NAFFS Winter Meeting Report

The National Association of Flavors and Food-Ingredient Systems (NAFFS) held its Winter Meeting February 2 at The French Culinary Institute, New York. The program began with a live demonstration by executive chef Lee Anne Wong of The French Culinary Institute's International Culinary Theater. Wong, a leading chef and supervising culinary producer of Bravo's Top Chef program, focused on a wide variety of exotic flavor combinations now being incorporated into chocolate. The latest chocolate trends and their application in both sweet and savory dishes were also explored during this audience-participation program. The program concluded with a five-course lunch where attendees were treated to modern French cuisine prepared by some of tomorrow's most promising chefs in L'Ecole Restaurant. Attendees returned from the event with a deeper understanding of how chocolate behaves scientifically when heated and cooled and the new flavor families being integrated into chocolate creations.