The CAP pastry exam is approaching and you're starting to stress! That's completely normal and it's even rather healthy: you're entering the home stretch! Know that the exams can begin in early May. It is therefore time to be more concerned about how the exam will actually go. And for that, I strongly advise you to visit your exam center and prepare the questions you will want to ask on the day!

As I told you in one of my posts, the CAP pastry exam is a rather unequal exam (not to say unfair). The procedures will be a little different depending on the center where you will take it. Some strictly follow the rules while others are more free-style. You must therefore be prepared to be hyper reactive and flexible because you can't really know in advance how your jury will behave.

On the other hand, you can put all the odds in your favor by visiting your exam center in advance. This will allow you to get your bearings, ask all the questions that are bothering you and arrive on conquered ground (all things considered) on the day itself.

Normally by calling your center, you will be able to access the lab either as part of open days or through an individual visit. For my part I took my exam at the Paris School of Baking. By calling as soon as I received my convocation they had agreed to let me visit the lab quickly. It was done in 10 minutes but it allowed me not to stress too much on the day itself.

Here are the things I advise you to check

The general organization of the lab:

• Are the work surfaces marble or stainless steel?
• Is there one work surface per candidate or must it be shared?
• Are the work surfaces refrigerated or must a refrigerator be shared?
• What types of stoves are there: gas? electric?
• Where are the ovens and what type are they?
• Is there a microwave available? A laminator?
• Where is the proofing box? The freezer?
• Where is the water point for washing hands/doing dishes?
• Is there a food processor per candidate? If not, can you bring your own food processor?
• Is there a scale per candidate?
• Can you bring your own hand blender?
• Where is the room for planning?
• Where are the toilets?

The ingredients used:

• What type of flour?
• Butter or margarine?
• Egg products or shell eggs?
• What ingredients available for decoration? Codineige (powdered sugar that doesn't melt)? almond paste? (colored or not)? food coloring (liquid? powder?)?

The organization of the CAP exam:

• Possibility to leave the planning session before 30 minutes?
• Recipe notebook allowed?
• Sponge cake in a bain-marie mandatory?
• Apple tart mandatory in a spiral pattern?
• Who manages the baking? Does the examiner take the preparations out of the oven?
• What will the oven be set to?
• Icing piping bag or sultan nozzle allowed?
• Craquelin allowed (theoretically no but some centers tolerate it)
• Cookie cutters and templates allowed?
• Cornet prepared at home allowed?

Equipment to bring:

• Can you bring disposable containers for weighing? (it's a significant saving of dishes and time)
• Are paper towels, food contact wipes and disinfectant product provided?
• Pastry cutter, BAT mold, tart ring and entremet mold provided? (normally yes, but it would be a shame to have a bad surprise at the exam)
• Cooking spray allowed? to bring?
• Regarding the outfit: are short sleeves allowed? Is black penalized?
• the wheeled case allowed?

By having the answers to all these questions, you will be better prepared. All that will be left is to deliver on the day itself!