Orginally from Ireland, I now live in the midwest. I coach high school soccer. I have a psychotic cat and a goofy dog. desserts, vegetarian dishes, soups pulling off a full thanksgiving menu made entirely from scratch. Making croissants from scratch. I made a Croquembouche last December for my sister to take to her french class. BUCHE DE NOEL! I have never been so frustrated by a recipe. I used a combination of Marta Stewart (for the filling and decorations) and Julia Childs (for the cake). The cake stuck to everything no matter what I did. It tasted great but basically turned into a giant lump of cake and chocolate-raspberry filling. I told people that the log got thrown into a wood chipper!