NY Culinary Experience: Chocolate Balloons and Phyllo with Jacques Torres

This is a bit overdue, but I have to write about it because it was awesome. So deal with it.

I attended the NYC Culinary Experience this past weekend, and it was so exciting to be there watching and taking cooking classes with top-caliber chefs. My first class was with Amy Scherber of Amy's Bread, and I was sitting in a room of 20 people all baking fresh bread. The smell was enough to put me in a trance; I felt like a kid on Christmas. 

My second day was a real treat for me: Chocolate Creations with Jacques Torres. The class started at 10 am, and I had zero complaints about eating chocolate, bananas and almond cream wrapped in phyllo dough for breakfast. Wheaties? Screw that – THIS was the breakfast of champions:

Choc banana phyllo
Choc phyllo 
Can't you see the chocolate oozing out of the sides? HEAVEN.

In the beginning of the class though, he made something that I've never seen before, and I am going to bet that you haven't either. He made chocolate dipped balloons. Yes, balloons. So the trick here is, you don't eat the balloon. I suppose you could, but that would lead to a very uncomfortable digestive problem.

Basically, he blew up some balloons (not all the way), dipped them in melted chocolate, and let them cool in the fridge.

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Choc balloons 3 
  
After 15-20 minutes, you take them out and pop the balloons, and there you have it: chocolate bowls!  
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  Choc bowl 1 
  
We filled the bowls with homemade chocolate mousse and fresh raspberries. Mmmm nums. (please ignore my unkempt fingernails)

Now keep in mind this would only work for people who aren't allergic to latex. In which case, I suggest lambskin.

And here is a rather jovial shot of Jacques with the class participants:

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Have no fear - I will type out the recipe to the chocolate banana roll later on. And stay tuned for coverage of the Classic Desserts class I took with Melissa Murphy!

2 Comments

  1. If love isn’t a game, then why are there so many players? Are you one of these players?

  2. Um…like the style of your writing.

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