Guest Demonstration with Chef Jordi Bordas

Le Cordon Bleu London recently hosted an exclusive Guest Chef Demonstration with renowned pastry chef, Jordi Bordas, in partnership with Valrhona and Sosa Ingredients.

Jordi Bordas became the World Pastry Champion in 2011 and following this he opened a pastry school in Barcelona in order to share his experience and knowledge with new generations of pastry professionals. Sosa has over five decades of experience in the confectionary world, and they stand out for their capacity to reinvent food preparation, anticipating trends and raising the bar in standards.

Founded in 1922, Valrhona are a leader in the world of chocolate, sourcing the best of chocolate at every stage of its value chain to create a fair, sustainable cocoa industry and inspire gastronomy that looks, tastes and does good.

The demonstration focused on the work that Chef Jordi and Sosa have been doing in response to the changing landscape of gastronomy and new demands from consumers, who are looking to reduce their sugar and fat intake, reduce or completely cut out animal proteins and make the smallest possible impact on the environment.

Naturally this presents technical challenges for pastry professionals, and Sosa work to provide innovative ingredients and solutions for these challenges. Through this work they identified a new fibre with intriguing properties: Flaxfiber.

Over the last year, both teams have worked intensively to demonstrate that incorporating fibre into recipes improves textures, reduces the need for sugars and fats and improves dishes' flavour at the same time. Out of this, the handbook for using fibres in pastry came into being, which serves as a guide to reformulate recipes.

For the crowd of distinguished guests and industry professionals invited to attend the event, Chef Jordi demonstrated the use of Sosa’s innovative products, alongside Valrhona’s premium chocolate, by making a selection of exquisite desserts. Recipes included almond & apricot entremets, 64% Manjari, pecan & coffee cake and pistachio, coconut & blackcurrant dessert for one.

If you are interested in learning more about the use of modern and innovative methods in pastry, find out more about the Diploma in Pâtisserie Innovation and Wellness taught at Le Cordon Bleu London.