Stephen Interviews:
Chef Jacques Torres
His Website
 acques Torres is the host of the popular PBS show "Dessert Circus," and author of the companion book by the same name from William Morrow Publishing. Born and raised in a small town in the south of France, Torres is a man of passion who likes a challenge and lives his life, as he does his cooking, with extraordinary gusto. He began his training in Nice at the Hotel Negresco and traveled the world with renowned chef Jacques Maximum. Currently, Torres is the Executive Pastry Chef at Le Cirque in New York as well as at their new restaurant at the awe-inspiring Belaggio Hotel in Las Vegas.
SV: What particularly attracted you to specializing in pastry and dessert?
JT: Pastry is so technical. It’s a process like building blocks where one step builds into the next. My dad is a carpenter and the field of pastry is related. I shop for a lot of my tools in hardware stores and art shops. At the same time, there is an amazing amount of room for creativity and artistic expression in pastry. Serving dessert challenges me to wake-up a diner who is full and thinks they can’t eat another bite. I love understanding why and how ingredients interact and make them work for me to achieve an unexpected outcome.
SV: When did you start cooking?
JT: My first apprenticeship was at age fourteen.
 SV: What has most influenced your style of cooking?
JT: My experience with the American joie de vivre. It is really special to live in a country where people are so free and to work in a restaurant that encourages creativity. At Le Cirque, everything is an extravaganza and I feel my work should reflect that sentiment.
SV: Tell me about your greatest cooking disaster.
JT: It wasn’t really a disaster, but it was a lesson well learned. When I was at The Negresco, I was commissioned to make a gigantic cake for a special occasion. I worked on this thing for days. It towered over everyone. It took hours and hours, had many many layers, tons of sugar work and pastillage. When I was finished, I called the banquet manager to explain the intricacies of the cake, how to cut it, etc. He left and my sous chef and I decided to move the cake to the banquet room. It would not fit through the door or the long narrow hallways of the hotel. We tried everything. Finally, we decided to tilt the cake and walk really, really fast. Gravity got the better of things about half-way down the hallway.
SV: What is your favorite junk food?
JT: Anything sweet is not safe in the cupboards at my house. I do love Peanut M&M’s and Oreo cookies. I really like peanut butter too...it really isn’t as popular in France.
 SV: What is your philosophy towards cooking?
JT: Have fun, be creative, don’t be afraid to make mistakes. I really love to teach and I wish I could encourage everyone to just get in the kitchen and try stuff! I invite anyone who has a challenge or question to contact me through my website and I’ll be glad to help them.
SV: What composer or style of music goes best with dessert?
JT: I think desserts may be served with any kind of music. To me, dessert is all about fantasy so any kind of music that stimulates a person’s imagination to help them capture the moment would be appropriate.
SV: Who would be your fantasy dinner guest and why?
JT: This is a hard question because at Le Cirque, my fantasy dinner companions are constantly walking into the kitchen. The restaurant is an amazing place and I’ve had a lot of unique opportunities over the years. I’ve made dessert for the Pope, cruised on the QE2 with Lord Wedgewood, and most recently, one of my favorite French actors, Jean Reno, visited the restaurant. He was there with Robert De Niro and Joe Pesci. Bill Cosby is also a regular. I’ve met a lot of celebrities, business moguls, heads of state. I would have welcomed the chance to sit down with Jacques Cousteau. He made his first dive with a scuba tank in my home town. I am very drawn to water and have a great respect for the contribution and education Jacques Cousteau provided.
SV: What foods go best with making love?
JT: Anything sweet! Chocolate, ice cream, the pithiviers...all served in private for pleasure as specified by your significant other!
 SV: What is the most romantic wine?
JT: Champagne! If you are not splurging on a special vintage, get some frozen white peach purée and mix in a little raspberry syrup. Spoon into large plastic wine glasses, mix in champagne, turn on the music, get in the hot tub...
SV: When dining out what is your favorite cuisine?
JT: Anything casual! On my night off, I tend to go to a neighborhood Japanese or Mexican restaurant where jeans are the dress code and margaritas come in jumbo sizes!
SV: In so many ways people are now looking toward a lower fat and caloric diet, yet still demanding outstanding flavor. How has this affected your style of cooking?
JT: I just try to be creative and think of more exciting options to surprise a customer who is expecting a typical fruit plate. I love to serve fresh fruit soups. Floating Islands are fat free and so is paté de fruit. In my new book, Dessert Circus At Home, I have a chapter called, “Practically Good For You” that contains a dozen healthier choice desserts like Meringue Treats, Wine-Poached Pears, Strawberries on a Cloud (with angle food cake), and Peach Sauté. It’s important to use the best quality ingredients and the ripest fresh fruit because the only way to end up with something that tastes good is to start out with good-tasting ingredients!
SV: Are there any other cuisine’s that you particularly enjoy cooking?
JT: “Home cooking” is my favorite cuisine...”Mom” food is what I make at home (pizza, baked chicken, couscous).
 SV: What is your favorite restaurant?
JT: There are so many wonderful choices so its too difficult to pick one favorite, but in my neighborhood [in New York City] I love Rene Pujol, a great French restaurant with a fabulous wine list, an intimate dining room with fireplace and lovely hosts (chef/owners Claude & Nicole Franques). Mr. Pujol started this restaurant about twenty years ago.
SV: Your creations are an artistic wonder. What do you draw upon for inspiration?
JT: I am often inspired by the little things I see every day...a textured pattern on the radiator or a snowman built by the neighbor kids, a stove from the kitchen or a clown from the restaurant decor. Color and the way light hits an object always catch my eye.
SV: Tell me a bit about your television show Dessert Circus.
JT: The second season focuses on fun desserts you can make at home. They are all easy, easy, easy! I try to explain why things happen, show the reader/viewer what difference to expect when melted butter is used rather than softened butter, teach the difference in flours and why we sift; I explain the things that no one else ever tells you. I really like to take a familiar recipe and give it a twist to make it more exciting in flavor, texture or appearance. As always, I try to demystify pastry in order to encourage people to make their own inventions. I invited a lot of kids to participate in the second series because their joy and interest is so pure and honest. We organized all the recipes on the show into chapters in the book Dessert Circus At Home. I think the names give a good indication of what to expect: Back to Basics, Tantalizing Tarts, Practically Good For You, Piece of Cake, Kid’s Play, The Bread Basket, Breakfast and Tea, Signature Desserts, Homemade & Heavenly, Tiny Temptations, and Home for the Holidays.
Text © 2002 SYR Inc.
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Interview: PBS Show Host Chef And Chocolateir Jacques Torres