(THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - In terms of competitions, the prestigious Mondial Des Arts Sucres is to pastry chefs what Mount Everest is to aspiring mountain climbers. It represents a steep, seemingly impossible climb to the top, an arduous journey in which many will flail and only a select few will emerge victorious.
This is exactly what happened to local pastry chef Yap Kean Chuan of the Academy of Pastry Arts Malaysia and his compatriot Lau Hwei Min of Harold's Academy when they bagged second place at the 10th edition of the competition held early this year in France.
Yap and Lau competed against 15 other countries (made up of a total of 30 competitors) and were judged by 32 jurors and 40 commissioners.
Teams (made up a male and female chef) were tasked with producing seven desserts from scratch in 19 short hours. This included a sugar centrepiece, a choice centrepiece, a chocolate centrepiece, four entremets, 20 ice cream cakes, 20 plated desserts and two types of confectionery bars with 30 pieces each.
Given the amount of work Yap and Lau put into their creations (they practised relentlessly and did 10 full rehearsals before the competition) and the fact that their desserts have been officially certified as some of the best in the world, it is a pity that so few people will ever get to try them.
Well, the good news is this is about to change as from now till Oct 31, the Academy of Pastry Arts Malaysia will be selling the Gâteau De L'horloge, the ice-cream cake created at the competition.
Priced at a whopping RM1,000 (S$335) for a set of 10 and available exclusively at the Academy of Pastry Arts Malaysia, the visually arresting concoction features a deft balance of French techniques interwoven with hints of Asian tropical fruits.
The cake has a horological element to it, which is immediately obvious in the show-stopping chocolate clockface topped with opulent gold leaves.
The interior boasts a complicated medley of flavours and textures in the form of vanilla yogurt ice cream, yuzu and mango sorbet and strawberry coulis with a base of crunchy streusel (a crumbly flour, butter and sugar concoction), designed to incite pure, unadulterated pleasure.
"Attaining any award in the prestigious Mondial Des Arts Sucres is an acknowledgement from leading experts of the global pastry scene.
"Placing Asian flavours in the global competition goes to show the unexplored depth of our tropical ingredients in international kitchens, so we are very excited to share the Gateau De L'horloge with Malaysia," says Yap.
As the desserts require time to prepare, bookings need to be made at least a week in advance. For more information, call 03-7960 3846.
