Vedrani Hrastovec Saddler from the Turist Hotel 1st place at the International Golden Walnut Competition

Vedrani Hrastovec Saddler from the Turist Hotel 1st place at the International Golden Walnut Competition

Multiple award-winning pastry chef Vedrana Hrastovec Sedlar from the Varaždin Hotel Turist has added another prestigious award to her collection.

At the 7th International Confectionery Competition Golden Walnut, Vedrana won 1st place in the artistic category – sculpture making for the second year in a row. The competition was held on March 15th in Slatina, and brought together 53 competitors from Croatia, Hungary, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia.

About the impressive sculpture

“For the Gothic-themed cake, I used several techniques – sugar paste, wafer paper, hand painting, and isomalt,” said Vedrana, who revealed to us that the creation of this sweet work of art took about two and a half months.

“Other competitors from as many as five countries also demonstrated enviable techniques, but I believe that the demanding nature of the performance, the use of different techniques, and the precision of the creation of my sculpture are what won over the jury,” says this accomplished pastry chef.

Flavors with a touch of medals

“Vedrana’s desserts can be tasted daily in the café bar of the Turist hotel and in the Nobel restaurant – where top-notch flavors come with a touch of medals. Namely, a whole team of young, talented and award-winning chefs work alongside Vedrana in our kitchen.”

Chef Marin Pozder was the captain of the team that won the bronze medal at the Culinary Olympiad 2024 as part of the fair in Stuttgart, Dario Rodeš was a member of the mentioned team, and he is also the proud winner of the Golden Nymph 2021/22 competition.

There is also Lucija Vrček, who was awarded a diploma at the World Chefs Championship in Luxembourg in 2018. We are proud to have such a talented team,” says the Turist hotel.