You seem to be well supplied with neighbors fruit, Carol! I’m envious! And Victoria is beautiful, I visited a few years back. Though I have to say you guys drive slow!!! At least compared to the ever-hectic Bay Area…. People went less than the speed limit! Unheard of! I think you get a ticket here for that! LOL!

Mostly Flourless sounds great for November. I’m on board. And no, I won’t be first….

I thought I took the liberty of doing the tally - though I’m a junior member of the forum . So far we have:
Mostly Flourless - Julie, Annie, Jenn, Carol, Silke
Thanksgiving Theme - Patricia

Carol - I’m assuming you’re voting for Mostly Flourless after reading your post though you’ve never actually said that’s what you’re voting. Let me know if I’m wrong.

So does this mean that we’re doing “Mostly Flourless” since the majority seems to vote that way? Kinda sad - it makes it looks like it’s Patricia against all? 

Jenn - 08 October 2009 02:38 PM

I thought I took the liberty of doing the tally - though I’m a junior member of the forum .

Jenn, I don’t think any of us here thinks of other members in terms of junior or senior members. 

It can get pretty intimidating when all you seniors start throwing genoise and ganache!

Rozanne, thank you for saying that! I should clarify that when I made that statement I was thinking of it from my perspective. I’ve only been baking for a little over a year so I consider myself very junior .

Silke - 08 October 2009 05:57 PM

It can get pretty intimidating when all you seniors start throwing genoise and ganache!

Silke, it does, doesn’t it? Does it make you feel you have A LOT to catch up on - skill-wise?  I would love to be able to bake like all of you.. hmm… one step of a time I suppose.

OK, if you need to feel like us “seniors” aren’t so lofty, I can regale you with all the stories of my baking mishaps, most of which don’t end up on the forum!  Like the time I tried to make genoise with almond flour, or the time my ganache broke when I added too much grand marnier, or, most recently, when I tried to layer the components of the RHC pear cake into an upside-down presentation, which turned out pitifully pale and ugly.

Seriously, though, aren’t we just labeled “seniors” because we “talk” more on the forums?

Julie - 09 October 2009 06:16 AM

OK, if you need to feel like us “seniors” aren’t so lofty, I can regale you with all the stories of my baking mishaps, most of which don’t end up on the forum!  Like the time I tried to make genoise with almond flour, or the time my ganache broke when I added too much grand marnier, or, most recently, when I tried to layer the components of the RHC pear cake into an upside-down presentation, which turned out pitifully pale and ugly.

Seriously, though, aren’t we just labeled “seniors” because we “talk” more on the forums?

I agree whole heartedly Julie. We all have our baking mishaps. Sometimes I just don’t have the time to share them here even though I would love to. And yes, some of us “talk” more than others. 

Julie’s right that being senior on Rose’s forum only means that you’ve been around longer and posted more. We’ve all had our mishaps. I could regale you with a few of my own. They’re quite vivid in my memory… lol ... and the thing is, I learned more from them than most of my successes.

But what I really want to recount is some advice I got in my twenties that has served me well. Always put yourself in the company of people who are better than you, this guy said. He was a hotshot in my field at the time, so I really listened. It will make you reach for your best, he explained, and then you’ll get better. Better and better as time goes on.

I have found it to be true. I have also found that once I gain a little skill in some area, I learn tons from trying to pass it on. There’s nothing like explaining something or demonstrating it to learn more deeply yourself, whether with your peers in terms of skill or those who are at an earlier stage. It also helps you keep a fresh outlook and an open mind to new ideas. The benefits go both ways. And no matter where you are on the path, there’s always more to learn. That’s the double-edged beauty of it! The joy and at times, yes, the frustration that we’re not as great yet as we would like to be.

In the frustrating times, I find there’s comfort in remembering that if I had nothing left to shoot for, my life would be empty and boring. I don’t think I’ll ever reach that stage with baking!!! It feels like the sky’s the limit in terms of what there is to learn. And then you can go one more level, like Rose, and take it to a heavenly realm.

How blessed we are that Rose “threw some ganache” around! And that there are people more senior than us on this forum. Me, too. I don’t mind telling you that I sit up and take notice, whenever Jeanne and certain others post. I won’t name any others, because that’s when we get into comparing mind, which is always a downer. We’re here to help one another, yes. But we’re also here to encourage and support one another, something we do very well in this community. I don’t think I’ll ever outgrow the flush of pleasure that comes from hearing, “Good job.”

Jenn, I totally agree. And I agree with the others, too. I’ve baked bread for as long as I can think of. Cake? That’s a different story. I’ve baked many standard German cakes, I’ve made the occasional biscuit roulade, but I’ve never learned as much about baking as in the last year while planning my friend’s wedding cake. And even then, I didn’t attempt to make a standard cake, but went for what for me was the safe bet with the cheese cake and the chocolate oblivion. Ok, it was also because the bride asked whether a flourless chocolate cake could be part of it, and the groom really likes cheese cake. But it was great to learn from other’s sucesses and mishaps. That being said, stay tuned for my sports bar mishap….

But I never knew what a cake strip is, why you would use it, what different types of flour (bleached vs. unbleached) really do. Thanks all you guys for posting all this and helping me bake my way through life.

Looks like my comment generate a whole strings of discussion. I love this forum - everyone is so positive and encouraging. And fun, - that’s very important as well!

It’s been quiet here since I disappeared into no-Internet land. So do we have agreement on the mostly flourless cake?

We were waiting for you to come back

Hahaha!!!! I’m only home for 2 days, am flying out again tomorrow morning. But while I won’t have an oven I’ll have internet!

Btw, had good lesson this morning in having to pay attention while you bake. I was trying to make the Genoise Tres Cafe, didn’t quite read the instructions right and poured 4 tablespoons of coffee in the batter rather than 4 teaspoons. I also didn’t do a very good job carefully mixing the flour in. I ended up with a compact 1” high sunken in the center disaster. Since it’s for a friend’s B-Day today I did it again, and now it’s a 2” tall beauty! Gotta run off to get cream for the ganache, and I think I’ll finally try that lacquer glaze to make it look perfect for her!

That genoise sounds lovely- hope you’re able to post pics!