In the Villeneuvoise bakery “La Magie des pains”, young people can be said to have talent. We told you about it Dorian Hernandez who shone in the special M6 apprentice program “Best Bakery in France”. Now here is the journey of Manon Pennaneach, who at the age of 19 has just won the regional competition for the best butter croissant in Isigny.
The young woman, originally from Brittany, began a professional patent at the CFA in Avignon in September and won the apprentice apron at the La Magie des pains bakery. Before that, she obtained a vocational baccalaureate in Concarneau and passed an additional mention. “I didn’t want to stay in Brittany. I had already been following Laurent Bocquet (creator of La Magie des pains, ed) on Instagram for a year. I was very interested in the business, especially since in the future I would like to open my own bakery and work with sourdough“, says the young woman.
There, here he has been in the south for at least two years, the time to validate his diploma. But this is far from his only goal. Manon has been competing for several years now. At the age of 16 she came third in the regional competition for the best butter croissant in Isigny. She then won the departmental and regional stages of the competition for the best young baker (MJB) in France, and finished 2nd in the national final. She thus won her ticket for the international event that was to take place in Taiwan. But the pandemic has turned the program upside down. The final took place in Lyon in September 2021 and the Breton finished 2nd by team.
“Once you start racing, the hardest thing is to stop”
The palmares is already beautiful at just 19 years old. “I’m not naturally stressed. Once I’m in the contest, I’ve tried so hard that I know what to do and where to go. When stress is present, that’s when we make careless mistakes“, explains the young woman, who adds:”Once you start racing, the hardest part is stopping.“
This is not today’s resolution. A little less than a year ago Manon also enrolled in the Best Apprentice Baker. She was awarded departmental gold, regional gold and finally she passed the national test in October in Nantes. Again, the young woman won first place and thus bears the title of Best Apprentice Baker in France 2021. hers Hers version of buckwheat convinced the jurors by far. “In total, there were more than 7 hours of testing and we don’t lift our heads once“, he says. This victory is all the more impressive as he won it a month apart with the MJB.
Her latest success dates back to just two weeks ago: she finished 2nd in the chocolate brioche competition and won the regional competition for the best butter croissant in Isigny at the Valréas vocational school. What made the difference? “The crescent must have a well curved shape. The jurors also look at puff pastry, regularity, cooking, weight… We must also end up with a minimum of waste“, he explains, he is now preparing for the national croissant final which will take place in Normandy on 17 and 18 May.
Maria Meunier
Maria Meunier
