Share This Article
“I want to cook each and every single day of my life, I want to feed people,
those who can afford it and those who can’t. I want to tell stories
through food and make art with a few simple ingredients.”
Twenty-year-old Menlyn resident Celine Inman’s dream of becoming a professional chef all comes true this week (subs March 10) when she starts at Capsicum Culinary Studio’s Pretoria campus.
The talented Inman is one of five regional winners of the Capsicum Chef Talent Scout competition. Her prize? A one-year bursary at the country’s leading chefs’ school worth nearly R90 000. To enter the competition, contestants had to create and submit a dish – sweet or savoury – using a red capsicum pepper or any other red ingredient.
We got the aspiring chef to answer some questions as well as share her fabulous winning recipe for her own updated version of an Eton Mess.
Tell us a bit about your background?
I finished school in 2019 and since then have been helping my aunt at her restaurant in Parys in the Free State. This week I start the first year of study for my three-year Advanced Culinary Arts programme at Capsicum’s Pretoria campus. I am delighted that the bursary covers my first year of study.
Where and when did your passion for food start?
I have loved cooking from a young age and started making French toast for Mother’s Day and then making birthday cakes for friends and family. It grew from there.
What is your best food memory?
Standing in my granny’s kitchen on top of a stool as a four-year-old and helping her press out gingerbread cookies and helping her make her famous cheese scones and oatmeal cookies. When I thought she wasn’t looking, I would break off a small piece of dough and eat it. But she always caught me!
Why did you decide to enter the competition?
I entered a previous Capsicum competition in 2019 and made it to the semi-finals. It was such fun and the judges gave us such good advice. I was determined to enter again and prove that I have what it takes to be a finalist. Getting a bursary was a bonus – and yes, I needed it – but even if I didn’t get it, I would still be thankful for the opportunity to be a part of something so special.
How did you come up with your winning recipe and what is it?
My dish was inspired by pastry chef Anna Polyviou. She’s such an inspiration to me. I saw her dish called Anna’s Mess on MasterChef Australia in 2016 and became obsessed with it. It took me months to transform it into something of my own. I still haven’t given it a name though.
How did you feel when you were told you were a winner?
At first, I was stunned, I didn’t think I heard correctly. I just burst into tears with joy and I started laughing and crying at the same time. I was over the moon!
Have you always been a fan of Capsicum and why?
I heard about Capsicum in 2017 and I just knew I would attend the school someday. In 2018 and 2019 I went to the Open Day at Capsicum and I slowly started to convince my parents that this was the place for me.
What made you want to study to become chef?
I want to cook each and every single day of my life, I want to feed people, those who can afford it and those who can’t. I want to tell stories through food and make art with a few simple ingredients.
Who has been your greatest mentor?
My mom as well as my granny. My mom has always supported me even when I started doubting myself. My gran has a saying – “I’m just a plain simple old cook” – yet when she cooks you always go back for seconds and thirds and still have space for pudding.
What three famous chefs do you follow?
I follow Jamie Oliver, from his five-star cuisine to his five ingredient budget recipes; Guy Fieri and his numerous television shows; and Gordon Ramsay, who even if he is a hot-headed celebrity chef, has passion for what he does and his work ethic has inspired me.
What three items would we always find in your pantry?
I always have garlic – it has super powers! Honey – whether it’s for my tea or for my chicken! Paprika – smoked or sweet- because it goes well with just about any savoury dish, from scrambled eggs to soups and sauces.
What is your favourite thing to cook?
Chicken in all its guises. My speciality is chicken served with homemade tortilla wraps and I love chicken and pasta.
Social media handles:
- Facebook: Celine Inman
- Instagram: Inmanceline
‘Celine’s Mess’
White chocolate dome with a biscuit crunchie almond disk, a sponge layer covered in a white chocolate vanilla mousse, dragon fruit and peach gelatine dome, fresh strawberry, raspberries, and blueberry garnish and served with strawberry sauce.
White chocolate dome
Ingredients
8g gelatine
100g icing sugar
80g dragon fruit-sliced & diced
20g peach slices
100g eggs
30g butter
1tsp vanilla essence
Method
Place gelatine in a bowl of iced water and set aside to bloom. Puree dragon fruit & peach slices together.
Place eggs & sugar into a small bowl and whisk together. Place the fruit puree into a saucepan over medium heat. Slowly, pour egg mixture into the fruit puree and whisk continuously. When mixture comes to a boil remove from the heat.
Remove the gelatine from the water and add to the mixture. Stir the gelatine until dissolved.
Then add the butter and whisk in slowly. Fill the moulds and place it in the freezer for 25 min. After 25 min in the freezer, transfer to the fridge until needed.
