Young Ukrainian pastry chef Oleksandra Huz Hva Vladimizovich – known as Sasha – has joined the kitchen team at the Dalmore Inn in Blairgowrie.
Sasha, who is just about to turn 23, lives in Blairgowrie and now considers Scotland his second home. He comes to the Dalmore after a stint at Café Tabou in Perth.
Having trained in the Ukraine, he brings with him a full repertoire of Eastern European classic desserts. One of the most skilful of these is Napoleon cake, a confection composed of many layers of puff pastry with a whipped pastry cream filling and encrusted with more pastry crumbs, which is already proving very popular.
“The Napoleon cake is a personal favourite of mine, and I am very pleased it has gone down very well with the diners here,” said Sasha. “I like to put my own twist on these desserts which are based on classic recipes that I was taught at home.
“They’re a way of bringing a little bit of the Ukraine to Scotland. I like to try and be a very versatile pastry chef too,” he said. “I have a lot of skills to show and hope that the customers here in the coming months will very much enjoy my desserts.”
Although specialising in pastry, Sasha added that his Scottish friends love a savoury dish he makes – traditional Ukrainian Borsch.
“My friend ate three portions at one sitting,” he said.
Commenting on Sasha’s appointment, Dalmore Inn general manager Arnaud Merrouche said: “In a short space of time, he’s already made a huge impression with his delicious desserts.
“We’re all very impressed, and look forward to seeing what he comes up with in the coming months. We hope he’ll be very happy working here at The Dalmore Inn in the beautiful Vale of Strathmore.”
