Signing Off
With my last day at Lafayette finally behind me, I feel a mixed bag of sadness, relief, excitement, gratitude. In just a couple days, my husband and I will embark on a 4-month trip around Europe, savoring all the food, wine and of course, pastry our bodies can handle.
The impetus for this trip was actually a TV show. You may have heard of it: Spain, On the Road Again. If you don’t know it, look it up, but it basically follows 4 very lucky, very privileged celebs cruising around in their open top Mercedes, indulging in all the wine, food and culture the country has to offer. Although ours won’t be a copy-cat trip, it made us realize that life is too short to be slugging away til the end, and if you can be lucky enough to take time off, you should be smart enough to use it to explore, learn and enjoy.
I hope to take many of these days out to stage in the kitchens of anyone who will let me in! A great part of cooking is learning how people around the world do their thing. So if you’re reading this and “know a guy”, please connect me! I’d like to get my hands on more bread, I want to make pasta with somebody’s Nonna, I want to see how those crazy Spanish dudes make that crazy pastry! We should be in Germany around Christmastime, so a lesson in lebkuchen und Weihnachtszeit süßigkeiten is a must!
The past 3 and a half years have rewarded me with both personal and professional connections that I will value for years to come. They’ve also given me plenty of moments to reflect upon, with both chuckles and cringes. Here are some of them:
Early failed attempts at eclairs.
Serving dessert on the Brooklyn Grange Rooftop Farm.
Cooking at the Hawaii Food & Wine Festival with my ladies!
Photoshoot for Martha Stewart Weddings.
Getting dolled up for a collab with Clinique cosmetics.
Getting my dessert mentioned in the New York Times.
Taking a 3 day course in France at Valrhona with some amazing pastry chefs. This was one of our excursions after class.
Having the honor to attend the James Beard Awards as a finalist for Outstanding Pastry Chef.
One of the final outings with the Lafayette Pastry Crew!
None of these moments would have been possible without the help of my team, my friends, and my NoHo Hospitality family. As for the future, I'm reveling in the blank slate ahead of me. A little scary, but that makes it exciting!
I'll be using this site to accept any recommendations on where to go and what to eat/discover along our travels. Please please share with me all the names and places we should go!