Dessert First: Constance Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau

Dessert First: Constance Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau

by | Apr 5, 2017 | 0 comments

It’s not every day an email pops into your inbox inviting you to a week filled with desserts! And when that sentence ends with ‘in Mauritius’, then well that’s hardly even a question! If you were following my Instagram and Twitter feeds last week, you’ll know that I was whisked off to the Contance Belle Mare Plage hotel in Mauritius for what has to be, one of the most incredible food experiences I’ve ever had (and that’s saying a lot, ‘cos I eat a lot!). While my French is pretty rusty, I’m pretty sure that the Constance Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau means ‘festival of ridiculously delicious food’ 😉 Jokes aside, it’s a competition that brings Michelin-starred chefs from around the world to Mauritius where each chef is paired up with a local chef from the various Constance island hotels (Mauritius, Madagascar, Maldives and the Seychelles) and while they share ideas and prepare for a culinary showdown against each other, us journalists get to enjoy the food. Tough job, right?

Forced to use local Mauritian ingredients like palm heart, sea urchin and local fish, the teams presented what can only be described as inspiring creations. But no meal is complete without dessert and boy, were they good! Not to be outdone by the savoury chefs, the Constance Hotel pastry chefs battled it out over two days for the Pierre Herme Trophy. Yes, the macaron master himself was there!

Day 1 of the pastry challenge saw chefs whipping up a petit four plate inspired by Nespresso coffees. On day 2, they were tasked with creating 4 desserts; a plated dessert, a gateau (cake), 3 different filled chocolate pralines and a chocolate showpiece. While watching the plates come swooping out the kitchen to thunderous applause from the journalists was fun, I managed to sneak my way into where the real action was happening! Watching these experts whip, pipe and fold through the glass window that divided us was  the best cooking show in the world!

Contending with the heat and humidity of Mauritius and all working in kitchens that weren’t their own, these were the masterpieces created by the Constance hotel pastry chefs: Warning: these images WILL make you hungry!

 

I loved the elegant, refined look of Aurélie Jugoo’s (Constance Belle Mare Plage) pastries – the eclair gave me pastry goals and the triangular ‘Bel Ombre’ was probably the best thing I tasted the entire day! Her chocolates were filled with praline, raspberry and manjari (a special Mauritian lime).

Priyantha Madagodage (Constance Moofushi Maldives) was clearly inspired by the fresh island flavours! His coriander-scented pineapple and passion mousse with it’s blonde chocolate shards got my camera very happy!

Dessert First: Constance Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau

Paulina Kotowska of Constance Halaveli Maldives created a chocolate hazelnut bar that tasted like a giant ferrero rocher, followed by a moist raspberry cake drizzled with milk chocolate. Her showpiece was an upturned chocolate pot and white chocolate rolling pin that cleverly displaying her pralines.

Godfrey Lawler of Constance Lémuria Seychelles got many ‘Oooh’s’ and ‘Aaaah’s’ with his stunning Coconut, Lime and Papaya Cake.

While Tyrie Philoe from Constance Ephelia Seychelles simply calls her decadent chocolate creation ‘Brownies’, I prefer to call it ‘Life-Changing’!

So you want to know who the winner was? Of course you do! I had my eye on Stéphane Labastide from Constance Le Prince Maurice from day 1 and his incredible skill and attention to detail won him both the petit four challenge and the Pierre Herme Trophy proving that he’s the pastry king of Constance! These were his incredible creations:

The next Constance Festival Culinaire Bernard Loiseau takes place at Belle Mare Plage in March 2018 – you can experience the festival (and all the amazing dinners prepared by Michelin chefs) by simply being a guest at the hotel.

Dessert First: The Oyster Box High Tea

Dessert First: The Oyster Box High Tea

by | Oct 18, 2016 | 0 comments

This is the view that knocks the breath right out of you when you walk through the doors of The Oysterbox Hotel in Durban. And it’s a good thing too, because let me tell you, you’re going to need that extra room for all the dessert you’re going to eat! I probably don’t need to tell you that The Oysterbox Hotel is a South African icon. The Durban beach front just wouldn’t be the same without it’s red umbrellas and white facade inspired by the equally iconic Umhlanga Rocks lighthouse.

