The key ingredient
Ron Ben-israel makes TV’S ‘Sweet Genius’ a delicious surprise
Squid ink and bone marrow aren’t typical baking ingredients.
Then again, “Sweet Genius” isn’t a typical baking show.
With wedding cake designer Ron Ben-israel as its host, the Food Network competition tests the pastry prowess of chefs across the country.
“It takes a certain type of chef to play with me,” says Ben-israel, who serves as the show’s sole judge. “You need to have not just talent and expertise, but wit.”
Every week, Ben-israel throws out three over-the-top challenges with surprise ingredients, inspirational objects and, of course, a ticking clock.
The chef who makes it to the top goes home with a $10,000 cash prize.
Now in its second season, “Sweet Genius” has been a fun change for Ben-israel, whose past television experience only consisted of guest spots on talk shows.
“I enjoyed talking about trends and designs, but I wanted to show the magic of dessert,” he says.
And the sugar-packed series has had a fair share of sweet surprises despite the odd ingredient list.
“Pastry chefs are all about discipline and control. It’s not easy for them to use toaster pastries, but our pastry kitchen has the most modern mixers and ovens. You can create great things quickly,” he says.
“In the first season, there was a really good brittle. I got the flavors of the caramel and chocolate with bits of crunch from pumpkin seeds and popcorn.”
Though the cake guru has had many careers — he was a member of the Israeli army, a ballet dancer and fine arts student — Ben-israel has always been amazed at how a handful of ingredients can become a composed dessert.
As a kid, he would help his mom bake, watching “a humble egg white become a meringue, cake, ice cream, buttercream.” Out of everything they made, Ben-israel was fondest of mom’s apple strudel and flourless chocolate cake, a treat that he still whips up every Passover.
“I make the recipe as simple as possible. Since chocolate burns easily, I use a microwave instead of a double burner, which is unconventional in the pastry kitchen.”
To celebrate, Ben-israel holds a Seder at his apartment in the Village and brings out his culinary side.
“I take pride in my chicken soup with lemongrass and ginger,” he says. “Of course, I always serve cake for dessert.”