Paris: Day 1

.Reading time 2 minutes.
During the summer, a friend of mine asked if I can lend a hand while he practiced for the World Chocolate Masters. My immediate response was “Yes! When do I start?”. To me, it was an honour that a Brazilian Chocolate Master would ask for my help. So it began, throughout the summer and fall, we would practice multiple times a week, building showpieces and testing out recipes over and over again. 
As time passes, and multiple versions of the chocolate showpiece came and gone, we got closer and closer to the day of the competition. Being the good friend that I am, I had to go to Paris and support him!
I took a week off of work and got there a day before the competition, which means I had some pastry shop hopping to do.

Our first stop: Patrick Roger.

Chocolate sculptures of a festive pumpkin and a monkey is on display.

I particularly liked the little mini chocolate sculptures that they have here.

Here, you can find an assortment of tablets, dragees, caramels and pastries.

After exploring pastry shops all over the city in just a few hours, we decided to sit down at a cafe and share our delectable. Sitting in my chair enjoying a cafe Americano and some desserts made by some of the best in the city, it suddenly hit me, I’m in Paris!
You can’t come to Paris without visiting Laduree.

 
Richart specializes in mini chocolates and macarons

I got the best macaron I’ve ever had in my life in this story!

Hugo and Victor looks like a jewelry store. Everything you see is behind counters and glass. They specialize in seasonal caramels inside their chocolate. I don’t think I was suppose to take pictures here. 

Me in my Crooks and Castles Sweater in front of the Arc De Triomphe. #ghettoasiankidinparis
The rumours are true, the McCafe in Champs Elysees sell French Macarons.
Our last stop of the night. Ordered a Grande Macaron Isaphan at Laduree, ate it and then back to the hotel. 

Behind the Scenes: The Making of the Chocolate Terracotta Warriors

.Reading time 3 minutes.
Allow me to take you on a journey through the process of making this installation. I was approached by the people from The Chocolate Festival to make a showpiece/ installation over the summer. The theme of this year was “Chocolates from Around the World”. I thought about trying to illustrate the different countries of where the bean is grown or the various species of cacao pods from all over the world in a showpiece. Then the idea came to me. Why not, make a chocolate installation based on where I am from? I know that there is actually no chocolate production from there, but perhaps I can create familiar objects out of chocolate from China.I started looking at different landscapes, buildings, sky scrapers, even The Great Wall and finally stumbled upon the “Terracotta Warriors and Horses”
The Terracotta Warriors is a collection of clay statues which was suppose to be a depiction of the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China. The original Terracotta Warriors was a form of funerary art, to be buried with the Emperor and whose purpose was to protect him in his afterlife. 
I found the warriors in clay in a local Chinatown souvenir shop, and with the help of my mould maker (D Brigs), we began the mould making process with some silicon and moulding plaster. Once the moulds were made, I immediately started casting warriors. 4 became 8, 8 became 16 and before you know it, we were looking at hundreds of soldiers multiplying in the workshop.
Our Chocolate Terracotta Warriors include 4 styles of figures in various poses casted in the amount of several hundreds. The installation depicts soldiers in one of three pits. Our current estimates are that there are approximately 150 kilograms of chocolate used in this making of this installation. This piece took hundreds of hours to make and took over 3 months. 
Photography by Ted Diaz.  

A close up of the warriors. 

These chocolate warriors sat on my dining table for weeks. 
A picture of the installation after taking a 30 minute car ride with only a few casualties. The showpiece you see was transported in 4 different pieces in 3 vehicles with the help of my new commis (GL, RH, JB). The hardest job in a chocolatier’s life is to transport your creations from one location to another and they have done a fine job! 

A snap shot of the warriors on display for thousands of people to see. 

At approximately 6:00 pm on Sunday November 3, 2013, this installation was broken into many pieces to be melted down for my next project. But all the hard work didn’t go into waste, we had thousands of people taking pictures of the creation and we got a brief mentioned on 680 news and BT24. 

Kaji Oct 2013

.Reading time 1 minute.
Over the summer, a couple friends and I decided to go to Patria for dinner. I was working on a peach farm at that time, not realizing what the dress code was at Patria, I strolled through the doors with a plain over worn t-shirt, some dickies, a pair of burks and a box full of peaches. After a great meal with friends over tapas and wine, Chef Kaji walks through the door. A common friend introduces us and we began to chat. I was telling him about what a great experience it was dining at Kaji and that I was going to make it a yearly thing. He started to tear up and said it would be a pleasure for him to celebrate with us year after year. Even at the height of his craft, he still stays so humble. 

Taro potato cake with chicken sauce, sea urchin grilled shrimp
Vinegared crab in an edible persimmon cup
A variety of sashmi: spanish mackerel, sea trout, seabream, lobster, octopus
A matsutake mushroom soup served in a teapot
Steamed seabream with young chestnuts

 
White fish and enoki mushrooms baked in a cellophane wrap
 
Kaji himself making sushi for the guests around the bar. 
  
Cold soba noodles with a clear dashi broth

Poached pears and granita, macaron
Green tea creme brulee with fresh fruit
On our way out, I gave him a box of shoko chocolates to say thanks. I hope he enjoyed it.

The Kitchen Canada

.Reading time 1 minute.
The Kitchen Canada (TKC) opened its doors for the first time last night. With a gathering of foodies, blog writers and other professionals. The evening began with cocktails, wine and amuse bouche that pushed the boundaries of texture with familiar flavours and modernist techniques.

Smoked salmon bagel lollies on the antigriddle 
Potato puff with whipped cheese and vinegar powder, beet meringue and chestnut cream
(Photography by Sarah Placko)
Plates and table setting with the TKC logo and the menu for the launch. 

A quick glance at the space.
Sous vide octopus, scallop and squid ink chip, black olive crumbs, fingerling and blue potatoes, leeks

Goat cheese and cucumber jelly, carbonated grapes

Sous vide Ontario lamb, squash, beets, mint jelly, sous vide hollandise, spelt risotto, demi

Black sesame seed ice cream, yuzu gel, matcha “aero”, raspberry wafers, freeze dried raspberries

Coconut snow, chocolate stones with passionfruit jelly, dark chocolate raspberry twigs
Most of these ingredients for the dinner prepared by Chef John Placko can be found at Qualifirst. 
The space is free for rental for a full day, a half day or even by the hour. Whether it be a night of wine and cheese, a pop up dinner or just attending a class taught by professionals in the city, The Kitchen Canada is the place to be.