Confectioner of Festival
The highlight of this year's festival was participation of the world-famous chocolatier-confectioner from Uzhhorod - Valentine Shtefanio in the Chocolate Festival.
Guru of chocolate creativity lead interesting workshops; demonstrates virtuosos’ show of creating huge chocolate sculptures. Master impressed Festival visitors by 2 meter giant sculpture of a lion made of chocolate.
Reference on Valentin’s Shtefanio background:
Valentyn Shtefanio was born on September 28, 1978. He graduated from culinary school number 20 in Uzhgorod. He is married. Together with his wife Victoria he is bringing up his three-year-old daughter Vanessa.
Despite his young age, Valentin is a multiple winner of the prestigious international competitions of professional skills on the international level:
1997 - Studying in his second year, he took first place in the pastry competition of Euro-Carpathian region between the culinary schools;
In 2004 - Together with his sister he participated in a cooking competition, held in France. Among 17 teams, they took the 11th place;
2007 – He participated in the National French Contest (all participants were French, Valentin Shtefanio was the only Ukrainian) - won the Special Jury Prize;
2007 - World Cup in France. Qualifying was held in Ukraine. Valentin and his sister took fourth place there, sharing it with the team from Canada.
Valentin works with the French chocolate. The most famous chocolate sculptures by Valentine: giant chocolate fir-tree, a giant chocolate Easter egg chocolate, and even chocolate Nativity set that confectioner made to order for the birthday.
It was Valentin's chocolate Easter egg, weighing 22.5 kg, was placed in the Book of Records in Ukraine. This product was exhibited in Kiev, in “Ukrainian House” during Easter exhibition.
Chocolate Christmas tree, decorated with chocolate Christmas-tree decorations, which weighs 20 kg, still pleases the eye of Uzhgorodians and its guests in the cafe that buys most of Valentin’s confectionery.
Valentin’s real masterpiece is a wedding dress of his wife Victoria. Valentin made it with custard cakescovered with whipped egg whites with powder sugar. It weighed 15 kilograms! This dress then was displayed in a cafe on mannequin.
