Derry/Londonderry students enjoy a masterclass from American chef

Gale Gand is a Chicago based pastry chef, cookbook author and television personality.
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From 2000-2008 she hosted her own show “Sweet Dreams” on the Food Network and has written fourteen cook books. Up until 2018 she was co-owner and pastry chef of 2 Michelin starred Tru restaurant in her native city. She’s one of the most prolific and respected pastry chefs in America. Last week she was in Derry/Londonderry at North West Regional College doing a masterclass for students and I was lucky enough to be invited. During the lockdown patisserie lecturer Bernie Peoples sent Gale an email via her website. Gale got back to her and did on line demos for the pastry students in the college. We sometimes complain about the age of the internet and social media but being able to build up this relationship via zoom is a good news story. For the students to be taught by such a well known and talented chef is something they will carry with them throughout their career.

Her theme for the demonstration was Vanilla and Chocolate. She kindly gave me the recipes to share. The first recipe is for a vanilla, raspberry and rose pavlova. The meringue is spread into a tray and when cool rolled with cream and raspberries. It’s decorated with more raspberries, mint leaves and rose petals. For an alternative I’ve added lemon and elderflower curd and cream filling that can still be garnished with raspberries. It might be a classic, somewhat old fashioned pudding but it looks fantastic, a real show stopper. It also tastes delicious – the sharp raspberries cutting through the sweet meringue.

For the chocolate side of the demo Gale cooked a molten chocolate lava cake. This soft centred cake is sometimes called a chocolate fondant. The cake is baked and when you cut into it the inside spills out. Cake and hot chocolate sauce in one fell swoop. She served them with strawberries that she simply chopped and tossed in sugar. The sugar drew out the juices of the strawberries as if they were coated in a light syrup. As someone who cooks for a living its always refreshing to sit down and watch someone else do all the work. It’s also vital to keep learning and discovering new ingredients and techniques. For more of Gale’s recipes go to galegand.com