In the Fall of 2016, I was alerted to the existence of the GBBS Masterclass episodes that were airing on PBS by a fellow GBBS fan and good friend. Of course there was a Christmas-themed episode. Of course I watched it at least twice and wanted to make just about all of the recipes. Luckily, two holiday occasions presented themselves as perfect opportunities to pull together some holiday bakes.
Before I go any further, it is probably important to remember that years ago, when I was first delving into the world of culinary exploration, I procured a copy of the Joy of Cooking (the controversial 1997 edition, no less). In the section regarding menu planning, it admonishes the following: "If you are cooking the meal yourself, remember these two important rules: Choose food that can be prepared ahead of time, so that you can spend more time at the table than over the stove, and never, ever, make a dish for company that you haven't made before and mastered" (p. 11; emphasis mine).
Well, I didn't heed that advice at the time and that trend continues to hold true.
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| Tiramisu Buche de Noel |
Getting back to December 2016, the two occasions included a holiday party that we threw here at home for some friends after being inspired by the Weezer Christmas album (that's a whole other story), and a Christmas Day dinner with the lovely extended family and friends of the aforementioned good friend. The two bakes that I chose included a tiramisu Buche de Noel for the former and Mary Berry's Pavlova Wreath for the latter. If you guessed that I'd never made a pavlova before, you'd be right. What better time to try to make one than for transportation across town on an icy/sleety day to a large dinner party full of guests that I had never met before?! (Thanks but no thanks for the advice,
Joy of Cooking.) Feeling a little nervous with the conversions, I fiddled with the temperature for the meringue shell somewhat and didn't have time to cool it completely in the oven before taking out. Also whipped the cream up beforehand and assembled as soon as we got to the house before dinner. The meringue ring seems to have held up fairly well, but was a little more fragile than I'd hoped for. My guess is that I could have done with an even lower temperature and maybe a little less time in the mixer for the egg whites, but overall I was fairly pleased. After assembly, it was even kept "refrigerated" in the cake carrier on the back stoop in the sleety mix during dinner and didn't wilt too much. Word on the street is that some of the kids negotiated hard for a shot at seconds. Guess I was right when I told them that they'd like a dessert full of sugar, whipped cream, and fresh fruit!
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| Christmas wreath pavlova a la GBBS Masterclass |
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