From Self-Taught to Confident: Teaching Pastry at Remote Safari Lodges

What happens when you bring refined pastry training to some of the most remote kitchens on the planet? In this episode, we speak with Charlotte Desamais, a pastry consultant who works across safari lodges in Africa, helping self-taught chefs master techniques that would be challenging even in a fully equipped kitchen.

Charlotte explains how working with limited equipment and ingredients has sharpened rather than constrained her approach, turning environmental limitations into creative problem-solving. She talks about adapting classical baking methods to tropical climates, high altitudes, and kitchens where nothing is standard.

At the heart of this conversation is the human side of training: building confidence in chefs who have never had formal instruction, and showing that great baking is not about perfect equipment but about understanding your ingredients, your environment, and the people you are working with.