THE FRENCH CULINARY INSTITUTE'S PASTRYSCOOP.COM ANNOUNCES
FIRST ANNUAL GOLDEN SCOOP AWARDS WINNERS

New York, March 8, 2004—Winners of PastryScoop.com's First Annual Golden Scoop Awards, presented by The French Culinary Institute (The FCI), were announced today at a ceremony held at L'Ecole, the restaurant of The FCI.  Pastry great Sherry Yard, of Spago Beverly Hills, served as Master of Ceremonies. The luncheon was attended by event sponsors, PastryScoop.com's pastry chef advisory board, V.I.P. pastry chefs, and friends of The French Culinary Institute.

The awards, which recognize outstanding pastry and dessert innovation, were presented for excellence in 5 categories: Best Dessert Using New Techniques; Best Dessert Menu; Best Dessert Revival; Best Bakery Recipe and Best Confection.

The winners are:

BEST CONFECTION

Scotch Bonnet Caramel and Apple Ganache Bonbons        

Peter Baldino III, Sous Chef
Bolo Restaurant, New York City
Phone:  212-228-2200

BEST DESSERT REVIVAL            

Swifty's Bananas Foster Baked Alaska

Passion for Pastry participants await the announcement of the Golden Scoop Award winners

Richard Muszynski, Pastry Chef
Swifty's, New York City
Phone:  212-535-6000

BEST DESSERT USING NEW TECHNIQUES  

St. André Triple Crème and Prune Tart with Port Reduction

Tim Brown, Pastry Chef
Wheatleigh Hotel, Lenox, MA
Phone:  413-637-0610

BEST BAKERY RECIPE 

Devilish Double Chocolate Port Fig Bread

Anthony Sapia, Owner
Anthony's Bistro and Bakery, State College, PA
Phone:  814-876-3279

BEST DESSERT MENU

Mid Summer Menu

Brant Dadaleares, Pastry Chef
Arrow's Restaurant, Ogunquit, ME
Phone:  207-361-1100, ext. 301

Pastry Chef Sherry Yard presented each winner with an engraved champagne bucket, and a Golden Scoop Awards logo patch to sew onto their chefs' jackets. Winners also received a gift from All-Clad Metalcrafters.

The contest was open to all cooking professionals age 18 or older. Entries were judged on: originality, appearance and taste. The judging panel consisted of 10 prominent pastry chefs, culinary chefs, chocolatiers, bakers and food industry professionals.

"The First Annual Pastry Summit and Golden Scoop Awards were created to provide a fun learning environment for pastry lovers of all levels, and to start the tradition of recognizing and awarding great talent in the pasty industry for years to come," said Dorothy Cann Hamilton, Founder and CEO of The French Culinary Institute.

The Golden Scoop Awards ceremony was the finale of the two-day Pastry Summit presented by PastryScoop.com and co-sponsored by Food Arts and The French Culinary Institute. Everyone from home bakers to professional pastry chefs joined noted pastry talents. Seminars included: FCI Master Pastry Instructor Ron Ben-Israel's Glorious Wedding Cakes and the Art of Sugar Flowers; Pastry chef Sherry Yard from Spago Beverly Hills sharing recipes from her latest cookbook The Secrets of Baking; and Baking Bread for the Home Baker with chef-instructor Hans Welker. Participants were taught tips, experienced techniques firsthand, and learned recipes for making high-quality chocolates, wedding cakes, gourmet breads and premium ice creams. 

Day two was for industry professionals only and included a presentation of trends and flavors from both the East and West Coasts by Sam Mason, WD-50, and Pierre Reboul, Wallse and Café Sabarsky of New York, and Emily Luchetti and Sherry Yard, who represented the West Coast.

Sponsors also included: All-Clad Metalcrafters; BonJour; TexaSweet; Piper Heidsieck and Guittard Chocolate. Event donors were: wd-50; Amy's Bread; Gallo of Sonoma; Second Avenue Deli; Chocolate Weiss; Serendipitea; Chef Hans Welker and Zoe Restaurant .

For more information about the conference and awards, as well as winner information, check out www.pastryscoop.com

The French Culinary Institute, founded in 1984, teaches culinary protocol, language and techniques supporting the creation of not only French dishes but also virtually any dish in Western cuisine.  The coursework focuses on total immersion.  Students spend over 85% of their time working, hands-on, in the kitchen.  The FCI offers separate and diverse courses for both aspiring and working culinary professionals and amateurs.  In 2002, The FCI introduced a series of culinary business courses featuring experts in fields ranging from wine merchandising to restaurant management.  These courses focus on real-world issues ranging from menu yield to marketing and finance.

High-Resolution Photos for Download .jpg format, click thumbnail to view in your browser, or right-click the image and choose Save Target As. Files are quite large and will take several minutes to download over slower internet connections. Apple charlotte with cider sabayon, prepared by The French Culinary Institute students for the Golden Scoop Awards Luncheon Passion for Pastry participants await the announcement of the Golden Scoop Award winners Bill Yosses plates dessert tastings for Texture as Taste seminar participants Bo Friberg demonstrates classic candymaking techniques Emily Luchetti shares recipes from her cookbook "A Passion for Desserts" East and West Coast Pastry Chefs with Judiaann Woo and Dorothy Cann Hamilton Front row, from left to right: Sherry Yard (Spago), Judiaann Woo (PastryScoop.com), Emily Luchetti (Farallon), and Dorothy Cann Hamilton (The French Culinary Institute). Back row: Sam Mason and Francis Derby (wd~50) Sherry Yard enjoys a champagne toast with winner Richard Muszynski and Guittard Chocolate's Eric Case at the Golden Scoop Awards Luncheon Ron Ben-Israel and student show off the wedding cake they created with The French Culinary Institute 's Chef Tina Casaceli Sam Mason's (wd~50) tasting of pinenut parfait, saffron sauce, and kumquat confits Sherry Yard and Emily Luchetti take questions following their seminar West Coast Pastry Trends The French Culinary Institute students put the finishing touches on desserts for the Golden Scoop Awards Luncheon Golden Scoop Award Winners with pastry chefs, Michael Batterberry, and Dorothy Cann Hamilton Front row, from left to right: Brant Dadaleares (Arrows Restaurant), Dorothy Cann Hamilton (The French Culinary Institute), Sherry Yard (Spago), Holly Evans (accepting on behalf of Tim Brown, Wheatleigh Hotel), Emily Luchetti (Farallon); Back row, Michael Batterberry (Food Arts), Richard Muszynski (Swifty's), Peter Baldino III (Bolo Restaurant), Anthony Sapia (Anthony's Bistro & Bakery)

Press Contacts:

M. Young Communications 212-620-7027
Melanie Young (ext 303), melanieyoung@myoungcom.com
Annie Sigal (ext 335), asigal@myoungcom.com

Rena Katz, The French Culinary Institute, 646-254-7535, rkatz@frenchculinary.com