The thing about work is, I’m quite enjoying it at the moment. Mind you, as I write this, I’m in the middle of a week of R’n’R. But I can’t wait to get right back into it next week. I am one of those unfortunate people who can’t seem to switch off from work. A bit like Sergeant Nicholas Angel in Hot Fuzz, without the amazing track record to match.

Danishes for 200, chocolate tarts for 700, and upcoming, chocolate croissants for 200. Having never made anything in such big numbers before, some of these orders occasionally give me mild panic attacks. The chocolate tarts for example, which I eventually managed to pull off in 2 1/2 days. In retrospect, it was a breeze, but the week I started making them, I was a little unsure if they would be ready in time. Also, in a comedy of errors, someone managed to land a foot right into a tray of prepared tarts. The 10% extra we always make, covers for humorous incidences like that.

Prior to this current job, I had never ever made a danish or croissant. So it’s thanks in small part to my obssession with acquiring cookbooks that I had some recipes to reference from, and tweak to my satisfaction. This batch of croissants, a second and much more convincing attempt than my first go at making croissants, comes from Tartine. Straight from the oven, they were crispy and caramelised on the outside, and soft and buttery on the inside. “Darling, it’s just like being back in Paris, standing in front of Poujouran on rue Jean Nicot with a paper bagful of warm pastries!” B was less convinced, possibly because the croissant I eventually gave him to try was 3 days old and cold from having been fridged. That’s what you get for spending a week in Singapore without me! 😛

Still, the challenges keep coming. If you can picture it, I’m the one who, at the end of the week, can be found in a quiet corner, checking through the list of future orders. With knitted brows, I’d be muttering, “You’ve got to be kidding.. you want how many of what?”. Once, it was a ridiculous number of lamingtons; another time, “mixed berry flans”.. which thankfully turned out to be a typo, because I don’t know what the heck a flan is! “Sometimes, I think you guys just make these things up!”.

This week, I trialled little cheesecakes in shotglasses. Because of the large numbers involved, I thought setting the mix in a shotglass might be nicer and easier. I lightened the mix so that it still retains it’s flavour, but isn’t as dense as you’d expect from a slice of cheesecake. The juicy cherries in syrup on top provide a nice colour contrast and a balance between tartness and the rich and creamy, while a gingered biscuit base lends a bit of texture overall.

What lies ahead? Churros. Never made it before. Tested a couple of recipes out last week. Next week, frying for 300. Bring it on.