The biggest challenge of being a pastry chef is that, unlike other types of chefs, you can't throw things together at a farmer's market. When you're working with baking powder and a formula, you have to be exact. If not, things can go wrong.
From Carla Hall
In catering, you're always changing; the client is always dictating to you in terms of their wishes.
One of my early childhood memories was my grandmother always having a bowl of Nestle chocolate bars at her house. My sister and I would argue over who could eat the chocolate bars. Looking back, I don't know why we just didn't share. We could have split them.
I say 'no' to nothing, 'yes' to moderation. That's how I approach everything. No matter if it's candy or foie gras. When you have the real deal, you're satisfied with that one bite. I say go full throttle and call it a day.
My biggest fear has always been being 40 and hating my job. I love challenges. I'm not afraid to try anything.
When I do something that's stressful, I have to find a moment of peace, so I tend to meditate and get in the flow. It's a regular practice of mine.
When people around me are getting rattled, I may just close my eyes and do a breathing exercise.
I think of New Yorkers as not taking the time to talk to someone they don't know.
I went to L'Academie de Cuisine in Gaithersburg, Maryland, and I think French cooking is the basis for a lot of classical cuisine, a foundation of a lot of other cuisines. That said, it's not the only way to approach a cooking career.
I was in Paris, Milan and London from '89 until '91, and I did mostly runway modeling. I know there's so many people out there looking for pictures, but this was way before the age of the Internet, sorry!
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