Interview with Pastry Chef Malka Espinel of Johnny V’s — Fort Lauderdale, FL

Antoinette Bruno:What year did you start your culinary career? What inspired you to pursue cooking professionally?
Malka Espinel:My grandmother always cooked, and she inspired me to bake. I originally studied food engineering, but decided it was too technical for me. I worked a few summers in a restaurant and decided that it was what I wanted to do.

AB: Where have you worked professionally as a chef?
ME: All around Florida: Bittersweet, The Tides Hotel, Grove Isle, Astor Place, and The Sundy House in Del Ray.

AB: Did you attend culinary school?
ME: Yes, I have a degree from the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago (now The Cordon Bleu).

AB: Who are some of your mentors?
ME: My grandmother – she taught me to use what you have available, and to use tropical fruits.

AB: In which kitchens have you staged?
ME: Fauchon in Paris; Hoffman in Barcelona.

AB: What question gives you the most insight to a cook when you’re interviewing them for a position in your kitchen?
ME: I ask, “What are the most important things that you need to create a new dessert?”

AB: What advice would you offer young chefs just getting started?
ME: Keep it simple!

AB: Is there an ingredient that you feel is underappreciated or underutilized?
ME: Tropical fruits - they haven't been used nearly as much as they should.

AB: What are a few of your favorite flavor combinations?
ME: I like to use fruits and herbs. Flowers and fruits is another one.

AB: What’s your most indispensable kitchen tool?
ME: My Coldelite ice cream machine.

AB: At StarChefs we publish technique features for chefs to learn. Is there a culinary technique that you have either created or borrowed and use in an unusual way?
ME: I do a lot of infusions of creams with herbs and teas – like rosemary, tarragon, basil, jasmine tea, etc., and use them as bases for mousses, ice creams, custards, or whipped creams to finish desserts.

AB: What are your favorite cookbooks?
ME: Tropical Desserts by Andrew McFallen.

AB: What is your best pastry resource?
ME: My purveyors and the internet.

AB: Where do you like to go for culinary travel?
ME: Europe for pastry and also Spain.

AB: What languages do you speak?
ME: Spanish, Italian and a little French.

AB: Where do you like to eat pastry?
ME: Ice Box Café on Lincoln Road – its kind of a coffee shop.

AB: What trends do you see emerging in the restaurant industry now?
ME: I see a lot of new techniques becoming standard: sous vide for poaching, for making bases, etc.

AB: What is your pastry philosophy on food and dining?
ME: Stay true to the main flavors of your ingredients and keep it simple. I have total control over the pastry menu, but of course my clientele dictates what I can serve. Here they are more traditional – so I cater to that.

AB: Which person in history would you most like to cook for? Who would you most like to cook for you?
ME: I would like to cook for Simon Bolivar - he gave independence to South America. I would most like to try Albert Adria's pastry.

AB: How are you involved in your local culinary community? What are some of your favourite food-related charities?
ME: Project Newborn. We had to create desserts using Bailey's and serve them for their charity event. I also teach at the Art Institute in Ft. Lauderdale. I think that is a good way to give back.

AB: If you weren’t a chef what do you think you’d be doing?
ME: Something related to art, sculpture, or painting.

AB: What will success look like to you?
ME: I would like to be part of opening more restaurants and creating the menus. We’re working on opening a second Johnny V’s this year.