Thursday, January 27, 2011

Daring to do it: Joconde Imprime/Entremet

(This is going to be a kind of long, kind of photo-heavy post. I will do my best to keep it manageable!)
The January 2011 Daring Bakers’ challenge was hosted by Astheroshe of the blog accro. She chose to challenge everyone to make a Biscuit Joconde Imprime to wrap around an Entremets dessert.

When I first saw this challenge, I was convinced there was some sort of catch. This looked complicated, it looked time intensive, it looked just plain hard! Heck, I wasn't even sure I could pronounce the challenge, let alone complete it in a way that wouldn't be a total embarrassment! After seeing some of my fellow Daring Bakers' work, though, I began to get inspired. I knew my cake wouldn't look like theirs, but their enthusiasm made me want to dive in. The given recipe told us how to make the joconde paste and sponge, but the entremet (inside filling) was completely up to us. Therefore, that was the part I was obsessing over! So many options for flavors, textures, combinations... It was really daunting. I finally decided to stick with something I knew and trusted. Chocolate and vanilla. Puddings were what I chose. (I did not photograph the making of these puddings, though, since I knew that the outside would be the more interesting part...!) I used my go-to recipe for the chocolate pudding, and for the vanilla I used this pastry creme recipe from Silk Soymilk's recipe collection. Both are keeper recipes on their own, and they worked together really nicely, too! I made both of these puddings early in the day and let them set in the fridge so they would be ready for me when I was ready to fill my dessert.
Now for the interesting part...!

When I first looked at the recipe for the joconde and decorating paste, I was intimidated by the sheer number of eggs - egg whites, specifically, I would be needing. After reading the comments of some of the other Bakers, though, I learned that I would be able to halve the recipe and still have more than enough batter to complete the challenge. I started with a half-batch of the decoration paste. After mixing the batter I had to choose colors. I chose green (Hubby's favorite color), blue (my favorite color), and purple (my mom's favorite color, and she was visiting). For the design I decided to kind of just wing it. I made a rectangle to be cut for the ring of cake and two discs for support and the base.
Once the designs were piped, the trays had to be put into the freezer to set up solid. That's the easy part, right? That is where disaster struck. My base design piece decided that it didn't want to go into the cold. It jumped. Onto the floor. Paste side down. I was not happy... But if the design in the cake would come out anything like the design on the floor, I thought this might not be a total waste... Thankfully, even a half-batch of paste left me with more than enough to redo my swirls, so I was able to redo my base and safely get it into the freezer. (I must say, though, that if this had happened to someone with more artistic talent who had made an actual, intricate design, it would have been HEARTBREAKING!)
While the decor paste set I made my half-batch of the joconde sponge batter. This half batch did not feel nearly as generous as the half-batch of paste had seemed. I was worried that I would not have enough batter to cover all of my pieces. Luckily, though, the idea is to make a thin layer to keep the sponge flexible. With a little bit of encouragement I was able to get my sponge spread out and get the trays into the oven. Being so thin, this was a baking process that needed to be watched carefully. I felt like I was watching a souffle rise! This cake can bake through in anywhere from four to 15 minutes. So I sat in front of the oven watching for signs of doneness...! Once the cakes were done (about eight minutes for me) they were taken out of the oven to cool for a minute before being flipped out onto powdered sugar coated parchment paper. I am not usually one to pat myself on the back, but when I flipped the cakes over and saw the designs I couldn't help but say out loud "Wow! That looks so cool!" (Moreso the colors and the imprint on the cake than the actual design, but, still!) Now I was REALLY excited to see how the finished dessert would be!

Now that all of my elements were ready it was time to build the final piece. (I am going to do my explaining in one lump, then put all of the pictures together at the bottom.) I started with the outside ring of sponge. This was actually the hardest part for me! I really tried to get my pieces in tightly, trying to get my cake walls to be somewhat solid. It didn't happen so well. My seams were not so tight. But they held together fine, so I have something to work towards next time...! Once the sides were as built as I could get them I put my base disc on the bottom. Then came a layer of chocolate pudding. Then some strawberries, because, yum! Then the second sponge disc to separate the layers, topped with the vanilla pastry creme. On top of that went more strawberries, then the whole thing went into the fridge for a final set.


















I had to admit, after each step I just got more and more excited. I saw that this was really coming together, and had pretty high hopes for a really awesome looking dessert. When the time came to plate and serve, I was not disappointed! Sure, my piping and design are pretty amateur, and the edges and lines could use some work. But I was thrilled! This is a dessert I want to keep around and pull out for a special event! Or an event which I want to make feel special!!

