The boutique Zahia, courtesy Steve Sampson
I never really thought of pastry as dramatic. At least, not until Who Will Be the Next Grand Pâtissier? Every channel on the planet has its cheesy cooking show. But Next Grand Patissier transcends the genre. It makes even a diabetic love “the haute couture of cuisine.”
The show features ten pâtissiers aged 19 to 30, who tackle challenges set by four established pastry chefs. (These judges are so famous people will stop them in the street). Each episode runs for a solid two-and-a-half hours and, since this is public telly, there are no breaks.
Most of the epreuves (challenges) feature the latest trend – which is figuring out how to update classic sweets. So that things stay interesting, however, there’s always an added factor. The challenge is never just “create a new mignardaise“. It will be “Think one up, then make three hundred in an hour.”
Audrey Gellet, 28, victor of Who Will Be the Next Grand Patissier?, courtesy France 2
Or…”Create three pastries that will redefine the strawberry, one of which must be suitable for le snacking.”
Or… “You each have seven hours to make a pièce montée (a giant, freestanding sculpture) in chocolate. Your theme must be the spirit of fashion.”
One of Audrey’s “little touches”, Who Will Be the Next Grand Patissier?
Pastry in France makes a lot more sense when you choose to view it as sculpture. The craft of pâtisserie is just as revered as art and often, in fact, it’s judged a lot more harshly. On Next Grand Patissier, this results in some tortuous verdicts (“Wow, wow! I adore it; I am a fan! But to really exploit the essence of the fruit, one must go further….”
The boutique Zahia, courtesy Zahia.com
This is not to say Parisian pastry can’t be fluffy. Take the pop-up boutique recently opened by Zahia Dehar. Zahia is famous for looking just like Barbie but, before she was an icon, she was a teenage call-girl. In this capacity, she encountered famous footballers Franck Ribery and Karim Benzema. But Zahia has gained respect – as a designer of luxury lingerie.
Her summer shop is aiming at publicising those undies. But its special feature is super-girly pastries. These are created by Sebastien Gaudard, another big name in Parisian sugar. Gaudard’s speciality is modernising traditional cakes – some from as far back as the 16th century.* Since Zahia’s massive hairdo recently went from platinum to chestnut, their partnership has led to a few jokes about ‘updates.’
The boutique Zahia, courtesy Zahia.com
However, as PR, it’s a huge success. Once a victim of the 24-hour news, Zahia now doles out exclusives to it. Her last lingerie lookbook was photographed by Karl Lagerfeld – and Pierre Passebon immortalised her curves in a sculpture. By looking to le savoir-faire for redemption, it appears Zahia made a very smart decision. Where else but France could pastry restore a reputation?
Zahia by Lagerfeld, courtesy Zahia.com
• The best-ever film about the drama of pastry is Kings of Pastry
(“Sixteen chefs. Three Days. One chance.”). Made by D.A. Pennebaker, who made Don’t Look Back and The War Room, this delightful documentary film follows several pastry chefs fighting to become Meilleurs Ouvriers de France. The Guardian‘s critic marvelled that he had never “seen so many strong men crying at once.” One of the Frenchmen lives in Chicago, so it’s mostly in English with English subtitles.
Competitor and pièce, The Kings of Pastry
Gaudard’s moussepontain Zahia, courtesy Zahia.com
* The puit d’amour, for example, is mentioned in a French recipe book from 1735.
Zahia’s lingerie, courtesy Zahia.com