Calgary chef Yann Blanchard breaks into the French pastry big leagues

Imagine if you could eat a Monet, poach a Picasso, or gobble down a Gaugin.

French art as food? Sounds kind of chewy.

French pastryas art?

It isn't such a stretch at all, particularly when it's one of the exquisite creations ofYannBlanchard. He runs YannHaute Patisserie, a Parisian-style shop selling pastries and cakes in Calgary's Mission District.

A journey of 11,000 kilometres

Recently, Blanchard took a significant step up in the world of pastry chefs, when he was invitedto join the RelaisDesserts Association in France. Blanchard is the first Canadian to be invited to join.

They say a journey of 10,000 miles begins with a single step. Blanchard's journey of joining the RelaisDesserts Association was a journey of 11,000 kilometres that included, as all of these epic travels do, trying to clear customs.

That's because he was headed to France, to demonstrate his work for some of his personal icons, star Frenchpastry chefs whose work he admired and respected.

"It's nerve-racking," Blanchard said on The Homestretch. "Because you're basically standing in front of your idols all the people you respect the most and you basically are physically with them and have to show what you do. So it was very stressful."

Blanchard, who is originally from France, had previously taken a trip theretoobservesome of the pastry chefs in action. Two of them had travelled to Calgaryto visit his shop at 329 23rd Ave. S.W.to check out whether he had the ingredients to join their group.

"You have a visit from the two [person]admission committee that cometo your store,checkout your bakery, to see that everything is well in order:your front-of-the-house, everything well kept, your ingredients' provenance, your kitchen," said Blanchard.

Blanchard was recommended by two members of the association, which meant he could travel to France to do a demonstration for the rest of the members if he could just get through customs toting his oversized suitcase, which contained the showpiece of his pastry presentation.

"When I went to clear customs, I had to go to the oversize, and nothing showed up, except the chocolate," said Blanchard."And the chocolate looked like my piece. Which was the body of a woman,with severed members.

"It was extremely vivid so as I go there [towardcustoms],it's packed, it's neat, I don't want [them]to touch it.

"Sothey say, we're going to have to open it and take a look."

Once his amputated showpiece was unpacked and his suitcase thoroughly probed,Blanchard was allowed to re-pack it in its fractured formand continue on to his pastry showcase.

Blanchard cooks with traditional ingredients chocolate, butterscotch, lemon, vanilla beans and some that one might not associate with Parisian-style pastries.

Canadian staples inspire French pastry

It turns out that the pastry that got him his membership looks like an oversized peanut butter cup,which Blanchard says was no accident.

"That's definitely the idea," he said. "I took the peanut butter cup and PB andJ peanut butter andjelly sandwichesand [thought], I'm going to do something the Canadian/North American crowd can relate to:add some maple syrup, to make it as Canadianas possible."

In the end, the French chefs were as impressed with his commute as with his pastries, and invited him to join their prestigious association.

"They kind of played (with me) a little bit, but the biggest wow for them,becausethey've seen and done a lot,was the travelling," he said.

Everything he showcased in France is available at YannHaute Patisserie, including the oversized peanut butter cup, which goes for $7.50. That's less than ordering dessert in most restaurants, even with his newly designated status as a member of the RelaisDesserts Association.

"For our store, it's basically the equivalent of getting Michelin stars," Blanchard said. "And for you [Calgarians], it's basically the opportunity to visit a French pastry shop in the Parisian atmosphere without being in Paris. So you don't have to renew your passport, don't have to clear customs, you can just come to our store!"

With files from The Homestretch

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