Florian Bellanger
Encyclopedia
Florian Bellanger bɛlɑ̃ˈʒe is a French pastry chef
and judge on the Food Network
's competition series Cupcake Wars
.
prevented him from enjoying sweets and desserts for 6 years which had temporarily discouraged his desire to bake. At age 15, Bellanger applied to one of Paris's prestigious pastry schools, the ("Paris school of table skills"), but was rejected for being a year too young. By 1986, he graduated from the school with a specialization in pastry cooking and a specialty in chocolate and ice cream
. Ironically, the pastry chef now says chocolate is his favorite ingredient and admires its versatility, claiming it is "fun" and something "taken for granted."
Before starting his own company, Bellanger was the executive pastry chef at Fauchon
and oversaw 24 other pastry chefs at its Tea Salon flagship store in New York City, a "legendary French Epicurean emporium" of cakes, cookie
s, ice cream
s and sorbets. There, he became known for creating inventive combinations of flavors outside of the norms of tradition, such as éclair
s flavored with orange zest, passion fruit or coconut
and raspberry
marshmallow
cake, Toulouse violet ice cream and raspberry-chili pepper
sorbet. From 1991 to 1994, he was under the command of famous French pastry chef Pierre Hermé
and was also the executive pastry chef for Fauchon's flagship store in Qatar
from 1994 to 1996.
Florian was Eric Ripert
pastry chef of the world renowned (3 stars Michelin) restaurant Le Bernardin
from 1996 to 2001, where his desserts were described as "light and dreamy" by Ruth Reichl
of The New York Times.
s and Madeleine
s" an acclaimed French cookie and pastry company, which he helped found in 2006.
Chef Bellanger is a member of City Harvest's Food Council and a guest chef at the French Culinary Institute
in Manhattan
, New York. He also spends his free time donating to charities such as C-CAP Careers Through Culinary Arts Program http://www.ccapinc.org/ , the Wolfgang Puck
Charity and the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation.
acclaimed Bellanger's accomplishments with a nomination for "Outstanding Pastry Chef." He is a permanent judge on the hit Food Network
's competition series Cupcake Wars
which air in US, Canada, UK, Belgium, Hong Kong and Singapore, he is also the Jury President of the US Pastry Competition that held every February in NYC, and has been featured on many networks including CNN
, NBC
, Food Network and Martha Stewart Living
. Bellanger's cake and pastry works have received attention in various magazines and publications including House Beautiful
, Martha Stewart Weddings
, Forbes
, Brides
, Modern Bride, GQ magazine, Time Out magazine, People
, The New York Times
, InStyle magazine, Pastry Art & Design, Food Arts, Chocolatier magazine, The Nibble, Delta Sky and New York Magazine, and PastryScoop.com.
Pastry chef
A pastry chef or pâtissier is a station chef in a professional kitchen, skilled in the making of pastries, desserts, breads and other baked goods...
and judge on the Food Network
Food Network
Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
's competition series Cupcake Wars
Cupcake Wars
Cupcake Wars is a Food Network reality-based competition show hosted by Justin Kredible based on creating unique and professional-style cupcakes that began airing in June 2010. The show is similar to its successful Chopped show in that it starts with 4 contestants who are eliminated one by one in 3...
.
Early career
Bellanger grew up in Paris, France and spent much of his free afternoons baking for his family. However, a childhood chocolate allergyAllergy
An Allergy is a hypersensitivity disorder of the immune system. Allergic reactions occur when a person's immune system reacts to normally harmless substances in the environment. A substance that causes a reaction is called an allergen. These reactions are acquired, predictable, and rapid...
prevented him from enjoying sweets and desserts for 6 years which had temporarily discouraged his desire to bake. At age 15, Bellanger applied to one of Paris's prestigious pastry schools, the ("Paris school of table skills"), but was rejected for being a year too young. By 1986, he graduated from the school with a specialization in pastry cooking and a specialty in chocolate and ice cream
Ice cream
Ice cream is a frozen dessert usually made from dairy products, such as milk and cream, and often combined with fruits or other ingredients and flavours. Most varieties contain sugar, although some are made with other sweeteners...
. Ironically, the pastry chef now says chocolate is his favorite ingredient and admires its versatility, claiming it is "fun" and something "taken for granted."