Raspberry/Strawberry Sponge:
Ingredients
60g butter
60g eggs
60g caster sugar
50g cake flour
8-10 strawberries
Method
Pre-heat oven to 160°C.
Melt the butter over medium heat in a saucepan and cook until golden caramel brown colour. Remove from the heat and set aside to cool. Place the sugar and eggs into a bowl and whisk on high for 5 minutes.
In a separate bowl, add flour and cooled butter and combine together. Add eggs to the butter mixture and fold it in until fully incorporated.
Line a shallow cake tin. Slice the strawberries/raspberries in thin slices. Line the fruit slices at the bottom of the tin.
Pour the cake mixture into the tin over the strawberries/raspberries.
Place in the oven for 20-25 min.
Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
Once the cake is cool, remove from the baking tin.
Use a round cookie cutter and cut a piece out.
Set the sponge aside for assembly.
Meringue Kisses
Ingredients
1 egg white.
¼ cup caster sugar
¼ tsp vanilla essence
Directions
Set oven to 90°C
Line a baking tray with non-stick baking paper.
In a heat safe glass bowl add caster sugar and egg whites. Set up a double boiler and bring the water to a simmer.
Set the bowl over the double boiler, making sure it doesn’t touch the bottom.
Whist the mixture until the sugar dissolves completely. Remove the bowl from the heat and beat the mixture with an electric hand mixer.
Continue whipping at high speed until stiff peaks are formed. The mixture must be thick and glossy.
Transfer the mixture to a piping bag with desired nuzzle.
Pipe the meringues onto the baking tray and bake for 30 min.
Switch off the oven and remove when the oven is cool.
Mascarpone & vanilla mousse
Ingredients
60ml milk
2tsp vanilla
30g egg yolks
30g caster sugar
50g white chocolate-pieces
100g mascarpone
120ml cream
Method
Pour the vanilla and milk into a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.
Whisk the egg yolks and caster sugar together. Remove the milk from the heat and slowly add the egg mixture. Stir the mixture until fully incorporated.
Then place the saucepan over low heat to thicken. Once thickened, remove from the heat and whisk the white chocolate until well combined.
Place mascarpone into a large bowl and whisk mixture in slowly.
Once fully incorporated place in the fridge.
In a separate bowl, gently whisk the cream by hand until soft peaks form.
Fold the cream into the mascarpone mixture.
Transfer the mousse into a piping bag and set aside until needed.
White chocolate dome
Ingredients
300g white chocolate
50g butter
Method
Break chocolate into pieces and place into a heat safe bowl. Set up a double boiler and heat water to a simmer. Place the heat safe bowl over the double boiler.
Stir the chocolate continuously until it’s completely melted and smooth. Remove the heat safe bowl from the heat and add the butter into the chocolate.
Stir the mix slowly until the butter is completely melted and folded into the chocolate. Spray the dome moulds with non-stick spray.
Coat the moulds with chocolate evenly and place face down onto a tray. Transfer the chocolate to the freezer for 10 minutes and apply a second coat of melted chocolate.
Place into the fridge until needed.
Almond crunch insert
Ingredients:
30g Milk chocolate.
6 Almonds chopped.
10g Caramel coated peanuts.
Method
Melt the milk chocolate in a microwave safe bowl for 10 seconds, stir and repeat until completely smooth.
Add the nuts and pour the mixture onto a lined baking tray.
Freeze the chocolate for 10 minutes.
Use a round cookie cutter to cut out a disk.
Set the disk aside in a cool, dry area until assembly.
Strawberry sauce
Ingredients
1 cup water
1 cup sugar
1 cup strawberry puree
Directions
Place the sugar into a saucepan. Pour in water and place the pan onto medium heat.
Stir continuously until the sugar is fully dissolved. Add the strawberry puree to the liquid.
Bring the saucepan to a simmer until the liquid thickens into a syrup.
Serve immediately while hot.
For the garnishing
Ingredients
4 strawberries
4 raspberries
6 blueberries
edible flowers
For assembly
Remove the chocolate domes.
First add a teaspoon of raspberry puree to the bottom of the dome. Place the almond crunch disk in to fit.
Next place the sponge on top of the disk, fruit facing up. Pipe the mascarpone mousse around the sponge and cover it completely. Place the dragon fruit gelatine dome on to the mousse.
Garnish the top with strawberries, raspberries and blueberries and edible flowers.
Seal the top half of the dome on and decorate with a few edible flowers.
Then destroy all that hard work by pouring over the hot-hot strawberry sauce, and wait for it to blossom in front of your eyes.