The Winner of the 2011 Reluctant Gourmet Culinary School Grant Is…

For the fourth year in a row I am excited to announce the newest recipient for The Reluctant Gourmet Culinary Grant in association with Chef4Students.org. This award is given out to a culinary student in need of financial assistance. The winner this year is Gregory Cerretani from Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts in Boston.

UPDATE: Be sure to read my interview with Greg Cerretani here.

About The Process

For the 2010/2011 academic year, Chefs4Students.org received more than 950 applications from students at over 30 different culinary schools across the country and abroad. Eligible students attended a culinary school at the time of the award, showed proof of their financial need, provided letters of recommendation, transcripts and a 500-word essay.

Chef David Nelson, co-founder of Chef4Students and a panel consisting of several certified chefs, business professionals and culinary experts from a variety of organizations across the world carefully reviewed the applicants to pick their top candidates. I was then able to review those students and choose a student as the recipient of The Reluctant Gourmet culinary grant. This proved to be a hard task; many of the students had great background stories and well-written essays.

About Gregory Cerretani

This year’s winner, Gregory Cerretani, is a third generation of a large Italian family of grocers. With a love for food, Gregory decided to take up his dream of attending culinary school in his late 20’s. With his wife’s and family’s support, Gregory enrolled in Le Cordon Bleu in Cambridge, MA and has been achieving success ever since. His high grade point average and new shift manager position at his restaurant job proves he is a hard working student with a true passion for the culinary industry.

Recently, Gregory was offered an externship in Italy to complete his culinary degree. For a culinary student interested in Italian-American cuisine with the hopes of opening his own restaurant, this opportunity would be invaluable to his career. As someone who knows first hand what it’s like to come into their dream job later in life, The Reluctant Gourmet applauds Gregory for having the courage to go back to school and achieve these dreams.

I want to share with you a portion of Gregory’s essay sent in with his application talking about his opportunity to study abroad in Italy:

“I have recently been presented with the opportunity to complete the final requirements of my culinary degree cooking in Italy, learning about the land, products, and recipes of my ancestral homeland for three months. Though my externship will only be three months’ worth of experience in Italian cooking,

I feel that it is a priceless opportunity to exercise and hone my abilities in the cuisine, which will serve as the foundation for achieving my goals and satisfying my ambition to develop the skills and knowledge of authentic Italian food preparation and presentation. If awarded, the money from this grant would literally be the fulfillment of a dream I have had since childhood, even though it is one I have only recently had the confidence and support to pursue to the ultimate degree.”

About Le Cordon Bleu Boston
Rich in tradition, the Boston, MA campus of Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts is a relatively new campus, having opened in 2007. While the physical campus is new, the tradition behind the Le Cordon Bleu approach dates back to the 1500’s, with the first school opening in Paris, France in 1895.

The Le Cordon Bleu institution, the world’s largest hospitality education institution, is also known as comprising of one of the finest culinary programs available in the United States. Combining classic French techniques with new American technology, culinary students learn the skills and develop the confidence to be part of this every growing career. Students learn what it takes to be a chef, patisserie chef or hotel manager including the essential business concepts that are required today to be successful in this competitive market. Fans of Julia Child, Mario Batali, Simone Beck and others know they are some of the many notable Le Cordon Bleu alumni.
What’s Next?

After reading Gregory’s references required in the grant process, I can only say that he has a bright future to look forward to. Quoting Jessica Stacy, his coordinator of student services at Le Cordon Bleu Boston,

“Greg and I met very early in his educational career here as he wasn’t afraid to dive into all the services the school had to offer him. He immediately immersed himself in the curriculum he was learning and it wasn’t long before he was a force to be reckoned with in the kitchen, as well as in our community. Greg’s natural characteristic is to lead by example. He has such a strong presence about him that allows his fellow students to feel supported and encouraged, but challenged at the same time.

As his peers and teachers began to see what he was capable of, Greg was elected into our Student Government Association becoming a vital member of what makes this community tick. Greg consistently went above and beyond his duties by assisting students with their concerns, being a voice to administration, volunteering for school related functions, implementing school wide programming and creating new culinary initiatives. Our Student Government is a better and more respected organization for having him be a part of it.”

I’m hoping to interview Gregory in the near future and ask him about his culinary school experiences and more about his externship in Italy. I am incredibly honored to be able to help students like Gregory in achieving their dreams. If anyone is interested in getting involved with Chef4Students grant program, please contact me or Chef Nelson at the Chef4Students.org website.

