A decadent love affair

Mysterious, adventurous, sexy… Nicola Eksteen was not talking about her husband when she wistfully uttered these words.

Our apologies Etienne, but this is how the acclaimed pastry chef described her glorious love affair with rich, decadent, dark chocolate.

“Melt it, pour it over, spread it, dip something into it, or wrap something in it. No matter how you use chocolate, it’s delicious. I love chocolate,” admitted Nicola, who once went through 23kg of chocolate in just one week with five of her colleagues while studying at the pastry school, Prue Leith, in Centurion.

“We even made little chocolate chefs out of modelling chocolate,” she laughed.

Like many Newcastillians, Nicola was disappointed when the ‘Chocolate Experience’ with Lesley Jacobs was postponed this month, but is eagerly looking forward to his demonstrations with chocolate and coffee, and with chocolate and whisky, in March.

Nicola knew at a very young age that she wanted to be a pastry chef. Watching her grandmother, Frieda, baking a milk tart or traditional malva pudding on a rainy day, offering to help in the kitchen and waiting for an opportunity to lick the bowl, she inadvertently took the first tentative steps toward fulfilling her goal.

“By the time I reached Standard 8 (Grade 10) at Ferrum High, I knew that I wanted to be a chef so I chose subjects like Home Economics, and straight after matric, I enrolled at the International Hotel School in Sandton,” said Nicola.

What followed were three gruelling years of early mornings and very late nights at Irene Country Lodge in Centurion, where Nicola completed her internship as a chef.

With her Diploma in Professional Cookery in hand, she jetted off to the American Hospitality Academy and studied under the critical eye of a French pastry chef at the Marco Beach Ocean Resort in Florida.

“It was there that the pastry bug bit me,” explains Nicola. “I was so afraid of this French chef. I never really understood what he said because he only spoke in French and I spent a lot of time on Google translate. He was also very disciplined and strove for consistency. If he baked 50 of something, every single one had to be just perfect and exactly the same, but I loved his flair and his style from plating and design, to the thought that went into each dish and the elements that went into putting it together.”

The one recipe that Nicola will always value in her little black book, falling apart now from years of regular use, is a warm chocolate cake recipe that she learned from the French chef.

“He made one mean warm chocolate cake,” she said. “I loved it so much in Florida and I really learned a lot, but I returned to South Africa in 2010 to get married to Etienne Eksteen.

On her return, Nicola enrolled at the Prue Leith Pastry School, and after obtaining her Pastry Diploma began working as a pastry chef at the Tramonto Restaurant, where she has spent the last 18 months.

While one her favourite desserts, and best rated among customers, is her vanilla crème brulee, it is ultimately a warm chocolate cake with delicious dark chocolate spread over it that really hits the spot, particularly on a chilly winter’s day.

Asked which chocolate was her favourite, Nicola answered without hesitation, “For baking, I love couverture chocolate, Barry Callabaut and Valrohna, but these have to be ordered from a supplier. They are not available on the shelf. Off the shelf, Lindt dark chocolate has to be my favourite. There’s nothing better than a box of Lindt chocolate while vegging out on the couch. I do make my own chocolate at home from time to time and Etienne, of course, is my tasting buddy.”

She continued, “I am so excited about Lesley Jacobs coming to Newcastle to learn new ideas and techniques on how to use chocolate and I am keen to attend the chocolate course offered at the Lindt Studio in Johannesburg, which I believe is also very good.”

The worst chocolate that Nicola has ever tasted is baking chocolate.

“The stuff is one step away from being plastic, which is why it tastes so bad. It’s not real chocolate but many bakers like to use it because it is more pliable and easier to work with than chocolate.”

Being the chocolate fanatic that she is, we asked Nicola if she was concerned about putting on weight. She responded, “Everything in moderation. A bit of chocolate is actually good for your health. While I am not a crazy fitness freak, I do live an active lifestyle. Not only to I work my behind off, but when I have time off, I enjoy walking the dog and Etienne and I play tennis and squash.”

Nicola concluded with these words of inspiration, “If you aspire to be a chef someday, just go for it. While many see being a chef as a glamorous job, there is a lot of hard work in it, and for many this is a reality check when they get in the field. Once you get there, however, it is great fun and it gives you the opportunity to travel the world and enjoy what makes life wonderful… great food.”