Afternoon high tea at The Oysterbox Hotel

Another icon of the hotel you probably would have walked straight past when entering the hotel; curled up on his favourite chair in the lobby is Skabenga, the infamous Oysterbox cat, who, naturally, has his own Facebook page (but then again, nowadays, who doesn’t?!). I tried to snap a few pictures of him – but like any celeb, he had no time for me. Something about calling his agent. Pfft. Skabenga spends most of his days napping and once in a while will get up to check that everything is running according to his liking – and judging by the size of his belly he does regular kitchen inspections!

Many Durbanites will tell you that their childhood highlights are visiting the Oysterbox for special occasions which almost always  include the legendary high tea – and since I’m not from around here, I had lots of time (and treats) to make up for! In the centre of the hotel’s luscious Palm Court, underneath ceramic chandeliers brought in from the Savoy Hotel in London, a large sturdy table is laid every afternoon – it needs to be sturdy what with the amount of pastries, cakes and desserts that executive pastry chef Joanita Venter and her team put out each day; macarons, delicate fruit tarts, cake in every flavour imaginable, cookies, marshmallows, scones, eclairs, cupcakes, sandwiches – everything you would ever want and need is laid out on the finest porcelain plates and cake stands.

Afternoon high tea at The Oysterbox Hotel

But that’s not even the best part! You know how I live my life with the mantra: Life is short, eat dessert first? Here at the Oysterbox, they welcome it, nay they encourage it! Every night, between 6pm and 9pm, the high tea turns into ‘Evening Indulgence’ where you can pop in, at any time to feast on treats. No one will judge you whether that may be before dinner or after – have I mentioned how much I love this place?!

Afternoon high tea at The Oysterbox Hotel

My absolute favourite is and always will be owner Mrs Bea Tollman’s legendary triple-baked cheesecake. I once had the fortune of sitting next to the great Mrs Tollman at a media dinner (who is definitely the most graceful woman I have ever met) and I remember falling in love with her love for her hotels (or ‘children’ as she called them). Along with her husband, Mrs Tollman has spent six decades building an award-winning collection of 17 five and four star boutique hotels around the world. While I had the chance, I tried my luck and asked if she would share her famous cheesecake recipe with me, and without blinking she reached into her handbag and handed me a copy of her cookbook. It is this generosity that pours over into her beautiful hotels and it’s with that same generosity in mind that I shared her recipe below (I think she’d approve!).

Mrs Bea Tollman’s Legendary Triple Baked Cheesecake

This recipe has been called’ the best cheesecake in the world’ and was created by the lauded hotelier, Bea Tollman, the founder and president of the Red Carnation Hotel Collection.

(Makes 2 cakes)

 

250g digestive biscuits, finely ground

415g white sugar

120g butter, melted

1t round cinnamon (optional)

1.35kg full fat cream cheese

6 free-range eggs, separated

1vanilla pod, split and seeds scraped out

1 tbsp vanilla extract

pinch of salt

1 ¾ cups sour cream

 

For the topping

1 ¾ cups sour cream

50g sugar

 

Preheat the oven to 190°C. To make the crust, mix the biscuit crumbs, 65 g sugar, melted butter and cinnamon, if using, until well blended. Press the mixture into two x 24-cm springform cake tin, making a thin, even, layer and bake for 7 minutes. Allow to cool, then chill for an hour. Reduce the oven’s temperature to 180°C. To make the filling, beat the cream cheese with 175 g sugar. Add the egg yolks, vanilla seeds, vanilla extract, salt and sour cream and beat thoroughly, scraping the bowl. Beat the egg whites with the remaining sugar. Fold the egg whites into the cheese mixture and very gently pour into the prepared cake tin. Wrap the bottom of the tin in tinfoil, place in a water bath and bake for 1 hour, then turn off the heat and leave in the oven for another hour. Remove, cool on a rack, then chill for 12 hours. To make the topping, preheat the oven to 100°C. Mix the sour cream and sugar, spread over the chilled cheesecake and bake for 20 minutes. Finally, chill for 24 hours before serving.

