the end.

10:50am:

Put the butter in a Cambro. Label everything. Portion the fondue and label/refrigerate. Wash your hands.

11:00am:

30 minutes until lunch service begins. Gotta get the mise en place together for the station. Sauces go in the steam well. Whipped cream? Check. Chocolate sand? Check. Orange confit? Check. Mint tips? Check. Biscuits and pretzels? Check. Get the bread baskets ready and pie pans (for heating up biscuits/pretzels to order). Okay. Now we’re ready, keep going with the prep.

11:10am:

Blanch and bake off pretzels. Don’t forget the baking soda in the blanching water if you want your pretzels to be pretzel colored, otherwise they will be light and won’t have the crackly pretzels bite on the outside. Wash your hands.

11:30am:

Everything is paco’d. Lucia, what are you going to do? Brulees and chocolate peanut butter terrine? I love it. I’ll deal with the triple chocolate semifreddo, the cinnamon rolls and the pig tails. When you’re done with the terrine, could you make the langues du chat for the brulees? Great!

11:32am:

Make the triple chocolate semifreddo. Wash your hands. 3 bowls, each with a different chocolate. Make your custard base; strain it into the 3 chocolates—weigh it so it’s evenly distributed. Whisk everyone smooth. “Order in: ugly ends!” “Ugly ends, heard.” Throw six on a pan and put them in the oven. Back to the chocolate. Whip your cream, divide it among your bases. “Order in: soft pretzel!” “Soft pretzel, heard.” Throw those in the oven, take the ends to the window. A quenelle of grain mustard, a ramekin of fondue. Pretzels in the basket and it all goes to the window. Wash your hands. Back to the chocolate. Layer one goes in. He goes in the freezer. Leave the other two bowls in the walk-in so when layer one is frozen, you can add layer 2 and then layer 3.

To Be Continued Tomorrow