Essential Kitchen Desserts Every Chef Should Master

I did my apprenticeship at a great French restaurant with a great French chef. What I noticed right away, was there was nothing he couldn’t do. Not only did he have great food, but he made his own ice cream, sorbets, cakes, tarts, soufflés and chocolate truffles. It became the model for me. Right from the beginning, I felt a great chef should know how to do everything. Eventually, I specialized in pastry. It gave me a competitive edge. If I couldn’t find a chef job, I could always do pastry. Eventually, I continued on as a head chef but always did my own pastry and baking. At one point, I took a class at the CIA called “Kitchen Desserts”. I loved it. The idea was – every chef should have a respectable roster of desserts, that can be produced in any professional kitchen. Many chefs would say things like; I don’t have the patience for that stuff. But here’s why doing it yourself is better. If you buy all your desserts – one, they’re very expensive, and two, the quality of the ingredients is not good. So, most times, you’re buying and serving an inferior product, but paying top dollar for it. That’s bad for your brand. Now, if you start with quality ingredients, and you don’t invest too much labor, you’re way ahead of the game. That’s where some experience comes in handy. I’ve become very good at creating recipes and methods, that are simple to produce but with maximum effect. Without straying too far, here’s a list of desserts every chef should be able to produce in any kitchen. I’ll start with a NY style cheesecake. I like a graham cracker crust with fresh fruit toppings that drip down the sides. Cherry is classic, but you can do blueberry, and even pineapple if you like. Next, you need a chocolate cake. It’s best to do a flourless one. I love a chocolate soufflé cake; I also do an Italian recipe with ground almonds or hazelnuts. A warm apple dessert is a must. Learn a great streusel (I add rolled oats) and you have a crisp, or a cobbler (I like a batter cobbler better than a biscuit one)… I actually do a cross between a batter cobbler and a crisp, with streusel crumbs on top, for texture and finish. Serve warm with ice cream and caramel sauce if you like. Tiramisu has just been voted the most popular dessert in the world, and for good reason. I’ve done many variations, at one point scooped inside a waffle cone, and always with a good amount of dark rum. I believe crème brûlée (burnt cream) originated in England. This celebrated baked custard with a crunchy caramel surface is always a winner. Add some pumpkin puree and fragrant spices in the fall. I’ve even done a surprise chocolate ganache at the bottom with cut banana pressed into the top. Panna cotta (from Italy) is a molded pudding set with gelatin. The classic is vanilla, but I’m most fond of coconut, which brings me back to the years I spent in southeast Asia. Just replace half the cream with coconut milk. Chocolate mousse is important and delicious. I prefer a pâte à bombe style recipe that does not include egg whites. I’ve even used the same recipe with the addition of whole butter for a modified chocolate marquise, which can be molded and/or cut. You should always make fresh whipped cream, which is a natural partner for chocolate mousse, perhaps in a martini glass, with a cookie of some sort. Let’s add churros for a fried dessert. Get a pâte à choux recipe and always use high-gluten flour. I like to use a big star tip, squeeze it all out into hot oil and cut it up with a scissor while its frying… cinnamon sugar, chocolate sauce, warm with ice cream – yummy! In addition to those mentioned, you should also have a fruit sauce (raspberry always works), and a crème anglaise (stirred custard). Crème anglaise can serve as the base for vanilla ice cream; all you need is a small machine. I’ll end with a birthday cake. I always loved a chiffon sponge (of American origin). It uses oil instead of butter and additional egg whites for a lighter moister product. You can make sponge cakes ahead of time and freeze them. You just need a few cake pans, circles, cake comb, etc. Invest in a turntable. Cut layers, soak them, flavor some whipped cream and assemble. Make a parchment cone, melt some chocolate, decorate and inscribe. Raspberries, cookie pearls, chocolate curls… express yourself! I used to make birthday cakes in ten minutes, start to finish. As always, you just need to have your mise en place ready.