Note: This makes 2 x 24cm cheesecakes so half the recipe for 1, or just go with it and eat both 😉

 

TIPS You’re going to want to splurge and stay the night (as if you need reasons!):

1) Look at the view from our room?!

2) The breakfast buffet is AMAZING – four words: bottomless bubbly and oysters. It will change your life.

3) Executive Chef Kevin Joseph is the curry king of South Africa and you need to know why – book for the curry buffet. Just do it.

4) Maitre d’, Hendry is equally legendary for his Crêpe Suzette’s in The Grill Room – done old-school, at your table. Run, don’t walk people!

Dessert First: Unframed Ice Cream

Dessert First: Unframed Ice Cream

by | Sep 13, 2016 | 0 comments

You can’t buy happiness but you can buy ice cream and that’s the same thing. One of my FAVOURITE sayings of all time. After ‘Forget Love, I’d rather fall in chocolate’, which makes it my second favourite saying of all time but let’s not get technical here. Can you remember a time when you went out for ice cream and were sad about it?! NEVER. Ice cream = happiness. And although I love making my own happiness, nothing quite beats going out for a scoop of ice cream in a sugary waffle cone on a warm summer’s Sunday with the sun beating on your face.

My ice cream moments are pretty sacred – I have one or two spots where I get my favourite scoop and I am loyal to them because there is nothing worse than trying a new spot and getting disappointed. I’ve dubbed it: calorie regret. When you want to call the manager over and demand that someone give you back the calories you just wasted on that sub-par chocolate brownie! And so I stick to the places I can trust. Except a few Wednesdays ago when I threw caution to the wind and allowed someone new to scoop my ice cream (that sounds a lot dirtier than I intended!).

Which is how I met Yann Rey at Unframed Ice Cream in Kloof Street. Yann is one of those effortlessly cool people who you immediately want to be friends with (I promise it wasn’t because he owns an ice cream shop although that briefly crossed my mind to be a convenient factor). In typical Capetonian style, he greeted me wearing slip slops and his cap on backwards like he’d just come from a surf – he’s a laid-back kinda guy. But when he starts talking about ice cream, he gets as excited as I do about baking. Waxing lyrical about ice crystal structure, flavour balance and his fancy gelato machine from Italy; I could’ve stood listening to him talk about ice cream for days (provided my ice cream cone was topped up sporadically, of course).

I would cross my heart and hope to die that this is THE best ice cream in Cape Town, if not South Africa. Forget the normal flavours everyone else is doing, Unframed is all about pushing boundaries (hence the name) so expect to have to choose between flavours like Grapefruit and Black Pepper, NuttiKrust, Dirty Sea Salt Caramel, Matcha Green, Burnt White Chocolate and my personal favourite, Jasmine and Lemongrass. Yann’s ice cream recipes were developed by his partner, ice cream master Stephane Auge, who’s won the Meilleur Ouvrier De France for ice cream (basically, like a Michelin star) so expect delicately-flavoured, uber creamy ice cream with the perfect balance.

Vegans and vegetarians, you’re also welcome here! None of the ice creams are made from heavy egg-based custard – coconut milk and nut milks are used in many of the flavours, meaning everyone gets a scoop of happiness. And by scoop I mean tasting platter – don’t even try and choose a single flavour on your first visit. Just go ahead and order the tasting platter for R75 and have all 5. That’s what I did when I visited Unframed twice in one week. Jip, it was so good, that I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

The toppings! I almost forgot about the toppings! No sprinkles here people, this is serious ice cream business. Choose from toppings like dried white mulberries, mini coconut macaroons, biscotti, raw date caramel, dirty sea salt caramel (which I assume got the name from the dirty thoughts it gives you) and caramelised nuts. What are you still hanging around for? Go get your scoop on!

TIP Unframed is open in Kloof street from 11am to 11pm, every day. Prices: R32 for one scoop, R54 for two, R65 for three, or R75 for a tasting flight (recommended!). They also sell 1L tubs (yay for eating ice cream in bed) – find out where you can get your hands on it here.

