Ever wondered what it would be like to develop desserts for a living? Well, your wish is our command, and now it's time to meet Emily, who's got the amazing job of being Gü's Development Sous Chef. We've been chatting to Emily to get the inside scoop on what it takes to be one of Gü's taste makers. So read on to find out if tasting all those treats is all it's cracked up to be. SPOILER ALERT: yes, yes, it is.
Here at Gü, we love to layer, so we’re diving in the layers you need to be a Gü Chef. Ready to go behind the scenes of the legendary Gü kitchen to find out what it takes to be a Gü Chef? Let’s dive in.
Layer 1: Start Every Day With A Gü Crew Brew
Gü HQ: How does your typical day look?
Emily: The first thing I do when I enter the Gü kitchen is make a cup of tea (and offer the team one too of course). Every day is different at Gü so it's difficult to tell you what I do on a daily basis, but it generally starts with checking emails, and catching up with my Head Chef and our Development Assistant. Most days are very hands on, so I'll be in the kitchen pretty much all day.
Layer 2: Develop Delicious New Gü
Gü HQ: What kinds of things does a Gü Development Chef work on?
Emily: I mainly work on new projects, creating new desserts for upcoming launches. Typically, we have a year from the new idea, to launch, so it's very fast paced! We need to make sure that everything we make in the Gü kitchen can be translated to the factory process, so we test as we go and work closely with our amazing Product Launch Technologists.
Some projects seem to work out quicker than others, but often we have to do multiple versions of a recipe, tweaking a little each time, to get the perfect balance of flavours and textures. We also have a handful of meetings to make sure we are all aligned on each project.
Gü HQ: And we bet there's a lot of tasting along the way?
Emily: Oh yes, we have to taste A LOT of desserts. My mum always says to me "it's a hard job, but someone has to do it". So, my tastings could be for recipe testing, shelf-life reports or recipe approval. The end of my day always finishes in finding out what the team are having for dinner, it's my last bit of inspiration for the working day.
Layer 3. Be Passionate About Creativity. And Desserts.
Gü HQ: What's the best thing about being a Gü Development Chef?
Emily: My favourite thing about working at Gü is the creativity. My passion for desserts can really shine through. My second favourite thing is the team I work in. It's a very small team, but everyone is so supportive and caring. It's so important to love your team when you spend more time at work than at home, and I'm truly lucky to be where I am.
When I speak to my mum about work, she's always amazed at what I do, tasting desserts all day and having meetings about sprinkles. My family and partner are all very supportive and have been since I started out as a chef. It’s not a job any of them have experienced and they know the graft that it takes to be successful as a chef.
Layer 4. Learn To Keep Secrets About New Gü
Gü HQ: Can you give us any clues about what you're cooking up next, to tickle our tastebuds?
Emily: Ooooh that would be telling! I'm afraid I'm sworn to secrecy. But I can tell you there is chocolate involved, LOTS of chocolate. And... that's really all I can say, sorry! Watch this space.
Layer 5. Discover Why There's More to Gü
Gü HQ: What have you've learnt that you never knew before being at Gü?
Emily: I've learnt countless things in my time at Gü so far, I really can't list them! Fred is such a great Head Chef and teacher when it comes to all things patisserie. But I have to say that one thing that I didn't expect to learn was about my self-confidence. I've grown so much as a person in my year at Gü so far, I have always been a positive person, but not necessarily very confident. But peoples' respect and support has really allowed me to come out of my shell and be the best version of myself.
Gü HQ: We are aaaaallll about the layers, so can we peel back some of your layers to get to know you outside of work?
Emily: In my spare time I like to see friends and family, and all the pets that come with them. I also like to discover new places to eat or new recipes. I love hosting too; I'd love to host more dinner parties but it's just finding the time! My partner and I have just bought our first home so there won't be time for much else in the coming months, apart from pulling up carpets and peeling off wallpaper!
Gü HQ: So, you are literally peeling back the layers, of old wallpaper. Didn't see that coming.
OK, now for a difficult one: what's your favourite Gü treat?
Emily: Oooh, it's so tricky to pick my favourite Gü! Recently, Gü Gold Cheesecake hit the shelves and as that was my first big project, it's amongst my favourite, as it's a milestone for me, as well as being a limited edition. Gü Gold is getting loads of great feedback, so that is really exciting. If I had to choose an existing Gü, it'd probably have to be Dark Chocolate & Salted Caramel Mousse. A clean, simple but super indulgent dessert.
Gü HQ: Mmmmm stop, you're giving us chocolate cravings! How many Gü treats do you actually get to eat?
Emily: It's hard to imagine, I know, but you really can have too much of a good thing. So, unless I really fancy a sweet treat, I rarely eat a whole Gü. Normally, if we're doing a tasting session, we'll share them as we need to try up to ten different desserts. Some days, we will only have one dessert to try, but other days we may have three or four tasting sessions back-to-back, so water and a salty snack after are a must to try and balance all the sweetness.
So, there you have it. It is actually possible to have too much Gü, who knew? We haven't got to that level just yet, but we are giving it our best shot. Like Emily's mum says, it's a hard job, but Emily gets to do it.