Before starting his own company, Bellanger was the executive pastry chef at Fauchon
Fauchon
Fauchon is a French gourmet food company that was founded in 1886 by Auguste Fauchon. The company is based in Paris, France and operates retail outlets. Fauchon currently produces tea, chocolate, biscuits and sweets among other products.- History :...
and oversaw 24 other pastry chefs at its Tea Salon flagship store in New York City, a "legendary French Epicurean emporium" of cakes, cookie
Cookie
In the United States and Canada, a cookie is a small, flat, baked treat, usually containing fat, flour, eggs and sugar. In most English-speaking countries outside North America, the most common word for this is biscuit; in many regions both terms are used, while in others the two words have...
s, ice cream
Ice cream
Ice cream is a frozen dessert usually made from dairy products, such as milk and cream, and often combined with fruits or other ingredients and flavours. Most varieties contain sugar, although some are made with other sweeteners...
s and sorbets. There, he became known for creating inventive combinations of flavors outside of the norms of tradition, such as éclair
Éclair
An éclair is a pastry made with choux dough filled with a cream and topped with icing.The dough, which is the same as that used for profiterole, is piped into an oblong shape with a pastry bag and baked until it is crisp and hollow inside...
s flavored with orange zest, passion fruit or coconut
Coconut
The coconut palm, Cocos nucifera, is a member of the family Arecaceae . It is the only accepted species in the genus Cocos. The term coconut can refer to the entire coconut palm, the seed, or the fruit, which is not a botanical nut. The spelling cocoanut is an old-fashioned form of the word...
and raspberry
Raspberry
The raspberry or hindberry is the edible fruit of a multitude of plant species in the genus Rubus, most of which are in the subgenus Idaeobatus; the name also applies to these plants themselves...
marshmallow
Marshmallow
The marshmallow is a confection that, in its modern form, typically consists of sugar, corn syrup, water, gelatin that has been softened in hot water, dextrose, vanilla flavourings, and sometimes colouring, whipped to a spongy consistency. Some marshmallow recipes call for egg whites...
cake, Toulouse violet ice cream and raspberry-chili pepper
Chili pepper
Chili pepper is the fruit of plants from the genus Capsicum, members of the nightshade family, Solanaceae. The term in British English and in Australia, New Zealand, India, Malaysia and other Asian countries is just chilli without pepper.Chili peppers originated in the Americas...
sorbet. From 1991 to 1994, he was under the command of famous French pastry chef Pierre Hermé
Pierre Hermé
Pierre Hermé is a French pastry chef most famous for his macarons, often with unusual flavor combinations. French Vogue magazine dubbed him "The Picasso of Pastry."- Food :...
and was also the executive pastry chef for Fauchon's flagship store in Qatar
Qatar
Qatar , also known as the State of Qatar or locally Dawlat Qaṭar, is a sovereign Arab state, located in the Middle East, occupying the small Qatar Peninsula on the northeasterly coast of the much larger Arabian Peninsula. Its sole land border is with Saudi Arabia to the south, with the rest of its...
from 1994 to 1996.
Florian was Eric Ripert
Eric Ripert
Eric Ripert is a chef, author and television personality specializing in modern French cuisine and renowned for his work with seafood. His flagship restaurant, Le Bernardin, located in New York City, is routinely ranked among the best restaurants in the world by Restaurant magazine's and S...
pastry chef of the world renowned (3 stars Michelin) restaurant Le Bernardin
Le Bernardin
Le Bernardin is a Michelin Guide three star, Zagat-rated restaurant in New York City. It was started in 1972 in Paris by Gilbert and Maguy le Coze and moved to New York in 1986....
from 1996 to 2001, where his desserts were described as "light and dreamy" by Ruth Reichl
Ruth Reichl
Ruth Reichl - pronounced RYE-chil - is an American food writer, co-producer of PBS's Gourmet's Diary of a Foodie, culinary editor for the Modern Library, host of PBS's Gourmet's Adventures With Ruth, and the last editor-in-chief of the now shuttered Gourmet magazine...
of The New York Times.
Career
Bellanger is now the chef and co-owner of Mad-Mac, "the Authentic French MacaroonMacaroon
A macaroon is a type of light, baked confection, described as either small cakes or meringue-like cookies depending on their consistency. The original macaroon was a "small sweet cake consisting largely of ground almonds" similar to Italian or Moroccan amaretti.The English word macaroon and French...
s and Madeleine
Madeleine
The madeleine or petite madeleine is a traditional small cake from Commercy and Liverdun, two communes of the Lorraine region in northeastern France....
s" an acclaimed French cookie and pastry company, which he helped found in 2006.