Dessert First: Chocolate Fondue

Dessert First: Chocolate Fondue

by | Aug 8, 2016 | 0 comments

Okay, be honest, who of you look at the dessert menu before you order anything? All of you? *Phew* thank goodness, you do it too!  I don’t need to tell you that dessert is the best part of any meal – not only because, well, duh. But also because it’s the last thing you eat, it can make or break a good meal, right? There are way too many restaurants in South Africa that just don’t get this! So, because I believe that life is too short NOT to order dessert (my biggest fear in life is being hit by a bus and thinking, damn I should’ve had that extra scoop of ice cream!) I’m starting a brand new series on the blog. Introducing… Dessert First! This is where I will be featuring all the places that get pudding right – the places that you can go to for a sweet fix because, although I’m obsessed with baking, something the quickest way to sort out a craving is by getting in your car and driving to it!

Dipping things in chocolate is a favourite past-time of mine – you could say I’m an expert in it. So much so that my 13th birthday party was a chocolate fondue midnight feast (which I think my mother still has nightmares about) – good times, good times. Anyway, so when I found out the One & Only Hotel is offering chocolate fondues in winter I just new I had to go and show off my skills – I’m an overachiever like that. Their new pastry chef, Kyle Hickman has put his spin on the chocolate fondue by mixing dark and milk chocolate (two chocolate’s are always better than one, I say!) and adding a dash of orange zest which ramps up the flavour, cuts the richness and basically means you can eat more than you normally would! Yay! Obviously, there are all sorts of delicious things to dunk in it – there’s cranberry nougat, biscotti, the cutest little marshmallow knots, brownie bites and hot churros rolled in cinnamon sugar and when you’re finished with the dunking, you can just grab a spoon. The staff were very good at hiding their outrage when I did this.  At R155 for two people including two (very generous *hic* glasses of Amarula, I think that’s pretty good value for a chocolate coma that should last the rest of the week!

For those of you who like a dessert challenge, they also have INSANE hot chocolate’s – you know, just incase all that other chocolate wasn’t enough – there’s Spiced Dark or Caramel White hot chocolate served with those epic cinnamon churros (R60) and you can also add a tot or two of local brandy, if your heart desires. Which mine always does.

Got any places you want me to feature or try out? Sharing is caring, people so let me know in the comments below!

 

 

Disclaimer: This isn’t a sponsored post, however I was invited to indulge in as much chocolate as I like, free of charge. Yes, I have the best job ever!

Paris: A Chocolate and Pastry Tour

Paris: A Chocolate and Pastry Tour

by | Jan 21, 2016 | 2 comments

#SPONSORED

“‘Ave you been to zee Eiffel Tow-er yet?” the shop assistant behind the pastry counter asked me, while wrapping up the rather large collection of toffees and pralines I’d assembled – I’d just told her that it was my first time in Paris. “Nope,” I replied, “I only have a few days in the city and there are quite a few other places I’d rather visit”. She looked utterly horrified – although to her credit she tried very hard to hide it. Well, I’m sorry that I’d rather eat my bodyweight in macarons, eclairs, croissants and baguettes than waste an entire day looking at a metal structure (which I’ll remind you, CAN’T be eaten!). Luckily, after clarifying that I was on my very own pastry and chocolate tour of Paris, her face lit up and she hurriedly scribbled down her list of favourite pastry shops in Paris. It was, I’d later find out, the best advice I’d ever received!

But let me back up a bit: fellow South Africans, I don’t need to tell you what our poor old rand is worth against the Euro for you to know that traveling to Paris can be pricey. But, that doesn’t mean you can’t experience the city! I managed to clean France out of it’s pastry, on a budget, and here’s how I did it:

#1: Rent an apartment with a kitchenette in an up-and-coming area.

An apartment is not nearly as expensive as a hotel and makes you feel like you’re living like a true Parisian. I stayed in Le Marais (in the 3rd arrondissement) which is a vibey, young area within walking distance of some really good pastry shops and restaurants. From Le Marais, it’s a short train or bus ride to every pastry shop you need to visit.

