Tantalize your taste buds!

I had my buffet practical last night, and I did awesome! My theme was The 5 most dominate taste sensations in your mouth: sweet, salty, savory, bitter and sour.

My sweet were “sweet good night cocoa kisses” a tasty favorite of mine that my darling sis used to make when I was little. Cocoa kisses are a meringue, crunchy on the outside, sweet on the inside, with a hidden pecan 1/2 on the bottom.

My Salty were Peanut Orange Candy Tuiles. Crunchy caramel-ly cookies that remind me of cracker jacks. They were lacking something. Still good, but not as ‘wow’ as they could have been.

My Bitter were Better Than a Breakup Cake Bites. It was a geniose sponge cake that had grapefruit reduction in the center and was covered with a bittersweet chocolate glaze. For those who enjoy bitter flavors, it was a hit, for those who are not too tuned to the bitter flavor, they were a little too bitter. I think I will sweeten the reduction a little next time.

My sour were “Scarlet Cran-Pom Tartlets.” Pate Surcee, a sweet crust flavored with orange, was filled with a cranberry-pomegranate filling and topped with orange Creme Chantilly and edible rubies. My filling was pretty good!

My savory were Basil Black Pepper Truffles. YUM! These were a hit! Chef Erin liked them so much that she had me send some down to Chef WooJay for him to try. I’ve never had him as an instructor, she just thought he would like them! They start with the mellow floral flavor of basil, then you let the chocolate dissolve in your mouth and all you are left with at the end it the tingle of black pepper in the back of your throat.

I impressed myself.