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Thursday, November 13, 2008
Ritzy School
Chef Didier walked in and introduced himself to me and the others in our culinary class. The director over the chefs in the Ecole Ritz Escoffier, chef Didier is definitely one to be commended and revered. Didier is a fantastic chef and by the time I finished my coursework with him, we had gone over my favorite part of the culinary world: bread making and viennese pastry. The perfect French delights that no other culture has been able to duplicate or even come close to, precisely the reason I came to Paris.
Each morning started with a delightful coffee and pastry break served by Charlotte, Didier’s assistant. Thanks to Charlotte, the entire course was translated from French to English, just for me. She was schooled in English, but, I am convinced she will be in hospitality before it is all over with. She has a kind demeanor, an amazing gift for multi-tasking and makes everyone feel as if they are the only person in the room.
After our morning break, we would typically have an introduction to the day by lecture. Then after going over the basics, baking history, baker’s percentages, wheat varieties, temperature, humidity and timing we were off to the kitchen. Each day was spent mixing, shaping, baking, and experimenting with different techniques and exotic flavors.
Part of the day we would stay in the Ecole pastry kitchen and the other part of the day we would spend in the boulangerie (bakery) of the Hotel Ritz taking turns using the steam injected brick oven and stealing glimpses of the baker’s French baking secrets.
Even though the baking foundation was similar to my Culinary Institute of America background and my bakery experience, I value the many differences in techniques and nuances in artistic expression that I learned from Didier. All of the professional chefs that I have had the privilege and honor to work with in my experience all have perfected their own ‘system’ over time. It never fails that these ‘systems’ have priceless techniques that are unique and helpful in countless ways and cannot be found in a book. Didier is a plethora of passionate pastry knowledge.
Most importantly, found in the course curriculum was the development and techniques of making a perfect French baguette. In addition, some more of the wonderful recipes we baked were smoked bacon Fougasse, decorated Bread, Vienesse Bread, Danish, Croissant, Brioche, Puff Pastry, Kouglof, Fouace, and English Muffins.
Like a peacock flashing his colorful plume, Chef Didier never stopped with simply the recipe, he always added his signature touch. For instance, his fairytale-like mushroom shaped Viennese rolls filled with Madagascar vanilla bean pastry cream and powdered with sugar ‘spots’ and edible gold leaf or his flaky, crusty French butter croissants (yes, it matters that the butter is French) filled with pistachio almond paste and bittersweet Valrhona chocolate finished with a sugar glaze and fresh pistachios left me well, for once, speechless.
Everything chef Didier did was effortless to him. Like vividly colored cobalt blue and turquoise jeweled peacock feathers, Didier’s talents were all just an extension of who he was, is and will become. I didn’t even see a hint of the rumors of a French chef’s arrogance in Didier. Yes, he is over-the-top. Yes, he is confident. Yes, his talents are better than the rest.
“Every day is a competition,” he would say. But, somehow in my mind I couldn’t help but know, he is exactly as he should be.
As the old saying says, “It is what it is.”
I say, in reference to Chef Didier, “He is what he is…naturally talented and effortlessly splendid.”
After all of this great instruction from an amazing chef and professional, we all were given beautiful Ritz Escoffier bags to carry home all of our beautiful baking projects daily. I have made lots of friends since being in Paris with all of the unexpected baked gifts I have given to my neighbors. Who doesn’t love bread and pastry?
