Quotes from Adriano Zumbo

Compound chocolate is gritty, cheaper and doesn't have that fruitiness, the backnotes and smoothness you get in couverture.

When I was a kid, my parents ran a supermarket; I grew up in there and everything was free, it was like a wonderland. There were lollies and biscuits and chips, and I used to eat more of that than vegetables.

So my brain started ticking and I bought all my books from a cookbook shop, Libraire Gourmand in Paris. I bought them over the Internet and they sent them from France. I got the 'Larousse' in a box with 20 other books. I was pretty excited. It was like Christmas for 20 years.

I would definitely recommend getting a decent electric mixer. A good quality non-stick baking mat is also essential for creating those impressive desserts.

The 'Larousse' is my favorite book. It's my bible; it's a good reference for me.

I say to the guys at work, 'You've got to have fun - we're here more than we're at home.' Same with cakes; when you go and buy something, you've got to buy some fun.

Long term, I'd love a big shop with everything in it. A one-stop shop. A haven.

There were some flavors that didn't work, like doughnut-flavored Tim Tams.

What better way to celebrate 50 years of defending human rights than over a candlelit dinner with friends and family.

I've never been worried about being alone and there is no pressure to get married, although I would love to do it one day with the right girl.

It was a great challenge creating the Zumbarons. Coming up with the elements for each was the hardest, but it only took us one attempt and we were happy with the flavor.

My favorite dessert for me to eat at home is Milo and ice cream.

In the end, you have to do what makes you happy - the people who love you and are around you are all that matters.

Despite being quite a shy kid, I was in my element with my mates. I definitely wasn't shy then. We had a lot of fun, running around town getting into mischief.

It's an indulgence to go out for bacon and eggs. It's not something you can do every day.

For me inspiration is pretty much life. The life around you and everything that happens, the people you meet, where you go, what you've eaten in your childhood.

Sugar brings happiness. Eating it once or twice a week in a dessert, that's what life is about. There is nothing wrong with it.

Chocolate's good for ya - high cocoa content chocolate is.

I love jelly gummy lollies, liquorice, ice-cream and I eat my own ice-cream; I take it home from work.

I was a fussy eater when I was young and a lot of the time my parents weren't there because they were always working. So I'd just eat lollies and biscuits and chips. That's kind of where I got the taste for the sweet fix.

As a young kid I wanted to be a truck driver.

Whether it's a leaf from a tree, the supermarket or person, everything is art and movement, it's all inspiration.

I look at what's happening, the trends and what people want, to come up with something that's going to work.

I learnt a lot from eating junk food.