'Sweet reward' promised in crummy recipe theft

A car thief with sticky fingers has made off with a Calgary pastry chef's secret recipes, making him the latest victim of a typical spike in break-ins over the holidays.

Manuel Latruwe parked his car at home on Tuesday night and awoke to find its windows smashed and a briefcase stolen.

"In my briefcase I had some recipes that I go back to when I create something new, like basic recipes that I collected over the years that I worked in Europe," he told CBC News on Wednesday from the busy kitchen of Manuel Latruwe Belgian Patisserie & Bread Shop, at13th Avenue and 1st Street S.E.

"I think in the back of the car there was some cardboard boxes, and they might have thought there were presents or gifts with the holiday season coming up."

Calgary police said there's usually a jump in the number of vehicle break-ins over the holidays because more packages are left lying around.

"In most cases, property is not recovered, so it is quite traumatic to be victimized in that way," said Const. Gerry Bailey of theforce's crime prevention unit.

Admitting that it's a lesson learned, Latruwe is worried the irreplaceable recipes have been discarded.

"I don't think people can do anything with it because mostly it's written in Dutch and in French, so I think if somebody finds it they're going to throw it out," he said.

But as he busies himself with baking cakes and pastries for the holidays, Latruwe is still holding out hope.

"There's a sweet reward for the person that returns the recipes, that's for sure."