I attended the LCB Ottawa graduation ceremony yesterday. It was such a surreal feeling to finally graduate with a Pastry Diploma. Everyone is asking me how I feel now. Am I sad or happy to be leaving? The truth is, it hasn't quite sunk in yet.
Pastry is one of the most challenging things I have ever tried to learn, and I would even say a little more challenging than earning my PhD degree -- because even though it is not easy to complete a PhD degree, I felt it came to me more easily than learning to bake. You see, by the time I got into the PhD program at university, I could read and write quite well. But when I enrolled in the Pastry program here, I could hardly bake. In Basic Pastry, I struggled with piping, with making a genoise sponge cake, with Italian meringue, with chantilly cream, with everything... Literally. Then the struggle continued in Intermediate and Superior Pastry. Nothing related to baking came easily to me. I guess I just need a lot of practice to become comfortable with it.
However, I have absolutely no regrets. It was good to learn a new skill and experience the discipline required to become a pastry chef. I believed it was possible to learn to bake well even if you didn't have the natural flair for it that some people are fortunate enough to possess. It is like learning a new language or playing the piano. Not everyone can excel at it (because it depends on so many factors), but everyone can achieve some level of competency, if they practised, persevered and found some coping strategies whenever they encountered problems or difficulties.
If you asked me what was the best thing about Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa, I would say without any hesitation: The Chefs.
For me, it was wonderful to be taught by the best of the best. The chefs taught us many things -- techniques and skills (both macro- and micro-skills), aesthetics, problem-solving and coping strategies... And they had high standards and expectations, which spurred us on to achieve more than we thought we could.
Furthermore, I appreciated their patience with me, even though I sometimes did stupid or crazy things in class or in production kitchen. For instance, the first time I made pâte à choux in Basic Pastry, I put all the ingredients (except the eggs) in a pot, thinking I had to cook everything together. Chef T had to tell me to discard everything and start again, which I did... I burnt caramel at least once, stuffed up the pastry cream and Italian meringue a few times, forgot to put whipped cream in the white chocolate bavarian cream, made "lifeless" marzipan leaves (just to name a few things) ... I am glad the chefs weren't exasperated. Well, maybe they were, but they did well not to show it. :D
I was always grateful for their feedback and critique of my creations, even if I didn't always agree with their opinions (note: ninety-nine percent of the time, I agreed with their assessment). I am glad they continued to give me constructive criticisms. As a former academic, I can tell you the worst thing for a student is to receive no meaningful feedback. It doesn't matter if the feedback is sometimes a bit hard to swallow, as long as it is ultimately a worthwhile learning experience. Being classified as a "Lost Cause" would be the saddest thing that could happen to a student.
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To all the chef instructors,
I owe you a debt of gratitude for all that you have taught me, for inspiring me, for being patient with me. Thank you!
