PARIS BREST

First of all, Gentlemen, it is Brest - a town in France - without the 'a' as in breast. This very delicious pasty was named after the internationally famous Paris to Brest cycling race in France. Presumably the round rings denote the wheels?

Day 3 was a continuation of Choux practice, and for me, my piping technique. This requires steady and articulate hands, which I lack. We have to be precise, artistic & clean. I know I am not good at the first two skills, only to find out I was barely handling skill 3. The 'pipe' is an untamed animal, it is very easy to 'mess up'. If that happens at assessment, we lose points. After taking copious notes & watching the Chefs demo like a hawk for 2 days, I managed to get the steps right on Day 3, a big relief. My Paris Brest looked the part, even tasted right (to me) even though they did not look as refined as my young classmates'. Ce la vie ... I blame that on my age. If you have a moment between June 25th - 27th please say a little prayer for me. I shall need all the help I can get by then.

For my sins on Day 2 Chef Michael ordered another tray of Eclairs. I did it gingerly, aiming for 12cm each, as I began to get better cooperation from my pipe. When they came out of the oven daman said ' ... Raymond, if you produce 10 of these on assessment day you'll be right', made my day! With that encouraging remark I decided 'to let my hair down', with my new young friends.