Ben Sulston, Chartwells Executive Chef at Sevenoaks School in Kent, has won the 2013 Mövenpick Gourmet Dessert Chef competition, after a live cook-off held at Westminster Kingsway College, on 12 September.
H & C News was delighted to witness the chefs at work, and most impressed by the dedication that they all showed in not only getting to the cook-off, but in shaking off the pressure and delivering not only beautifully presented (see above and below) but beautifully flavoured desserts.
The Mövenpick Gourmet Dessert Chef of the Year competition, in partnership with the Craft Guild of Chefs, is now in its second year and is designed to inspire creativity and realise the potential of desserts. H & C News is happy to confirm that, on the evidence last week, it certainly achieves these aims.
The winner
Sulston convinced the judges with his dessert of caramelised Kentish pear, pear mousse, pecan crumble, vanilla fromage blanc, crisp pastry and Mövenpick Pear Sorbet (pictured above). The panel were very impressed with the modern style of Sulston’s dessert, his flavour pairing across all elements of the dessert, and his commitment to the Mövenpick ethos of passion for gastronomy and culinary perfection, which judges felt was ‘clear throughout his entire performance.’
Judges and judging
The inaugural winner, Sarah Frankland, Head Patissier at William Curley, sat on the judging panel of this year’s competition and handed her crown over to Sulston at a short awards ceremony on the day, commenting:
“Having been on the other side of this competition I know how tough it is so I applaud everyone who took part.
“Desserts can sometimes be a bit of an afterthought in the chef competition world so it was amazing to see the passion and imagination put into each entry, the standard of which blew everyone away.
“A massive congratulations must go to Ben, whose winning dessert really epitomised the ethos of the competition and should be an inspiration for chefs to start seeing desserts as a meaningful part of any meal.”
Fellow judge Cherish Finden added: “All the finalists have shown an exceptional level of talent and it was incredibly hard to pick just one overall winner! Ultimately Ben won as a result of his passion for the hospitality industry as a whole which was demonstrated through a well thought out, well presented entry, and his conduct throughout the entire competition.”
Joining Sarah and Cherish on the judging panel were Mövenpick Ice Cream development chef Tim Futter, head of culinary arts at Westminster Kingsway College Gary Hunter, and Stockpot editor Sheila Eggleston.
In addition to his accolade Sulston wins a luxury weekend for two to the home of Mövenpick Ice Cream in Switzerland.
Second and third place went to Kun Xu, formerly of The Savoy (Raspberry and Plum Fraicheur with Movenpick Raspberry Sorbet, shown above) and Javier Millet of Lexington Catering (Milk chocolate feulletine, Movenpick Fior fi Latte Ice Cream, Dehydrated Pavlova, Raspberry CousCous, shown below), both of whom have won a £200 voucher to spend at a restaurant of their choice.
The winner, runners up and winning recipe