From the infamous Cronut to Frozen S’mores, Dominique Ansel is always willing to blend pastry expertise with a touch of whimsy. As Talenti Gelato and Sorbetto’s new Chef Ambassador, Ansel unveiled The Dipped Whisk. This new sweet experience is the first course in their partnership.
Available exclusively at Dominique Ansel Bakery from March 28 through March 30, the specialty dessert mimics that pure bliss of licking a whisk. While this kitchen essential is golden whisk, that bougie serving piece is not the piece de resistance. The multi-layered handheld dessert captures what Ansel does best, whimsy with a touch of elegance.
Through his partnership with Talenti, Chef Dominique graciously spoke with me. From the inspiration behind his specialty dessert to food trends, chef’s insights have everyone saving room for a sweet treat.
Cristine Struble: Your idea for your Talenti-inspired dessert started with an eating moment, the stolen indulgence of licking a whisk. Do many of your flavor/dessert inspirations come from a moment or sense memory? Where do you find your creative inspiration when looking for new dessert ideas?
Dominique Ansel: So much of what we do as pastry chefs is about connecting with people and telling a story. Think about the very first time you baked something - it was probably with your mom or grandmother at home in your kitchen, making something simple like cookies or a cake or pie for a holiday or birthday. That's why cookies and milk are such a comfort food for people...it reminds them of childhood or a simple memory growing up, and it's that feeling that inspired us to create the Cookie Shot, for example.
For us, whether it's croissants or cakes on display, pastries are almost like silent movie stars - they cannot speak, so they have to evoke some sort of memory or story, and be easy to understand at first glance.
So when Talenti asked me to create a new dessert inspired by the Bakery Layers collection, I thought about that nostalgic feeling and how so many people have that childhood memory of licking whipped cream/batter from a whisk before your cake or cookies go into the oven. The Dipped Whisk has all these beautiful layers and textures of gelato, cookies, and espresso fudge, all served on a whisk with a dollop of vanilla Chantilly for that final touch.
CS: Talenti celebrates layers of textures and flavors. How important are layered textures to your dessert recipes? What makes contrasting textures and flavors so satisfying?
DA: For us, we're always thinking about how different layers, textures, and ingredients interact or contrast with one another as we're developing recipes and new pastries - whether it's that beautiful lamination in a croissant, or cakes with tiers of jam and ganache and biscuit, or golden flaky layers in a kouign amann or Cronut.
Years ago, I had wanted to turn our Frozen S'mores (an ice cream version of a s'more) into a pint of ice cream with the ingredients stacked in layers. We had spoken to a few different people and they all told me it's impossible to do. And then one day, I suddenly saw Talenti's Layers pints when I was walking through the supermarket - turns out, it IS possible. So when Talenti came to me with a challenge to create a dessert inspired by the new Bakery collection, I knew I wanted to make something unexpected.
To celebrate this launch with Talenti, I created The Dipped Whisk, a dessert that's crafted with the deconstructed layers found in the new Bakery Collection. It's all served atop a golden whisk, to evoke that experience of licking whipped cream or batter from a whisk while baking. The layers include:
Madagascan Vanilla Bean Gelato
Rich espresso fudge sauce
Crunchy stacks of shortbread, chocolate, and snickerdoodle cookies
All surrounded by a vanilla wafer cone and dipped in a light, creamy vanilla Chantilly to finish
CS: This special Talenti inspired dessert has a unique serving method. Does how a dessert is served change the overall experience? Should home bakers think about serving vessels, methods, etc. when planning their dessert recipes or dishes?
DA: We wanted to create a different way to experience ice cream, something unexpected that's presented in a unique way - the idea of using the whisk as a vessel for the ice cream and finishing it with that dollop of Chantilly created a more interactive dessert with that added nostalgic memory people have of licking the whisk as they bake.
For us at the Bakery, we always consider how a dish is served and how we can do so in a memorable way (for example, for the Cookie Shot, I wanted a new way for people to eat cookies and milk...so we transformed the cookie into the actual cup for milk. And for the Frozen S'more, it's an ice cream version of a s'more and inspired by summer campfires, so we made an ice cream center surrounded by marshmallow that's torched it to order on a smoked willow wood branch). Even for home bakers, you can get creative with dishware or garnishes or how something is plated, with whatever tools and ingredients you have at home. After all, as they say, you eat with your eyes first, so presentation can often be as important as the food itself.
CS: What is your favorite Talenti flavor? Do you always choose the same one or do you switch your preference based on season?
DA: It's been a lot of fun tasting and experimenting with all the flavors in the Bakery Collection. Tiramisu has always been one of my favorite desserts, so I'm partial to the new Tiramisu flavor. But if I had to choose from all of Talenti's flavors, it has to be the Alphonso Mango Sorbetto. It's smooth and creamy in texture, and tastes just like fresh and juicy ripe Alphonso mangoes.
CS: What do you think could be the next dessert trend? Are people more open to new flavors, textures, ingredients? Or, are they craving a taste of nostalgia that feels comforting?
DA: I'm excited to see the next generation of pastry chefs thinking out of the box. One on hand, there's an embracing of new ways to experience dessert, even incorporating new technologies - for example, in our Las Vegas shop at Caesars Palace, we designed a 24/7 Cookie Shot Vending Machine, a robot that can serve you a just-baked Cookie Shot and even fill it with our homemade vanilla milk around the block.
And on the other hand, there's also been a re-discovering of the classics, and the classics done well. People are learning to appreciate the craft of perfecting something, like the simplicity of a croissant for example. It's a pastry that may seem so basic at its core, but in actuality it's perhaps the hardest pastry to perfect and takes years and years of practice. I think it all comes back to that sense of memory and nostalgia, the feeling you get when biting into a warm cookie just-out-of-the-oven, a single fresh-baked croissant (which I remember vividly growing up in France and visiting our local bakery, often a few times a day), or with the Talenti Dipped Whisk dessert, that core memory of licking whipped cream from a whisk as you bake. It's comfort food for so many of us.
For those fortunate enough to get their own taste of the Talenti Dipped Whisk, the experience and flavor will etch a forever memory. Although at home cooks might not be able to create the dessert exactly, opening one of the Talenti Bakery Collection flavors can inspire a personal creation that captures the sentiment experience when licking that golden whisk.
The Talenti Bakery Collection can be found at various retailers. Check with the brand’s website for more information.
The Dipped Whisk is available exclusively at Dominique Ansel Bakery in New York City from March 28-30, 2025.