Born into a family of great chefs, Anne-Sophie Pic did not plan to work in front of an oven, but, in 1992, she decides to carry on the family tradition with the objective to transcend her father’s cuisine, a father who had disappeared too early. With a very personal and delicate culinary repertoire, Maison Pic gets its 3 stars at the Michelin… stars that keep twinkling at the firmament of haute cuisine.

Your favourite flavour?

Aniseed and liquorice based flavours.

A favourite dessert?

Pink praline Ile flottante like my great-grandmother used to make. The lightness of the egg whites poached into vanilla milk,  he crunchiness of praline and the smoothness of custard are all quintessential gourmandise.

Your favourite recipe?

My white Millefeuille, a light cream with Tahitian vanilla, a fine jasmine jelly and an emulsion of Voatsiperifery pepper (a wild pepper from Madagascar, ed), which reinvents this symbol of French pastry. I wanted a white dessert, pared down, one that wouldn’t unveil anything at first sight and would leave imagination free. It is the ideal dessert to me, combining purity,  gourmandise, lightness and surprise.

A sweet souvenir from childhood?

Pogne from Romans, a delicious brioche with orange flower, and the sweet berlingots, of which shape has inspired one of my signature recipes; the “Berlingots”, a creamy Banon goat cheese trickle, lightly smoked, and a watercress consomm. brewed in ginger and bergamot orange.

The place of gourmandise in your life?

The place of gourmandise in your life? Essential! I was lucky enough to be born in a family where eating rhymed with  pleasure (four generations of chefs and restaurateurs have followed each other, from the Auberge du Pin in Ard.che, in 1889, to the Maison Pic of today, a gourmet restaurant and a charming hotel in Valence, ed). When I was a child, meals were a time of sharing and conviviality; the teaching of taste was an essential part of it.

The gourmand moment you prefer?

Teatime with my son. I drink a cup of green tea while he is eating some pastry… Gourmandise is a true story in our family!

What is your approach to pastry?

What I really like is being able to express my culinary universe, based on complexity and aromatic strength. Bitterness, for instance, allows to reach a more subtle sweetness, one that is less immediate than sugar. I love using citrus fruits, alcohols, mainly to promote flavours, honey and aromatic plants, flowers and leaves.

Your favourite French dessert?

I have to admit a weakness for the Opéra.

And on the British side?

Carrot cake.

From magazine "Desserts" Spring - Summer n°17