Recipe for the 2026 North American Pastry Championship winning dessert: strawberry, pawpaw and blue corn
Clotilde Ghibaudo and her assistant Tatiana Vernot, representing the Washington D.C. & Maryland team, were crowned winners of the second edition of the North American Pastry Championship (also known as the Roland Mesnier Trophy).
Under the theme “250th anniversary of the USA”, these contestants presented, among other creations, this plate dessert inspired by French and American cookades that share the same colors, creating a strong visual and historical link between the two countries.
With 12 petals around an ice cream rose as a reference to the first 13 states of America, it incorporates strawberry in different shapes and textures, blue corn, blue cornflower, pawpaw and elderflower.
Photos: Lydia Lee
Rose Plated dessert
For 9 servings
Gavotte Strawberry
- 116 g water
- 200 g roasted strawberry puree
- 2 g salt
- 60 g honey
- 34 g flour
- 72 g egg white
- 30 g butter
- 2 g shade veggie red
Bring the strawberry purée, water, butter, and salt to a boil.
In a bowl, mix the honey, flour, shade veggie red, and egg whites.
Pour the boiling liquid in one go and blend.
Spread a thin layer on an oiled Silpat.
Cook for ten minutes at 300°F.
Cut 48 petal shapes and leave to dry with the meringue for 35 minutes at 190°F, then five more minutes at 250°F.
Pannacotta
- 228 g cream
- 3.5 p gelatin sheet
- 28 g honey
- 90 g eldelflower cordial
Make an edelflower cordial with a cold and sweet infusion of 72 hours.
Hydrate the gelatin.
Bring the cream and honey to 80° C.
Add the hydrated gelatin sheets and the eldelflower cordial.
Leave to cool in the fridge until plating.
Meringue
- 35 g egg whites
- 85 g honey
- 3 g vinegar
- 10 g cornstarch
- cs blue cornflower
Whip the egg whites with honey on high speed for ten minutes.
Add the cornstarch and vinegar and whisk for one more minute.
With the acetone pattern, make 48 petals.
Add blue cornflower blend on half of them (24 pieces).
Bake at 190°F for 35 minutes.
Remove directly onto patch paper and let harden.
Custard strawberry
- 140 g roasted strawberry puree
- 30 g yolk
- 30 g honey
- 12 g cornstarch
Bring the roasted strawberry puree to a boil.
Pour into the yolk, honey, and corn starch mixture.
Pour everything back into the saucepan and cook until it boils.
Leave to cool until plating.
Ice cream
- 400 g strawberry puree
- 100 g pawpaw
- 135 g honey
- 200 g water
Bring to boil the water and honey.
Pour into the strawberry puree and blend.
Add the pawpaw and blend again.
Churn it, spread into a frozen tray, and harden in the blast chiller.
Form your roses.
Blue corn cake
- 156 g flour T55
- 93 g blue corn flour
- 2 g salt
- 17 g baking soda
- 5 g baking powder
- 118 g butter
- 54 g canola oil
- 200 g honey
- 302 g butter milk
- 2 u eggs
- 1 lemon zest
Mix all dry ingredients together and sift.
Mix melted butter, canola oil, honey, and eggs.
Combine dry and wet, and finish with the buttermilk.
Pour into an 8 cm diameter tart circle.
Bake for 15 minutes at 325°F.
Cut the cake with a 7 cm cutter.
Cut the middle of the round with a 5 cm cutter.
Assembly
Place the corn cake in the middle of the plate.
Fill with pannacotta.
Pipe a circle of custard on the edge of the biscuit.
Place the petals all around, alternating blue cornflower meringue, strawberry Gavotte, and meringue.
Place the ice cream rose on top.
