On the occasion of his state visit to the Gulf countries, Emmanuel Macron was passing through to flag France of the universal exhibition which is happening right now and until March 2022, in Dubai. To represent our country, the Elysée has selected two ambassadors of French culture: astronaut Thomas Pesquet, and Jessica Prealpato, crowned best pastry chef in the world in 2019 and currently pastry chef alongside Alain Ducasse in a restaurant Parisian.
I revisited the Basque cake recipe
The original Montoise, received a phone call from the top of the state in 2019, at his restaurant. “I believed in a joke, I did not really believe it. It was when we had lunch with other great chefs at the Elysee that I realized it was true. Emmanuel Macron came to me See, he thanked me for having accepted to be an ambassador to represent France. I understood that it was not a joke “, recalls Jessica Prealpato. Covid-19 requires, the Universal Exhibition did not take place in 2019-2020, and therefore was postponed to 2021-2022.
The renowned pastry chef therefore had to realize tailor-made pastries for the France pavilion. “I was asked to make a rather accessible dish and another for the restaurant. As I studied in the Basque Country, I revisited the Basque cake recipe! I removed the cherry jam to put date marmalade, to work the date. The dish for the restaurant, I’m still refining it. ”
An adventure that allowed him to meet the one who is the event’s ambassador at his side, Thomas Pesquet. “I have met him several times for photos, for official performances. He is a very nice person, very benevolent and very accessible”, she enthuses.
Jessica Prealpato hopes she can fly to Dubai in the coming weeks to present its dishes and meet visitors.