Past Reluctant Gourmet Culinary Grant Recipients

Karly Krentz

Blair Cannon

Ja’Lisa McKeown

Photo Credit

As a follow up to yesterdays post on How to Become a Pastry Chef, I thought I would give you a broad idea of the pastry chef career in the United States. Here is some information I researched on the Internet about salaries, demand and job opportunities. This data was found on several web sites including the ones listed at the bottom of the post.

Although projected employment growth is slightly slower than average, job opportunities are predicted to be good. There is a high turnover rate with this profession, with the majority of these job openings coming from the need to replace workers who have left the field, although new positions will also become available.

There will be stiffer competition at high-end restaurants and well-known establishments. Being well rounded and having business skills in this industry will help out enormously.

Chefs, head cooks and food preparation supervisors held nearly 942,000 jobs in 2008. The middle 50% of chefs and head cooks earned between $29,050 and $51,540 in 2008. The lowest 10 percent made less than $22,120 and the highest 10 percent made more than $66,680.*

According to one survey, Pastry Chef and Executive Pastry Chef salaries rose 5.7% between 2008 and 2009, with the average 2009 salary being $48,861. Pastry chefs make the most money at private or country clubs, the salary being $61,167; $50,450 at Hotel Restaurants/Catering/Banquets; and $47,491 at Stand Alone Restaurants.

Where To Work

If you’re interested in location, Pastry Chefs apparently have the highest salaries in Florida, making $55,000 as opposed to $52,643 in Massachusetts, $52,059 in New York and $49,125 in California.**

Degree or No Degree?

You hear people saying that the average salaries for college graduates are much higher than their non-degree holding counterparts, and this is true. So is it the same for Pastry Chefs and Executive Pastry Chefs? One study found that between degree-holders and non-degree holders there was a $300 difference in salary.

What About Externships?

What truly made a difference in salary was whether someone has worked outside of the U.S. and unpaid externships. If a pastry chef had experience in unpaid externships, they had a $2,000 average salary increase. It seems as though the culinary industry rewards applicants with experience over education.**

Women Pastry Chefs have been found to make 22% less than their male counterparts, the males earning an average $58,900 and women earning $46,200. The majority of women in the culinary industry are Executive Pastry Chefs and Pastry Chefs, around 14% and average a 56 hour work week.**

Experience

Obviously with more experience come more benefits. While this is just one factor for the determination of a salary, here are the numbers of what to expect based on years of experience for Pastry Chefs. 1-4 years of experience earns a salary range from $28,287-$40,187; 5-9 years, $32,968-$46,341; 10-19 years, $38,798-$56,491; 20+years, $41,638-$69,603.***

While you can make your own decisions about your education and career paths, these are just averages and estimates from a few surveys found on the Internet. These are intended for research purposes and I hope this answers some of your questions about the Pastry Chef/Baker career field.

*According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (bls.gov/oco/ocos330)
**According to a 2009 StarChefs.com Salary Survey
***According to Payscale.com 2010

Related Topics

Becoming a Pastry Chef

How to Become a Pastry Chef

Interview with a Master Baker and Pastry Chef

Cooking School Is Not For Everyone

Too Old For Culinary School?

Baking Schools in the United States

What It Takes To “Earn” the Title of Pastry Chef

I get emails from high school kids, their parents, people looking to change careers and individuals looking to start new businesses asking about becoming a professional pastry chef or baker. They want to know where to start, is culinary school required, what skills are necessary….questions like these. So I put this article together with hopes that it will help answer some of these questions.

If not, there are a lot more articles about getting into the restaurant/food industry at my Culinary School Resources page and throughout the web site and blog. If you do a search, I’m sure you will find many of the answers you are looking for and I’ll do my best to answer any questions you may have by reaching out to my network of professional chefs.

Earn the Title of Pastry Chef

I call this article “what it takes to earn…” rather than “how to become…” because, in talking to many chefs I’ve met in pursuit of learning to cook through this website, they all say that nobody walks out of culinary school with the title of chef. Chef means “chief,” or the number one person in the kitchen, and only through long and varied experience in hotel and restaurant kitchens can someone claim the title “chef.”

Having said that, though, I am not trying to discourage anybody who has the desire and the passion to become a chef. After all, if you have your own business - say a cupcake business or a croissant bakery - you can call yourself “pastry chef” or “head baker” because you are technically in charge of your kitchen.   Regardless, here are a great number of roads you can take to earn the title pastry chef.

If you are interested in baking and pastry and are considering it as a career choice, it is important to know what area you want to focus on.

