After a whirlwind week back in the states, four days in Milwaukee, four in New Orleans, I was thrust back into the confines of my hovel. At least the first three days of class were easy on me. I do feel like I've learned a lot. For example, when faced with the task of making a cake based in puff pastry, I rose to the challenge and the puff was completed in under 45 minutes. Also, when the butter came through a little, I didn't freak out. However, I still feel pretty stressed out before a practical; it's a test everyday.

Today, we saw a demonstration of roasted "cockerel," more commonly known as young rooster. There were plenty of plays on words for the English speaking crowd, and I think the chef was a little confused. The demo was great, though, because he made Oeufs à la Neige, which is my all time favorite dessert. He showed us how you can even make a home version in the microwave. The hovel's kitchen is not very well equipped, but I do have a microwave. If I hit a rough patch where I haven't whipped egg whites by hand in awhile, I'll give the micro a whirl.

Paris is less than glamorous today: rain, laundry, raiburnttt out light bulb, rain....