Du Jour with Chris Nicosia, veteran pastry chef

Chefs tend to be lumped into one category, but there are vast differences between those drawn to traditional fare and those to the pastry arts, says Chef Chris Nicosia, an instructor at the Louisiana Culinary Institute and a veteran pastry chef.

Nicosia says LCI’s chefs-in-training tend to approach her class with either enthusiasm or flat out fear. “Pastry is a totally different rhythm. It’s all about planning. It’s not ‘a la minute,'” a reference to the rapid-fire pace in creating savory dishes. Instead, pastry is detailed and deliberative, requiring exact measurement, a careful hand and lots of oven time.

Many students claim they’ll never need baking skills, but Nicosia protests. “A good chef always needs a few desserts to fall back on,” she says. Her intense course features the basics of artisan and quick breads, cakes, icings, pies, cookies and decorating—enough to provide a foundation and to whet the appetite of those who pursue pastry further.

Nicosia, 50, was drawn to the field because of “the art end of it and my love for chocolate.” She worked at top New Orleans hotels before opening the Cocoa Bean in Hammond in 1999. She sold the bakery in 2007, but it’s still famous for her signature strawberry shortcake.

Like the culinary arts in general, pastry has seen a surge in public interest thanks to widespread exposure on the Food Network. Thus, part of Nicosia’s charge is to grow LCI’s baking program. Earlier this month, she helped host Chef Susan Notter, Director of Pastry Education at Baltimore International College and a Food Network Pastry Challenge judge, who taught a two-day course on sugar.

LCI’s recently unveiled stand-alone campus features expanded classroom space and an amphitheater for live lecture demonstrations, and its administration hopes to use the new digs for public leisure classes. Nicosia has written a series of pastry sessions on artisan breads, sweet dough (including King Cake), and chocolate. Stay tuned to louisianaculinary.com for forthcoming information.

To read previous Du Jour features on local chefs and other culinary experts, click here.