Life is Sweet

While he was attending Faith Christian School in Roseto, Pa., Alan Pitotti, Northampton Community College (NCC) graduate, had a French language class that sparked his interest in studying culinary arts. Every week the teacher would dedicate a day to French cuisine, and he became intrigued.

“I knew I loved cooking at home with my mom. I come from a big Italian family, and she made the most delicious meals. I’d rather be cooking than doing my homework when I was in school,” says Pitotti.

In 1995, Pitotti came to NCC to discover more about the world of cooking. He graduated with a specialized diploma in culinary arts, a new diploma option at the time. He loved that he had the chance to learn the subject hands-on with a small class size, so he never felt overwhelmed: “I graduated high school with only 16 kids. That individualized attention in the classroom was very helpful, and I was used to it. I didn’t feel like I was thrown into an entirely foreign environment.”

Pitotti’s time at NCC made him realize that baking and pastry interested him most; he liked the precision of pastry with its measurements and regimented processes. He went on to earn an associate degree in baking and pastry arts from the Culinary Institute of America (CIA) in New York City, where he was able to experiment with the artistry of chocolate.

When he graduated from CIA, Pitotti worked at places like Hershey Hotel, where he had his hand in chocolate creations. Later, he moved on to Le Bec-Fin, a restaurant run by a French chef.

“A lot of the pastry that I make today is inspired by this restaurant, like my lemon meringue tart, for example,” he says.

His journey took him to Florida where he had the opportunity to work for well-known chocolatier and pastry chef Norman Love, and this is where he first made artisan chocolate.

When his father unexpectedly passed away in 2007, Pitotti moved back home to be close to his mother and family. Along with his wife and daughter, the family wanted to put down roots, so they decided to start their own business. The doors to Dolce Patisserie, located in Hellertown, Pa., opened in May 2008. The location was easy to reach, especially for those traveling from New Jersey or New York.

“We could become a destination here, so we put our blood, sweat, and tears into opening,” Pitotti recalls. “We did almost all of our own remodeling and construction. Friends and family were a huge help during that time.”

Pitotti says that NCC has been pivotal in marketing his business. Many of the professors would tell him about local area events where he could bring his creations for the community to taste and try. He feels experiencing something firsthand is the best marketing a business can have in this industry.

He also participated in college events as an alumnus, like the Hampton Winds 30^th Anniversary Celebration held last fall. Hampton Winds is the teaching restaurant of the NCC culinary arts program. Each of the event's five courses were selected and overseen by different program alumni, with inspiration from the original Hampton Winds menu. The grads each collaborated with a pair of students earlier that week on their contribution to the meal. Pitotti collaborated with a current student on a milk chocolate caramel crème brûlée with a candied pecan sablé breton. The dessert was a highlight of the evening.

Dolce Patisserie offers daily artisan chocolates, barks, pecan turtles, toffees, macaroons, and croissants. Patrons can find  a rotating assortment of pastries and tarts on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday each week. The shop also takes advance orders for special occasion cakes.

Pitotti enjoys creating artisan chocolates with beautiful designs – a fresh canvas with every piece. For example, his seasonal blueberry coconut chocolates combine two different airbrushed blues for the shell, hinting at what is inside.

“So many people love chocolate,” he says. “It makes people happy to receive a box of chocolate with a variety of colors and designs as opposed to just a sea of brown. It’s a treat for the eyes. I love that I can help make someone smile and light up in that way.”

Tempering quality chocolate, or chocolate couverture, is another process Pitotti loves. Because high quality chocolate has a higher concentration of cocoa butter, it makes the chocolate smoother, optimizing the taste. Once the chocolate is melted, the cocoa butter separates, and tempering the chocolate with cooling and movement re-introduces the fat crystals and allows the treat to set properly.

Pitotti also has a signature cake that incorporates chocolate married with raspberry, a flavor combination that appeals to many. It consists of two layers of chocolate cake, with chocolate mousse, fresh raspberries, and a chocolate glaze. The real treat, he says, is a vanilla bean crème brûlée center: “Having that extra layer of texture with the vanilla bean is a nice and surprising element.”

Pitotti continues to experiment in the kitchen and excite people’s palates, an adventure that started when he first stepped through the doors at NCC.