Roland Mesnier has many photos of himself with former US presidents and their families, including Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush and George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton.

"When most families arrive at the White House, they tell me they don't really care for desserts. But that generally lasts about two weeks," says Mesnier, who retired in 2004 after 25 years as the White House's executive pastry chef.

Even so, the dessert master is not slowing down. The 66-year-old brought his dessert-making experience of 50 years to China last week, as the chief technical consultant for Panpan Foods Co, Ltd.

In this role he has been showing off a new product developed with the company, a biscuit called sweetheart.

"This is the first dessert I have made in China, and I hope it makes Chinese feel like they are having breakfast with US presidents," Mesnier says.

Roland Mesnier

"I heard the character pan shares the same pronunciation with 'hoping for the best', in Chinese. I sincerely hope my Chinese friends can win their sweetheart in the future."

Fang Wenyu, a customer, says after tasting the cookie,"Unlike the usual brick-form cookies, it doesn't taste crisp. Instead, it tastes as soft as cheese and has a pleasant aftertaste."

Mesnier says all his products are his own recipes simple but delicious. He credits his success to his mother.

He was born to a railway worker's family of nine children in France, during World War II, when the nation was plunged into poverty.

"Fortunately, my mother was very good at cooking. She could always make delicious food with limited ingredients," Mesnier says.

His mother advised him to go into catering, so he would never suffer hunger. He became a pastry chef's apprentice aged 14.

Like most apprentices, Mesnier was only given menial tasks and his pay was equivalent to $1 a month, with room and board.

"The first year, you did everything but pastries. You scrubbed the floor, cleaned the pots and pans. My nickname during that time was 'Hey, Stupid', " he recalls.

With his hard work and talent, Mesnier eventually found his way to Paris and has since been showing off his genius for pastries.

In 1979, he had a meeting with Rosalyn Carter, the then first lady of the United States, who was impressed by Mesnier's low-calorie, fruit-based desserts.

Over the next 25 years, he witnessed major world events from his small White House pastry kitchen.

He was well aware of the enormous pressure faced by the first families, so "when things were rough between two heads of state, I think my desserts may have softened them up a little bit", he says.

He recalls that on stressful days, the first families requested comfort food.

Bill Clinton would ask for mocha cake, although he was allergic to dairy, chocolate and wheat flour. Chelsea Clinton would skip dessert and eat fresh fruit after meals when she was dieting. Ronald Reagan sneaked big bowls of chocolate mousse behind his wife's back.

Mesnier is often asked to share his secrets for making desserts: "To inject your feelings into every dessert" is his answer.

"I keep doing one thing, which is to create love, happiness and sweet moments," he says. "It not just about cake. It's about a bond that unites me and my family and even presidents. My happiest moments were seeing their joyful faces after they tasted (my pastries)."

China Daily

(China Daily 06/18/2011 page12)