Thank you so much, Astheroshe, for introducing me to this amazing technique! I can honestly say that I would have never dreamed of making something so intricate, and you have opened my eyes to a new world of possibilities. I can not wait to do this again!
Please treat yourself to a peak at the amazing creations done by my fellow Daring Bakers!

30 comments:

  1. Awesome.. Great job on the challenge and delicious filling.

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  2. You did great job. Awesome,Nice filling.

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  3. I love it - so colourful! Mmmm, fresh strawberries inside... xxx

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  4. Oh well done - it looks fab! I especially love your colours!

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  5. Ruth, your entremet looks beautiful! It must have been delicious with the filling AND strawberries! So sorry about your "accident" with the paste not wanting to go into the freezer... sorry... I couldn't help it... you made me laugh ;o)

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  6. Oh... thanks for your lovely comment on my post, I also enjoy IMMENSELY to bake "with" this group!

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  7. Your enthusiasm is catching I can really feel you happy and excited you were while doing this challenge. I love your design and the colours are stunning. Well done on this challenge. Your flavour combination is great also you can't wrong with chocolate.

    Cheers from Audax in Sydney Australia.

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  8. I love the patterns on your biscuit! Great work on this challenge!

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  9. What a great post! I discovered that my baking sheet wouldn't fit in the freezer, so I had to take the silpat with the paste off and try to get it in without folding it in half, but at least it didn't end up on the floor. Too funny, but you really took it in stride. I bet the finished cake was delicious with your fillings.
    :)

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  10. A total success. Your joconde is beautiful and amazing. Oops sorry one of your designs fell on the floor :-S This was indeed a challenge and an educational experience.

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  11. Glad that you have faith in me to even bring up the idea of me attempting this again! LOL Wish I would have known about using the AP flour vs the almond flour as it would have saved me the money. Now you on the other hand should definitely do it again as this one turned out so fabulous!

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  12. That looks great! Love the pastel colors you picked Your post cracked me up the past about pronouncing the challenge was too funny!!! haha

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  13. Hi Ruth!!! This challenge was an adventure, but your final result is truly amazing! I think that it's sooo goood with strawberry and chocolate! :-D

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  14. I love the colors you used for the joconde imprime and the filling sounds delicious! Very well done!

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  15. I was pleased to see that you didn't let the accident get you down or put you off. You made a really nice entrement with gorgeous flavours!

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  16. I absolutely love the designs you crafted for your Entremet and most importantly, it tasted good. Great job!

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  17. I love the designs and the colors too...very creative. Well done on this challenge.:)

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  18. Your design is so fun, I love the circles and swirls!

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  19. When I made mine and went to stick the desingn in the freezer, I accidentaly touched the design to the top of the shelf above the one I was setting it on, and had to touch up a part of it. LOL.

    I love the colors you used in yours!

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  20. I too had the most trouble deciding what fillings to use! It was almost to open ended for me. I love your colors and designs. Way to persevere even after your first batch fell on the floor. Nice job on the challenge!

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  21. The finished entremet looks great! Picking the fillings slowed me down too. Having too many choices is a crippling thing sometimes.

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  22. Your joconde imprime looks so pretty in those colours and the swirls. Great filling too.

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  23. Ha ha ha, I love the "strawberries, because, yum" explanation :) Lovely job on this and glad the freezer experience didn't set you back too much.

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  24. Your imprime pattern is gorgeous! I'm sorry one ended up on the floor (nooooo!), but I'm glad it turned out well in the end. I was really excited when I peeled off my baking sheet too. :)

    I just love your final entremet - the fillings sound soooo good and the strawberries peeking out the top are a lovely touch. Beautiful!

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  25. I also loved the challenge. And you were too hard on yourself when commenting about the piping. It is lovely and the colors work out very well. Well done!

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  26. It's so gorgeous and pastel-y :D And who can resist a classic strawberry and custard combo? Nice!

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  27. Ruth, your joconde is fabulous, REALLY fabulous..love the colors. However, just let me look at it while I devour the custard and strawberries. Glad you made it through your dropping disaster and motored through. I had something similar happen, except it was squirrels. Honest!

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  28. You did a fine job on this month's challenge. You should give yourself a pat on the back, you deserve it
    Best-Sandie

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  29. Your joconde looks great like an work of art.

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  30. Such fun, colorful designs. Great job on this challenge!

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