10:15am - 11:00am
Keitaro Goto
Chef/Owner - Jacques Torres Chocolate
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BTS: From Concept to Centerpiece
Chef Ken Goto of Jacques Torres Chocolate brings his signature craftsmanship to the culinary stage, where a live demonstration of a celebrated chocolate creation offers a closer look at the techniques and flavors behind the iconic name.
11:15am - 12:00pm
Charles Niedermyer II
Chef - Instructor, Pennsylvania College of Technology
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Hand-panning at Home: Sweet and Savory Applications
Charles is a baking and confectionery professional with over 25 years of experience and has taught baking and pastry arts at Pennsylvania College of Technology since 2005. His honors include the 2023 RCAP Candy Hook Award, recognition as one of Bake Magazine’s Twenty-Five Top Educators, and being named a Top Ten Pastry Chef in America by Dessert Professional Magazine, along with a Distinguished Teaching Award from Penn College.
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In addition to teaching, he has consulted across bakeries, chocolate factories, restaurants, and hotels, and frequently presents at national conferences. He leads large-scale production for the Kentucky Derby each year and serves as a guest instructor for Penn State’s Department of Food Science. His work has been featured in Pastry Arts Magazine, Bake Magazine, Kettle Talk, and Dessert Professional Magazine.
12:15pm - 1:00pm
Presented by Nielsen-Massey Vanilla & Flavors​​
Francine Segan - Food Historian
Aleksandra Crapansano - Author
Chi Bui - Chocolatier/R&D Chef, Nielsen-Massey Vanilla & Flavors
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Culture, Craftsmanship, and Evolution of Vanilla and Chocolate
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Chi Bui is a chocolatier and R&D chef driven by relentless curiosity about ingredient sourcing and processing, and a deep respect for the farmers, producers, and makers behind them. As former Head Chocolatier at Thomas Keller’s K+M Extra virgin Chocolate and Principal R&D Chef at Chew Innovation—where her work earned industry awards and a patent—she has shaped products that bridge craft, science, and scalable manufacturing. Now working in food and beverage design, Chi operates at the intersection of business strategy, product innovation, and operations. She collaborates with partners to turn ideas into viable
products and to broaden meaningful choices for consumers.
Francine Segan is a food historian, public speaker and James Beard-nominated author of six books including Dolci: Italy’s Sweets and Opera Lover’s Cookbook. She writes for numerous publications including La Cucina Italiana and Italy Magazine and lectures across the USA at the Institute for Advanced Study at Princeton University, Smithsonian Museum in DC, Virginia Fine Arts Museum and Museum of Natural History.
Aleksandra Crapanzano is a journalist, screenwriter, cookbook author, and consultant. Her fourth book, Chocolat, was published in October. It is the second in a series on French baking that began with the bestseller Gâteau: The Surprising Simplicity of French Cakes. Her essays and reporting have appeared in nearly every major publication including The Atlantic, The New York Times Magazine and The Wall Street Journal, where, from 2010 to 2025, she wrote a food column and contributed countless articles on design, travel and fragrance. Her work has been honored with The M.F.K. Fisher Award for Distinguished Writing from the James Beard Foundation and, internationally, with the Best in Pastry Gourmand Award, and her essays have been widely anthologized, most notably in Best American Food Writing.
1:15pm - 2:00pm
Josh Lanning
Chef - BrightSide Kitchen
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Braised Cocoa Nib Brisket with Chocolate Bordelaise
Joshua Lanning is a chef driven by place, season, and community rather than trends, a philosophy that defines BrightSide Kitchen, his Peoria, Illinois–based culinary ecosystem.
Trained at the French Culinary Institute and shaped by kitchens including Del Posto, Casa Mono, Noma, Michelin three-star SingleThread, and collaborations with chef Sean Brock, Lanning returned home to build thoughtful, accessible concepts rooted in craft and context. Through projects like Bright O Bagels, Brightbelly Ramen, and BrightBird Chicken Sandwich, Joshua Lanning is focused on creating lasting hospitality that reflects his Midwestern roots while investing deeply in the city that shaped him.
2:15pm - 3:00pm
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Damian Allsop
Chocolate and Pastry Consultant, The Chocolate Guru
The Original Water Based Chocolate Mousse
British-born Damian Allsop is an internationally respected pastry chef and chocolate authority with nearly four decades of experience. Classically trained in French pastry, his career includes formative roles with Gordon Ramsay at Aubergine and as the first Pastry Chef at El Celler de Can Roca, where he helped shape its dessert identity and mentored Jordi Roca. A pioneer of modern chocolate techniques, Damian Allsop is widely credited with advancing water-based ganache methodology, now taught globally, and was instrumental in the creation of Casa Cacao’s bean-to-bar chocolate facility. He continues his work today as a consultant, educator, and author, developing new chocolate ventures and shaping how professionals taste, understand, and work with fine cacao.
3:15pm - 4:00pm
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Angela Borah
Pastry Chef/Chocolatier, Angela Borah Consulting
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Milk Chocolate Whipped Chocolate Nougat Bar
Chef Angela Borah is a pastry chef, chocolatier, and consultant with more than two decades of experience across fine dining, chocolate production, and culinary business development. Trained in acclaimed New York City kitchens including Del Posto, The Modern, Per Se, and MarieBelle Chocolate, she went on to serve as Head Chocolatier for Gabriel Kreuther’s two-Michelin starred Kreuther Handcrafted Chocolate, where her leadership earned multiple international awards and recognition from Food & Wine as Best Chocolate Shop in America.
Now based in New York City, Angela Borah leads her consulting practice guiding brands and teams through product innovation, systems, and education, while remaining deeply committed to mentorship, global flavor exploration, and culinary leadership.
4:15pm - 5:00pm
Presented by Nestlé Waters
Fana Monché - Water Sommelier, Nestlé Waters
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The Art of Harmonization: Chocolate & Water Featuring S.Pellegrino® and Acqua Panna®
5:15pm - 6:00pm
Martin Howard
Chef - The Pie Queen of Denver
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Chocolatina's Chocolate Banana Cream Pie
Martin’s lifelong passion for pastry began in childhood and led him from early baking experiments to formal training at the Culinary Institute of America. After graduating, he honed his craft under renowned chefs including Albert Kumin and Waldy Malouf, with roles spanning celebrated kitchens from New York City to Key West and beyond. His career includes serving as executive pastry chef at iconic venues such as the Rainbow Room, Beacon, and Brasserie 8½, as well as international work in South Africa.
In 2009, Martin expanded his creative expression through performance as his drag persona, Chocolatina, Queen of the Dessert, earning the title of Miss Stonewall Inn 2009. Widely acclaimed for desserts that are both whimsical and sophisticated, his work has been praised by major food and lifestyle publications. Martin is also an award-winning pastry chef, cookbook co-author, and frequent television guest, with extensive national and international media recognition.