• Do you want to bake artisan breads?
• Are you interested in making wedding cakes?
• Cupcakes?
• Perhaps you are inspired by pastry competitions and really want to make complex presentation desserts.
• Or maybe you want to become a chocolatier or candy maker.

There are many facets of baking and pastry, so it really pays to concentrate on a particular area.

How Do I Choose

The question then becomes, “How do I choose?” I think it’s important to take a look at what inspires you.  Like my oldest daughter, do you live for watching The Cake Boss?  Then maybe your passion lies in decorating high end wedding cakes.

Do you DVR Top Chef Desserts? You might consider working in a restaurant putting out high-volume and consistently excellent desserts.  If you find bread making therapeutic and relaxing and you get excited about words like “poolish,” “biga,” and “fermentation” you are probably going to want to look into becoming a baker.

If you’re still not sure, there are many ways to get your feet wet in these different areas without having to spend a lot of money.  Many craft stores offer cake decorating classes.  Consider signing up for one and seeing if you love it.  Look into enthusiasts’ cooking classes in your area.  Some restaurants and many caterers offer classes that focus on one specific area of cooking or baking.

Using the Internet

A quick Internet search should turn up many opportunities in your local area.  If you are in junior high or high school, check and see if there are any Home-Ec type electives available at your school.  Go to the library and check out books on chocolate and candy making, on cake baking, or bread baking and learn from them.  Try out recipes, and then buy the books that really speak to you and hold your interest.

There are many online forums for bakers and cooks, and most of them welcome anyone from chefs with years of experience to novices.  These forums are wonderful places to go to get answers to your questions and to ask chefs and pastry chefs about their personal experiences. And then their are some great baking and pastry web sites. One of my favorites is Chef Jenni’s Pastry Chef Online and her blog Pastry Methods and Techniques.

Find a Job Locally

If you are old enough, you can get a part time job in a bakery.  Believe it or not, grocery store bakeries are pretty good places to start.  You’ll be exposed to baking everything from rolls to birthday cakes, and this can really help you decide where your interests lie.

Here’s another great idea.  Some company, organization or other is always having recipe contests.  Develop and submit recipes.  If your submission is the best, you win!  Winning contests is a wonderful way to gain experience in recipe development and in baking in general, and it is also an excellent confidence builder.  Listing your contest wins on your resume certainly won’t hurt, either!

Along a similar line, submit your baked goods to your county or state fair.  The judging will give you excellent feedback on your strengths and also in what you need to work on.  Again, coming up with a submission will involve at least a few test batches, and all of that experience will help hone your baking and pastry skills.

And don’t let lack of experience stop you from applying for jobs in restaurant kitchens.  One chef I talked to told me that passion and “teachability” are much more important than cooking or baking experience.
Strictly speaking, it is not necessary to attend a high-dollar culinary school to become a baker or pastry chef.

More and more schools are offering that option, and I’m not trying to discourage you from going to culinary school if you want to experience it, but willingness to learn on the job, practicing and experimenting on your own are time-honored ways of eventually earning the “chef” title.  Working your way up the ladder, at least in hotel and restaurant kitchens, really shows the people you work with that you are dedicated and serious about your chosen profession.

Going to Culinary School

If you know, however, that you want to go to culinary school, most nationally recognized programs offer specializations in baking and pastry.  This is a great option for “pastry folks” for a couple of reasons:

1. Baking and Pastry programs are usually slightly less expensive than culinary programs and
2. You won’t have to butcher any meat or filet a fish!

Another option is to attend a baking and pastry school strictly devoted to pastry arts.  Again, the Internet is your friend here.  Search for one in, or close to, your area, and then go visit.  You can find a good list of schools to start at Baking and Pastry Schools.

Make sure that you like what you see, that you like the instructors you meet and that you like their philosophy of baking education, whatever that may be.  Never, never, never apply to a school sight-unseen.  You want to make sure it is a good fit for you, so make sure you go take a tour of the facilities and ask a lot of questions.

No matter what road you decide to take on your journey to become a pastry chef, you should continue to bake and explore pastries on your own and in your own kitchens.  They say practice makes perfect, and “they” are not wrong.  Not only will your techniques and methods come more and more easily, but you’ll be improving the speed and accuracy with which you complete baking tasks, and working precisely and quickly are skills that are necessary, whether you work in a bakery, a restaurant kitchen or your own shop.

Related Topics:

Becoming a Pastry Chef

Interview with a Master Baker and Pastry Chef

Cooking School Is Not For Everyone

Too Old For Culinary School?

Baking Schools in the United States