#2: Avoid eating out in restaurants

Be warned: dining out in Paris is NOT as affordable as it is here in South Africa. A simple 1 course bistro meal for 2 and bottle of cheap wine will easily set you back €100 (do the math – if you dare!). Eat in and you’ll save heaps of cash (or be able to spend more on chocolate and buttery delicious flaky things). Having a kitchenette meant that for a week we happily lived off the gorgeous baguettes, cheese, pate’s and were able to cook simple meals from the beautiful produce we found at the markets. If you must eat out, tuck into the much more affordable street food! [Speaking of street food – check out the interview WebJet did with me on my favourite street food of all time here.

#3: Order and drink your coffee at the bar – always!

You WILL be charged for sitting down and enjoying the view – don’t say I didn’t warn you! Same goes for pastries. Don’t be tempted to sit down in the pastry shop and enjoy the atmosphere – they will charge you for the air you are breathing and the fact they have to wash your plate. Instead, take your pastry to go and enjoy it on the streets of Paris!

#4: Pack your stretchy pants, people – you’re going to need them!

The best way to experience the Paris pastry/chocolate scene is to walk everywhere – that way you’re far more likely to stumble upon hidden gems and obviously there’s also the added benefit of walking off all that butter you’re consuming! While I went to Paris with a few places I wanted to visit plotted on a Google map, we ended up walking FOR DAYS! When you add up all the ‘it’s just a 5 minute walk away’s and you’re visiting 8 shops a day..? The kilometers are too much to comprehend. But hey, I’ve always said the only time I exercise is if cake is waiting for me at the finishing line, and look at that – I stuck to my word!

So you want to hear about THE BEST thing I ate on my trip?! Of course you do!

Merveilleux

What the heck are Merveilleux, you ask? They are light-as-air meringues sandwiched together with more light-as-air flavoured whipped cream and then ‘cos that’s not enough the entire thing is covered in more cream and rolled in chocolate shavings or crushed up meringue. Side note: I NEVER queue for food – but this? This was worth queuing for. These are no ordinary meringues, people! It tastes like you’re biting into a ridiculously delicious cloud that evaporates onto your tongue leaving nothing but happiness behind – and you can quote me on that!

VISIT Au Merveilleux, 24 Rue du Pont Louis-Philippe, 75004 Paris, France, www.auxmerveilleux.com

TIP Grab a box of the mini mixed flavours – Spiced biscuit, Coffee, Dark Chocolate, Cherry and Almond-Hazelnut – then stroll over to the Seine, grab a seat along the banks of the river and waft into a delirious creamy coma.

 

TIP Grab a box of the mini mixed flavours – Spiced biscuit, Coffee, Dark Chocolate, Cherry and Almond-Hazelnut – then stroll over to the Seine, grab a seat along the banks of the river and waft into a delirious creamy coma.

Here’s a list of all the other incredible things that contributed to me no longer fitting into my jeans:

Best Baguette

Now let’s just get this straight, even the baguettes at corner shops in Paris are amazing – none of that airy poofy tasteless ‘bread’ we get here. So this baguette? It was so good butter would ruin it! Tip: when there’s a sign like this outside a bakery (Translation: Best Baguette in Paris 2015)? You know it’s good!

VISIT Huré (Winner of the Best Baguette in Paris 2015), 18 Rue Rambuteau, 75003 Paris, France

Best Croissant

With it’s trademark chocolate swirls (how do they even DO that?!), perfect flakes and oozy chocolate praline filling it’s no surprise it won Best Croissant in Paris last year!

VISIT Laurent Duchene, 238 Rue de la Convention, 75015 Paris, France, http://www.laurentduchene.com/

Best Marshmallow

Marshmallows are big in Paris and by far the most delicious one I had was a Salted Butter Caramel Marshmallow from Pain de Sucre – butter IN a marshmallow?! I can’t even.

