Puratos- Brussels, Belgium

It helps to know the guy who knows the guy. You know? That is how I got my foot in the door at Puratos, a bakery ingredient innovator, in Belgium. This worldwide group, which includes PatisFrance and Belcolade, patisserie products and chocolate respectively, is a colossus in the world market.

Me, suiting up.

Walking through their Innovation Centre at the company’s headquarters one can’t help but be impressed. The bakery and patisserie lab are like extensive glass-walled tanks, right down the middle of the building, between the offices. The tall-hatted, crisp-jacketed bakers and pastry chefs glide back and forth as they go about their work, surrounded by marble benches and shiny machines, impeccably arranged, every imaginable necessity to hand. It is here that the end result of new product development is put to the final test and used as it would and will be in bakeries and patisseries the world over. Ever so slightly daunted I stepped into this world for a week of learning and experimentation.

Sun shining into “the tank”. Atypical weather has been following me since I touched down on this continent.

My Puratos journey started in the patisserie lab with Chef David, a Frenchman who travels extensively for the company as part of the international demonstrator contingent.

Apricot compote on vanilla bean pastry cream in a sweet shortcrust base is only the beginning…

The resulting tart, with a baked cake layer, topped with toasted meringue and slivers of apricot.

Although he had but one day between two international appointments, he guided me through recipes showcasing particular products, from concentrated flavours and mixes to origin chocolate varieties. We packed a lot into the day and I came out the other side with what could be the best chocolate tart recipe I have ever tasted.

Sweet shortcrust base encasing a smooth praline topped with a delicate sponge layer, smothered in Belcolade Uganda origin chocolate dark ganache and finished with a perfectly tempered chocolate disc. Pure enjoyment.

Gorgeous mini cakes.

The remainder of the week was spent in the bakery with Belgian baker Waldo, who had only that weekend returned from a month long trip to the year old Australian Puratos in Sydney and Melbourne. As quick to offer a cheeky quip as a valuable baking lesson, we laughed, learned and experimented as he presented the wide range of bakery ingredients that the company produces. By the end of the week I was adapting recipes I am familiar with to the Puratos ingredients, both Waldo and myself discovering a thing or two as a result.

I’m the one on the left.

Traditional baguette.

Light rye with emmental cheese, walnuts and apple.

The whole team, led by Stephane, THE man that the man put me in contact with, were fantastic, happy to answer questions and curious to know what “Emily with a ‘y’” was doing so far from home. A truly eye-opening experience, not least due to all those who went well out of their way to ensure that my experience was worthwhile.