For the grand finale of our pastry program, Ferrandi planned a three day excursion to the region of Alsace in eastern France.  For me, it was like stepping into a fairytale!

We visited a castle where I pretended I was a princess…

Make a wish into the well.. that’s all you have to do…

Gingerbread was everywhere…

Run, run as fast as you can…

And then, in a magical moment, my fairy godmother appeared… Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo…

Christine Ferber

We found ourselves in the small, picturesque town of Niedermorschwihr, where we met the insightful, talented, lovely and legendary Christine Ferber.  She’s a woman who has fought hard to make her mark on the male-dominated world of French patisserie.  She welcomed us into her hot kitchen, where she made us escargot biscuits and told us her inspirational story.  She said that she was born with four stars:  she’s generous, hard-working, never envious of others, and she doesn’t hold a grudge.

She spends every day baking pastries, but her specialty is confiture (http://www.christineferber.com/)…

Confiture is what we call fruit preserves.  Since cherries are in season she told us that she and her team will spend the next few weeks preserving over three tons of cherries!

When most of the crowd ran to the shop I had the chance to ask her for some advice.  What tips does she have for an aspiring pastry-maker?  She paused for a moment and then said three things:

  • Only make what you like
  • Work hard
  • Find a husband who will support your efforts

I think it’s good advice in business and in life.  Then she dashed away… and I waltzed out of her kitchen so happy to have met her in this moment in time.

At dinner we weren’t able to stop talking about her and how lucky we felt to have met her.  And just as dinner was winding down, what should appear?  Just like the dress that Cinderella’s fairy godmother gave to her before the Ball, a delicious Christine Ferber raspberry cake tied in a golden bow dazzled all of us…

And, as you can imagine, it quickly disappeared well before the stroke of midnight.

Fairytales do come true..  it can happen to you…