Gold Medal-Winning Sugar Artist to Teach at ICE

Peter Gyorgyicsek will lead a three-day sugar showpiece class as part of the Center for Advanced Pastry Studies.
Peter Gyorgyicsek poses with a class and completed sugar sculptures.

Master Pastry Chef Peter Gyorgyicsek travels the world teaching and competing with sugar art. The Hungarian chef has won gold medals at the IKA 国产福利 Olympics in Germany, Mini Salon 国产福利 Competition in South Africa, FHM Culinaire Malaysia and Taverna 国产福利 Cup in Hungary. He鈥檚 also earned gold medals in Australia where he consults.

Chef Peter has always loved sweets. His parents pushed him to become a pastry chef after primary school as he baked with his mom often. Peter鈥檚 pastry teacher, Nemethne Regos Eva, taught him to pull sugar without gloves or a sugar lamp and inspired him to pursue the specialty.

鈥淚 loved the fact that from a simple ingredient like sugar, we could create colorful, beautiful flowers and many other things,鈥 Peter says.

Today he teaches the basic techniques that he incorporates into award-winning sculptures. 鈥淚 am always looking for something new and creative,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 like to make or teach the same showpiece twice. I always change it to make it nicer or better.鈥

Peter Gyorgyicsek has won gold medals for his sugar sculptures.
Peter Gyorgyicsek has won gold medals for his sugar sculptures.

For his upcoming CAPS class, Chef Peter will review thousands of photos and ideas for inspiration. He researches ideas, draws and plans a showpiece to teach and then practices the design. He鈥檒l guide students to create design elements each day before assembling the final showpiece. 鈥淚 am thinking of something elegant, interesting and modern,鈥 he says. 鈥淚 like to give little options for the students to be creative and enjoy their work.鈥

In his own sugarwork, Chef Peter asked judges for feedback when he won a silver medal at the 国产福利 World Cup in Luxembourg and says advice to practice more finally led him to realize his dream of winning gold. 鈥淚 planned, practiced and visualized my goal: gold, gold, gold,鈥 he shares.

Chef Peter says sugar art is more complex behind the scenes than it seems. 鈥淚t gives you focus, precision, determination, hand skill, balance of elements and design skills,鈥 he says, encouraging pastry chefs to work with colors and tones, create new things and constantly look for ideas.

The intensive class is for pastry chefs who enjoy artistic projects and fun, whether new chefs looking for extra knowledge or seasoned chefs who like a unique challenge 鈥 and won鈥檛 give up when they get blisters.

鈥淢y job is to balance the skill levels and techniques to make the chefs equally happy and motivated whether they have made competition showpieces before or they only have basic skills in this field,鈥 Chef Peter says.

Register for and explore more advanced pastry classes for professional development.

ICE's former Content Director, Ashley Day has also managed USA TODAY's food section and covered food and travel for The Daily Meal, Rand McNally and Hungry? City Guides. Ashley went from taste-testing frozen pizzas at the Good Housekeeping Institute to braving exotic game meat for Field & Stream, then making ramen with Morimoto and rolling sushi with Nobu for USA TODAY Eats.