French culinary arts are

French culinary arts are a feast for the senses, where the beauty is just as important as the taste. The art of French gastronomy The world’s biggest pastry school Choosing a cake at a French pâtisserie is a cultural event. There is joy in the careful decision to be made as you view the counters filled with trays of cakes, cookies and croissants, sweet scallop-shaped madeleines, crisp rainbow-coloured macarons sandwiched with luscious velvety cream, scrumptious sugary chouquettes, and opulent opera cakes. Shelves heave with delicious tarts like fruity tarte tatin and delectable seasonal mirabelle plum, apricot and cherry pies. There are flamboyant fraisiers – fresh strawberries stuffed into the rich cream, wedged between layers of delicate almond sponge fingers and creamy flan pâtissier, and puff pastry fantasies, fluffy concoctions of choux balls and piped cream – religieuse, Paris-Brest and Saint Honoré, frangipane filled pithiviers, galette des rois, and exquisite pear tarts. Luc Debove Behind the scenes are the pâtissiers, cake and pastry makers, who have trained hard to learn how to make these delicious artworks. And, it’s not just cake shops where these skills are evident. A new trend has emerged, a growing legion of home bakers who also want to learn the craft of pâtisserie - for pleasure. I arrived late at the Ducasse Campus in the village of Yssingeaux, not far from Lyon, in the south of France. It’s a surreal experience to watch Luc Debove whip the lid off a plastic container, pop it in a microwave for a few minutes and wish you bon appetit. The act itself is one we are all familiar with - but Luc Debove just happens to be a world champion pâtissier as well as director l’Ecole Nationale Supérieure de Pâtisserie, Ecoles Ducasse (ENSP). He takes my bag up to my room in a castle on top of a volcano, which apart from being a pastry school is also a hotel for students and visiting guest teachers – many of them superstars of the culinary world. “Help yourself to anything in the fridge” he says with a smile before he heads home. And yes if you’re wondering about Ecoles Ducasse – it is that Ducasse, Alain Ducasse, one of the world’s top chefs with 21 Michelin Stars, 31 restaurants, umpteen books, a 22 | The Good Life France The Good Life France | 23