Definition: Marie-Antoine Carême

But Carême had magnificent gifts that enabled him to rise with prodigious speed. At around the age of fifteen, Carême joined a restaurant as a kitchen assistant. His frenzy to learn, his sudden and effortless progress, all pointed to him as a subject of exceptional quality. At seventeen, he joined the famous pastry chef Bailly on Rue Vivienne (whose client included Monsieur de Talleyrand, for whom he later worked) and became "premier tourtier" (head pastry chef). His master took an interest in him and allowed him to leave work to go and draw at the print room.Passionate about his art, he was entrusted with making the pièce montées for the consul's table. He produced extraordinary pieces that were universally admired. But to achieve this, he had to endure many sleepless nights! He only worked on his drawings and calculations after nine or ten o'clock in the evening. He therefore worked three quarters of the night. Carême did not separate architecture from pastry making and wrote this sentence: "There are five fine arts, namely: painting, sculpture, poetry, music and architecture, the main branch of which is pastry making." Carême then entered the service of Monsieur de Lavalette, whose table was famous and who received the most distinguished men of his time in politics, the army, the arts and the sciences, and where he tried to reconcile the union "of delicacy, order and economy".He remained for twelve years with the Prince de Talleyrand, whose table, he declared, was served with wisdom and grandeur. Carême was then called upon to serve as head chef to the Prince Regent of England, where he remained for two years. He provided the prince with a sensible and healthy cuisine and explained the properties of each dish to him every morning. "Carême," he said to him one day, "you will kill me with overeating. I want everything you present to me, and it is truly too tempting." ' 'Your Highness,' replied Carême, 'my main concern is to stimulate your appetite through the variety of my service, and it is not my place to regulate it.' But the English fog saddened him and Carême returned to France. When the Prince Regent became King George IV, he called for Carême again, but Carême refused. He did not like London, where everything was gloomy, where he was deprived of his friends and the attractive French conversation. And he wanted to make the most of the days that heaven would allow him to finish his books. Sovereigns and important figures fought over this chef who loved glory above all else and considered his profession a vocation. Here he was in Saint Petersburg with Emperor Alexander, at the court of Vienna, at the English embassy, at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle, at the home of Princess Bagration, at Lord Stewart's and finally at the Baron de Rothschild's, where he spent several years and whose table was considered, the finest in Europe during his time there. Baron de Rothschild, who had just purchased the Ferrières estate, offered him the position of head chef at the château, adding that he could even retire there. But Carême declined the offer. His health had been exhausted by the incessant effort he had been making for thirty years. His wish was not to end his days in a château but in a humble dwelling in Paris. Moreover, he felt that his task was not yet complete. "I still have," he declared, "to publish a book on the entire state of my profession at the present time." He fell seriously ill and was confined to bed, his greatest concern being to leave unfinished work that he considered essential to his art. He died before reaching the age of fifty, on 12 January 1833, consumed by the flame of his genius and the coal of the roasting ovens. He spent his last moments dictating admirable notes to his daughter.

Carême's life was a model of integrity and nobility. Money was not important to him; only his art mattered. His conception of the culinary arts was in keeping with the greatness of his character. Carême dreamed of a sumptuous presentation for the marvels with which he graced royal tables. He had thoroughly studied the works of classical architects to compose his designs for pièce montées. Today, we no longer understand this ostentatious way of showcasing cuisine. We have banned pomp from our tables as much for hygiene as for necessity. However, while he believed that cuisine should be decorative, he also professed that it should be in keeping with hygiene. He wrote in a majestic style, as pompous as his pastry architecture.

He died poor, leaving behind only his works:

- Le maître d'hôtel français.

Parallèle de la cuisine ancienne et moderne considérée sous le rapport de l'ordonnance des menus à servir selon les quatre saisons, à Paris, à Saint-Pétersbourg, à Londres et à Vienne.

- The Royal Parisian Pastry Chef

An elementary and practical treatise illustrated with forty-one plates by the author.

- The Parisian Cook

- The art of cooking in the^19th century

- The Picturesque Pastry Chef (illustrated with 128 plates by the author).

Reading his works, we see how highly Carême thought of his art. His work displays a rare erudition that reveals a true love for his profession. Carême must be regarded as the founder of haute cuisine. His work as a theorist, sauce maker, pastry chef, illustrator and author of books on cooking sets him apart from all those who preceded him in his career.