Barry Callebaut hires Chicago pastry chef

Barry Callebaut, the world's leading manufacturer of cocoa and chocolate products, hired executive pastry chef Richard Cusick to join its team of technical advisers at the Zurich-based company's Chocolate Academy, which recently opened in Chicago.

executive pastry chef Richard Cusick

Cusick, a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America and an American Culinary Federation-certified executive pastry chef, has been the executive pastry chef at Chicago restaurants Ambria, Everest and Charlie Trotter's. He also was an instructor and chair of the pastry program at the Cooking and Hospitality Institute of Chicago, and currently is a member of the Research Chefs Association's Certification Commission.

In his new role, Cusick will help teach a range of seminars, demonstrations, theoretical courses and practical workshops on chocolate applications and processing techniques. Classes at the Chocolate Academy are specifically designed for artisans and culinary professionals including pastry chefs, confectioners, bakers and caterers.

"Chef Cusick's experience working in the kitchens of some of Chicago's best-known restaurants will be an invaluable resource for the culinary professionals who come to the academy with the goal of improving their skills in working with fine chocolate," said Massimo Garavaglia, president of Barry Callebaut North America, in a statement.