Chef Bellanger is a member of City Harvest's Food Council and a guest chef at the French Culinary Institute
French Culinary Institute
The French Culinary Institute , also known as The International Culinary Center has locations in SoHo, New York City and in the San Francisco Bay Area of California....
in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York. He also spends his free time donating to charities such as C-CAP Careers Through Culinary Arts Program http://www.ccapinc.org/ , the Wolfgang Puck
Wolfgang Puck
Wolfgang Johannes Puck is an Austrian-American celebrity chef, restaurateur, businessman and occasional actor. Wolfgang Puck restaurants, catering services, cookbooks and licensed products are run by Wolfgang Puck Companies, with three divisions...
Charity and the Jean-Louis Palladin Foundation.
Recognition
Bellanger was named one of the 10 Best Pastry Chefs in America in 2004 and 2003 by Pastry Art & Design magazine. In 2000 and 2001, the James Beard FoundationJames Beard Foundation
The James Beard Foundation is a New York-based national professional non-profit organization named in honor of James Beard that serves to promote the culinary arts by honoring chefs, wine professionals, journalists, and cookbook authors at annual award ceremonies and providing scholarships and...
acclaimed Bellanger's accomplishments with a nomination for "Outstanding Pastry Chef." He is a permanent judge on the hit Food Network
Food Network
Food Network is a television specialty channel that airs both one-time and recurring programs about food and cooking. Scripps Networks Interactive owns 70 percent of the network, with Tribune Company controlling the remaining 30 percent....
's competition series Cupcake Wars
Cupcake Wars
Cupcake Wars is a Food Network reality-based competition show hosted by Justin Kredible based on creating unique and professional-style cupcakes that began airing in June 2010. The show is similar to its successful Chopped show in that it starts with 4 contestants who are eliminated one by one in 3...
which air in US, Canada, UK, Belgium, Hong Kong and Singapore, he is also the Jury President of the US Pastry Competition that held every February in NYC, and has been featured on many networks including CNN
CNN
Cable News Network is a U.S. cable news channel founded in 1980 by Ted Turner. Upon its launch, CNN was the first channel to provide 24-hour television news coverage, and the first all-news television channel in the United States...
, NBC
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago...
, Food Network and Martha Stewart Living
Martha Stewart Living
Martha Stewart Living is a magazine and a television show featuring entertaining and home decorating guru Martha Stewart. Both the magazine and the television program focus on the domestic arts. Martha Stewart Living began as a quarterly magazine in 1990, published by Time Inc..and is currently...
. Bellanger's cake and pastry works have received attention in various magazines and publications including House Beautiful
House Beautiful
House Beautiful is an interior decorating magazine that focuses on decorating and the domestic arts. First published in 1896, it is currently published by the Hearst Corporation, who purchased it in 1934...
, Martha Stewart Weddings
Martha Stewart Weddings
Martha Stewart Weddings is a weddings magazine published by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. Martha Stewart Weddings was launched as an annual publication in 1994, and was expanded to quarterly in 1999. It is the second magazine title published by Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, and is primarily...
, Forbes
Forbes
Forbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
, Brides
Brides (magazine)
Brides is an American monthly magazine published by Condé Nast, who purchased the magazine in 1959. As with many similar bridal magazines, it is designed to be an in-depth resource for brides-to-be, with many photographs and articles on wedding dresses, cakes, ceremonies, receptions and honeymoons...
, Modern Bride, GQ magazine, Time Out magazine, People
People (magazine)
In 1998, the magazine introduced a version targeted at teens called Teen People. However, on July 27, 2006, the company announced it would shut down publication of Teen People immediately. The last issue to be released was scheduled for September 2006. Subscribers to this magazine received...
, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, InStyle magazine, Pastry Art & Design, Food Arts, Chocolatier magazine, The Nibble, Delta Sky and New York Magazine, and PastryScoop.com.
Awards
- James Beard FoundationJames Beard FoundationThe James Beard Foundation is a New York-based national professional non-profit organization named in honor of James Beard that serves to promote the culinary arts by honoring chefs, wine professionals, journalists, and cookbook authors at annual award ceremonies and providing scholarships and...
"outstanding Pastry Chef of the Year" Nomination 2000 and 2001 - 10 Best Pastry Chefs of America 2003 and 2004 (Pastry Art and Design magazine)