How should I organize making a cake days ahead?

Question

My wife's birthday is coming up and I want to make a cake for her.

I was thinking of making a layer of sponge cake, amarena cherry sauce (cherries, wine and sugar), chocolate mousse, another layer of sponge cake with sauce, Diplomat cream and amarena cherries on top.

The problem is that I won't have time the day we eat the cake (Saturday) and the day before (Friday), so I need to make it in advance. I'm thinking of preparing the sponge cake, cherry sauce and chocolate mousse on Thursday and build the bottom layers and put it in the freezer. I can make the Diplomat cream on Friday morning, save it in the refrigerator, and build the rest on Saturday (after we'll arrive home).

Does this sounds like a good plan? is it better to just make the pastry cream on Friday and mixed it with the whipped cream on Saturday? Can the cake and the mousse wait for two days?

Asked by yuchtman

Answer

I wouldn't make the layers fully in the freezer. It will be hard to seal up and may dry out. Also, frozen layers are easier to work with. The freezer will dry out unsealed cake extremely fast.

I'd bake all the cake, trim and level them, wrap tightly and freeze on Thursday. Make the sauces and creams on Friday and put them in the fridge. Assemble all on Saturday.

Answered by rfusca

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Tips for a small kitchen

Question

I enjoy cooking but have a seriously small kitchen. There is only about 3 ft of work surface and that has kettle and toaster on it. I have a fair amount of shelf space but still need to larder goods and plates in another room.

I find it almost impossible to keep the kitchen clean and tidy while cooking. With more complex dishes becoming almost impossible.

Are there any good techniques for cooking in a small space?

Answer

Do what professional chefs do: clean constantly.

Put all of your ingredients out in an organized place. Use them. Put them away. Clean the station.

If you can, prepare. Put stuff that is prepped back in the fridge until you need it.

Try to use the same few tools for the whole meal--cutlery, mixing bowls, cutting board. Quickly rinse and re-use rather than multiplying utensils.

Aim for dishes that can be cooked in stages in the same pot rather than needing multiple pots or saucepans.

Try out dishes with fewer ingredients. Great chefs can do wonders with 3, 4, or 5. Maybe you don't need more complicated?

Put non-essentials away. Move the kettle and toaster to a shelf until you're done. Use the sink as a repository for anything you're not using but might still need.

Use another room, too. A nearby table could become your staging area, a place to put ingredients that are prepped, finished, or waiting to be used (so your work area isn't cluttered with them).

Just some ideas.

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Digital recipes storage?

Question

How do people organize their recipes digitally? Software and web solutions are both welcome.

For me, the ideal solution would accept recipes from different sources (copy/paste, or email) in any format, and would automatically generate ingredient lists. It would be available from multiple devices (phone, iPad, computer) and would automatically prepare shopping lists.

Answer

My wife and I love http://www.plantoeat.com/

• The recipe import is well done and intuitive.
• The meal planner is easy to use and provides a great view of the week ahead.
• The grocery list maker is awesome. The Pantry Inventory of the stuff you already have on hand is brilliant!
• The site looks and works great on an iPhone when shopping. We said "so long" to Grocery Gadget after using it :)

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Recommendations for spice organization strategies

Question

Spices have always been the hardest thing for me to keep track of in the kitchen. I'm interested in specific recommendations for

1. hardware (containers, labeling, shelving, etc.) and
2. organization schemes (alphabetical? categories?)

in order to make it easier to find the spices I'm looking for.

Answer

Alphabetically works best for us.

I have a friend that does alphabetically by sweet and savory.

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