Hiva Manutahi, an alumna of the Diplôme de Pâtisserie with Internship Pathway, came third in the Best Charentes-Poitou PDO Butter Croissant in the Grand Paris competition, apprentice category. 

The results were announced on Monday, 15 May 2023, during the traditional Fête du Pain held on the square in front of Notre Dame de Paris. Since 2022, she has been a pastry and bakery assistant at Le Cordon Bleu Paris and produces croissants every day at the Le Café, open to the public from Monday to Friday.

The competition for the Best Charentes-Poitou PDO Butter Croissant in the Grand Paris rewards the best croissant in Île-de-France. Candidates must make curved croissants, imperatively made with pure Charentes-Poitou PDO butter and weighing between 45 and 65 grams, cooked weight.
To be among the 3 finalists of the competition, Hiva Manutahi followed training sessions with Chef Martelli, Pastry Chef Instructor at Le Cordon Bleu Paris, and Chef Danniel, Head of the Pastry and Boulangerie Department.
She found time to prepare for the competition after her daily production. Her training began with the kneading, then the shaping, the pushing and finally the baking of the croissants. All these steps are very time consuming, so it requires having a very professional attitude to make an excellent croissant.

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At the institute, we have professional equipment that allows us to have good organization and to be autonomous quickly. Thanks to all these elements, I was able to accomplish my mission in perfect conditions 

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Her secret to a good croissant? It must be flaky, honeycombed, melting, have a beautiful overall appearance and perfect regularity. To make it, you must first have quality flour," she says. At the institute, the teams work with Moulins Viron, which delivers their different types of flour every week, and which is one of the mills with an excellent level of quality. They also add a very good PDO butter from Charentes-Poitou, Guérande salt, sugar, quality honey, whole milk, and sourdough, made at the institute, every day.

The entire Le Cordon Bleu Paris team congratulates Hiva on this great achievement!