kitchen crack

so today in class we made a seriously fantastic new drug that will make an addict out of just about anyone.  we used our puff pastry to make a napoleon, which was so unbelievably delicious that i will probably be thinking about it for years.  the layers were as follows from bottom to top:

1) puff pastry sheet

2) dulce de leche

3) pastry cream

4) puff pastry

5) dark chocolate ganache

it truly was one of the best desserts that i have ever tasted.  even after we did our sensory analysis, i couldn't stop going back and picking at it.  it leaves the delightfully sweet taste in your mouth and the more you concentrate on that taste, the more you salivate and the more you have to have.  i could actually feel the sugar buzz in my brain.  doesn't this look fantastic!

we also got to finish baking off the rest of our puff pastry products including apple turnovers, guava tarts, palmiers, and cinnamon straws, and we got to taste our ice creams and sorbets.  our new product for the day was quick breads, biscuits, and scones.  my team made maple bacon biscuits and mango nut bread.  i am not a big fan of bacon or maple, but the actual biscuit was very tasty.  the mango bread was really great, though mango in colorado isn't the best mango in the world.  here are some pics of the product that we made today!

and look!  i got to torch something in the kitchen today!  and yes for all of you smart asses out there, the kitchen is still standing.  

after class a few of us went to a local brewery to grab a drink and get to know each other outside of class.  it was really fun and it is great to know a little more about my fellow students.  it was an extremely great weekend, but very tiring.  i am having trouble typing because i am so sleepy.  yay for being able to sleep in a little tomorrow.  i definitely need it especially if i am going to get as much studying done as a i want to tomorrow.