Carbs Galore Among Other Edibles

I find myself eating my pastries for lunch now. Partly because I am cheap and do not want to spend additional money on food and partially because I feel like it's a waste of tuition if I just throw it out. And so as a result, I sacrifice my figure (Not that I have a notable one to begin with). Ah, the tragedy of a poor culinary student living in a foreign country where its currency is against her advantage.

Anyways, onto Lesson 06: Pâte à choux and Lesson 07: Meringue. See below!

Left to right, top to bottom: Éclairs with Crème Chantilly, Chef C piping the Choux Chantilly (Chantilly cream filled puffs), Éclairs with coffee and chocolate fondant and pastry cream filling, Choux Chantilly, Glands (Acorns), Chouquettes (Choux Pastries in front) and Salambos (behind).

Left to right, top to bottom: Dacquoise with Praline Buttercream decoration #1, Dacquoise with Praline Buttercream decoration #2, Dacquoise with Praline Buttercream decoration #3, Meringue Française (French Meringue), Chef DW demonstrating how to make the marzipan flower, and Meringue Suisse (Swiss Meringue).

Here is a photo of my finished products! Wow, I have never exercised my arm so much before in mixing and whisking. I will never take my KitchenAid for granted ever again.

And just for kicks, here's some photos of the food that I've been cooking at home. I rarely cook at home in New York so I can't help but record what I've been making these days. They're very amateur as I don't know any recipes and whatnot. They were edible though! *Pat on the back. :)

Left to right, top to bottom: Sautéed onions and mushrooms with chopped tomatoes alongside spaghetti topped with homemade alfredo sauce (yes, I used the wrong cheese and I didn't have milk), spaghetti with steamed vegetables, meatballs and cherry tomatoes, red onion soup with beef cubes and rice topped with cheese, and beef with red onions mixed with chili paste over rice.

Did I successfully make anyone drool? haha Anyway, two days off! W00ts! Then another 8:30AM - 9:00PM schedule on Thursday. I shiver at that thought. Hopefully it'll be sunny these two days so I can stroll the Parisian neighborhoods again.