VISIT Pain de Sucre, 14 Rue Rambuteau, 75003 Paris, France, www.patisseriepaindesucre.com

Best Macarons

Oh dear, this might start a civil war! I had two amazing macarons during my trip. The first was from the famous Pierre Hermé (aka the god of Macarons) who was arguably the first pastry chef to create the fussy, difficult-to-recreate perfect macaron as we know it today. I had a white truffle (as in the funghi) macaron that blew my face off. It was AMA-ZING! *sigh*

VISIT Pierre Hermé Paris, 18 Rue Sainte-Croix de la Bretonnerie, 75004 Paris, France, www.pierreherme.com

The second macaron came at the suggestion of the Meert pastry assistant – remember the one who I so deeply offended with my Eiffel Tower comment?! – she claimed that Pâtisserie Viennoise is the place to go to taste what the macaron was before it became the refined, multi-coloured, multi-flavoured pastry it is today. And she was right! The two macarons couldn’t be more different; the one heavy, nutty and substantial – the other light and airy. But try them both and you can decide which is your favourite. For the sake of peace I’ll keep my opinion to myself 😉

VISIT Pâtisserie Viennoise 8 Rue de l’École de Médecine, 75006 Paris, France 

Best Authentic Patisserie

While the shop assistant at Meert was horrified I had no love for the Eiffel Tower, the list she gave me of pastry shops to visit was the cherry on top of stumbling upon this quaint, picturesque boutique. Meert is a 250 year old shop specializing in pastries, chocolates, sweets, caramels and it’s famous gaufre (thin buttery waffles sandwiched together with various fillings). I felt like I’d walked into an old French movie and when she tied my package of sweet goodies with an old-fashioned ribbon I thought I would die!

VISIT Meert Paris Saint-Germain des Prés, 3 Rue Jacques Callot, 75006 Paris, France, www.meert.fr

Best Chocolate

While we boast 3 bean-to-bar chocolate makers here in Cape Town, Paris has just one – famed Parisian chef Alain Ducasse now makes his own chocolate and my word is it good! After selling a kidney, I left with a dark 75% bar with a chopped pistachio filling that altered my life figuratively and literally (mostly because I’m still living off salticrax to pay it off!)

VISIT Le Chocolat Alain Ducasse, 40 Rue de la Roquette, 75011 Paris, France, www.lechocolat-alainducasse.com

Remember those pick ‘n mixes we had in supermarkets? This is one dedicated solely to the most delicious handmade chocolate bon-bons of your LIFE! And while you pile kilos of chocolate into bags, you can marvel at the intricate chocolate sculptures that adorn the shop.

VISIT Maison Georges Larnicol, 132 Boulevard Saint-Germain, 75006 Paris, France, www.chocolaterielarnicol.fr

And if you still have a kidney to spare:

VISIT Michael Cluizel, 201 Rue Saint Honoré, 75001 Paris, France, www.cluizel.com

VISIT  Maison Pierre Marcolini, 89 Rue de Seine, 75006 Paris, France, www.marcolini.com

VISIT Patrick Roger, 108 Boulevard Saint-Germain, 75006 Paris, France, www.patrickroger.com

Best Eclairs

Eclairs have been the new macaron in Paris for a few years now (the trend should hit South Africa any day now) so they are everywhere! My favourite was actually the eclair’s less trendy cousin, the choux. Odette Paris is the place to go for the best version – buy a few then pick a park bench in the Square René Viviani nearby and gaze at Notre Dome in the distance.

VISIT Odette Paris, 77 Rue Galande, 75005 Paris, France, www.odette-paris.com

My other favourite is L’Eclair de Genie who have managed to turn an oblong pastry eclair into a tiny edible work of art. The flavours are punchy and the glazes totally lickable! After selling my remaining kidney, I managed to buy two and when the shop assistant told us to “Wait 15 minutes before you eat them”, we thought he said ‘Walk for 15 km before you eat them” (French accents!) and so we marched an absurdly far distance before stumbling upon – I mean we didn’t MEAN to, it just kind of… happened! And that’s how we ended up sitting on the grass, devouring the delicious eclairs, under the… Eiffel Tower.

VISIT L’Eclair de Genie, 32 Rue Notre Dame des Victoires, 75002 Paris, France, www.leclairdegenie.com

Ready to jump on a plane and eat your way through Paris already?! Head over to Webjet to book cheap flights, accommodation and car hire!

This post has been created in collaboration with WebJet.co.za, an online travel agent offering you a total travel solution to help you plan your ultimate trip!