Meet our Junior Chocolate Masters 2024 Finalists - Taraya Boyes
Meet our Junior Chocolate Masters 2024 Finalists - Taraya Boyes
Our 10th edition of the Junior Chocolate Masters competition takes place at the UK & Ireland Chocolate Academy on 25 July.
We're thrilled to introduce you to our 2024 Finalists.
Meet Finalist Taraya Boyes, Chef at Gavins Mill Glasgow and Chocolatier Assistant at Cocoa Black
Where did it all start? How did you fall in love with cooking, pastry and chocolate?
My passion for cooking, pastry & chocolate all began as a 7 year old helping my Dad prepare family meals during a 2 week holiday in a cottage in Durness in the far North of Scotland. During this same holiday we visited the start up of the now famous Cocoa Mountain & I was able to observe the production and sample their artisan chocolates & pastries Let’s be honest, very few kids don’t love chocolate! So by using some of their product back at the cottage to make crispy cakes & cookies, I suppose the seeds had been sown.
Once a teenager I came to realise that professional cookery was a career I wanted to pursue & so I left school as soon as I had the necessary qualifications to begin my studies.
A much deeper passion for learning advanced patisserie & chocolate arose during in my last few years of higher education whilst learning about the basics tempering right through to undertaking larger, more complex & ambitious pieces of chocolate work.
When I actually got the opportunity of hands on experience to develop & deep dive my knowledge & skills of working with chocolate this was truly the light bulb moment for me - not only was I interested in the subject but had the ability to actually do it & l absolutely loved it!
What or who is your greatest source of inspiration?
Oh boy this is tough question to answer because there’s so many elements of work from various companies & wide assortment of chef’s previous works of art that makes it difficult to list & name on what & who is inspiring me. Nevertheless, I will try to outline some of the main influences that peaked my interest from the start to embark on a voyage to discover more about chocolate & pastry.
My start in understanding chocolate has always been the works of Ewald Notter. His books on chocolate & sugar work have always been a bundle of joy for me to look though. If I wasn’t in class but wanted to look into the subject further, it was always his books I used for further study particularly in relation to artistry & how best to approach creating something of my own & construct
my own works of art & how to communicate as well as interpret my concepts to others.
His work and publications lead me to finding others like Stéphane Leroux when it came to books & In addition learning by research finding his son Nicoll Notter works of art based at New York Chocolate Academy.
In a truly personal capacity I must cite Ruth Hinks as being at the forefront of my many inspiration from the very first moments I got to find her School & witness her exquisite chocolate work so close to home.
I discovered Ruth whilst I was researching World Chocolate Masters but when I actually got to attend her classes after the pandemic & witness her work & approach at first hand in a very supportive environment it was truly inspirational & life affirming.
It has been a massive comfort to have Ruth in my life & her encouragement of my work has undoubtedly pushed me to consistently try to be the best person & Chef I can be - a debt of gratitude I can never repay.
What has been your favourite culinary creation so far?
My very first chocolate showpiece will always be my favourite, It was & remains such a memorable & amazing experience, a really beautiful day of joy. The buzz it created within me undoubtedly assisted in my further works at college working with Isomalt sugar work, pastillage structures & many more but that’s just to name a few.
I don’t think this original experience will ever be topped but I definitely constantly strive to do so - you could describe me as a chocolate adrenaline junky!
What motivated you to enter the Junior Chocolate Masters competition?
As a Young Chef with a deep passion for chocolate & pastry you will not be surprised that I have keenly followed the World Chocolate Masters Competition for many years both Pre & Post Pandemic & that applying to apply to take part at some future point has always been firmly on my To Do List!
However since that may not be for a long time or at least until I had amassed a great deal more hands on experience of chocolate work. Applying for Junior Chocolate Masters therefore felt like a no brainer to me.
It had been necessary for me to take a short career break to successfully deal with Personal Health Issues. In such times it is easy not only to feel isolated and disconnected but also for one’s self-confidence to be knocked.
I felt I needed something rekindle my passion, confidence and motivation. Applying for Junior Chocolate Maters Meeting has certainly helped me get my mojo back!
Hopefully this will offer me a unique opportunity to mix and compete with Young Chefs across the UK and Ireland, many who have been in the industry for a number of years longer than me, to learn and develop from them in the process.
Nevertheless, most importantly, for myself is to test & challenge what I learned during my journey in chocolate & pastry to date by showcasing my individual art and creativity to my contemporary peers.
What does the theme “play” evoke to you?
Play means & symbolises many things to many different people, some meanings I will share whilst others I may not. For example many see play being related almost exclusively the domain of children and younger people where I see no generational limits. Both young and old can benefit from some element of play in their lives. Play is educational and teaches us valuable life lessons
whether done individually or as part of a team. It helps to maintain our physical and mental health!
The concept of “Play “ for me is something that evokes the bundling up and tying together a mixed bag of of feelings & emotions. mainly positive in nature, such as entertainment, joy, exploration, challenge, discovery & learning to name but a few!
These are some of the elements that I have attempted to demonstrate in my entry as a homage to my earliest memories of exploring, interacting & playing in the beautiful natural countryside of Scotland.
Playing simple family games camping in the great outdoors, growing small fruit, wood burning pyrography & simple sketch art, are some of my earliest memories that still spark joyous memories of play for me.
Play in this case is not only what you explore outside but how you bring that into the chocolate world I.e. finding elements of play and developing these in your own chocolate creation.
I have also tried to incorporate tools & techniques from my past like art with wood which is a key element in my artwork.
I hope to explore through the medium of chocolate for this competition, how I shape what I have learned, my personal experience, to bring a sense of joy to others to interact & learn outside with others, by producing something both visually artistic & interactive
How are you preparing for the competition?
My preparation has featured a number or elements both physical and mental.
Practicing at home the bonbons and patisserie elements when I’m not in a work in my my own time.
I of course am also practicing both of these elements along with my bigger chocolate work piece in a working kitchen environment to ensure my peers I have professional work ethics, discipline & in the right state of mind for Competition Day in July
I have spoken & corresponded with many previous competitors to learn from those who have had much more experience.
I have sought their input as to the types of challenges I am likely to face whilst competing & have tried to take on board what they suggest & what they would expect to look for from a professional point of view.
I have also networked with some Renowned Pastry Chefs & Artisan Chocolatiers around my area & helping them out practically so that handling & working with chocolate becomes almost second nature & that I develop some degree of muscle memory.
What is your favourite chocolate? Why?
For me I would say it’s Alunga - although in many ways I feel like a parent being asked to choose their favourite child.
Although almost an impossible decision this chocolate is the one I would stand by if I had to only choose one & work with for the rest of my life. It’s a milk chocolate with to me the perfect amount of cocoa taste, not too much or too light, it’s fluidity is brilliant for most applications like the moulded bonbons & patisserie elements I plan to use it for in the competition.
It works with so many palette flavours without the chocolate itself being overly bitter or under whelming.
Any ambition for the future you'd like to share with us?
I always plan to have something around the development of chocolate in my lifetime even if at this stage I’m still learning and developing. Ideally I would like to concentrate my chocolate or cocoa butter business venture around the concepts of fair trade, ethical trading & sustainability which are close to my heart through my Voluntary Work. Keeping up & further pursue networking opportunities around the world.
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