The Sweet Smell of Success New program at JCCC teaches students the business of making pastry.
By Paula Peters
Until this year, there were few places where culinary students from Kansas City could study the art and business of making pastry. It was a specialty that was offered mainly through programs at other state schools.
Amy Hite, a 28-year-old student at Johnson County Community College (JCCC), knows this all too well. After making a career change from teaching high school biology, she had already applied to several out-of-state culinary programs that focused on pastry cook development. On the very day that she was submitting her paperwork to transfer to another program, she received a call notifying her that JCCC would offer a brand new pastry program, beginning in Fall 2004. She dropped her application to the other school, and enrolled immediately.
“This is something that Kansas City needs,” said Hite. “I am so grateful to have such an affordable program, right here in town.”
Her classmate, Theresa Ferguson, agrees. Ferguson is also in the middle of changing careers, to pastry cook from geological engineering.
“This is something I’ve wanted to do all my life,” she said. “I’ve loved cooking since I was a kid. My long-term goal is to open my own pastry shop.”
The innovative new program offered by JCCC offers a one-year pastry cook certificate, worth 32 credits. It is a full-time program, and the 13 students learn not only how to create world-class pastries, but also how to manage their own bakery shop.
Doug Flick, the associate professor of hospitality management who teaches the program, wanted to give students a chance to be competitive in pastry creation on a national level—either as the owner of a bakery shop, or as part of a staff in a restaurant or hotel. He worked with Elaine Perilla, the chairman of the board at JCCC, and Lindy Robinson, the assistant dean, to put the class into place.
“My number one goal was that these students would gain the experience and get the knowledge they need to compete in the workforce,” said Flick. “This is a totally practical application. I’m giving them the experience of how to run a pastry shop in the real world.”
Each week, students spend Thursday and Friday studying and practicing techniques for baking top-quality pastries, such as cakes, tortes, cookies and eclairs. They also study the financial management skills of costing out recipes, calculating labor costs, managing the profitability per item and running a kitchen.
On Thursday and Friday, their primary focus shifts to preparing pastries for sale to the public. Every Friday afternoon at 3:00, from August 24 to May 17 (except for normal school holidays), the class holds an open sale of their sugary creations in Room 145 of the OCB Building at JCCC.
“They get two full days, gearing up to supply the shop,” said Flick. “We fill up two complete pastry cases with merchandise.”
The sale is open to the public, and stock sells out quickly. Recent offerings have included tiramisu torte, chocolate mousse meringue tarts, cream puffs and peanut butter cookies, although Flick says the class is still fiddling with the menu—deciding what is profitable, what sells best and what should be discarded.
“I’ve learned how to put out a high-quality product in a very short amount of time,” said Ferguson. “When I look in those bakery cases, it’s like ‘Wow!’ I can’t believe how much we’ve gotten done.”
As a result of the unique public sale portion of the class, students walk away with solid experience in stocking and merchandising a small pastry shop. It also refines their customer service skills and teaches them to anticipate customer preferences.
“Doug has taught us a lot about providing great service, and accommodating special needs,” said Hite. “He walks through each week, and analyzes our pastry case for strengths and weaknesses. I’ve learned a lot about managing a kitchen from him.”
The program fills a tremendous need for Kansas City, a market that is heavy on restaurants—but thin on pastry cooks. Because of this deficit, the local market has developed an odd “vending” system, whereby many restaurants purchase their pastries from one or two local distributors.
Flick hopes to change that situation with the pastry cook certificate program. His experience as an apprentice to international pastry master Gunther Heiland, as well as 15 years working as pastry cook with both the Beverly Hills Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton, have given him a broader perspective on the industry.
“I’m trying to jump-start the pastry cook market in Kansas City, and my standards are crazy,” he said, referring to his notoriously demanding eye for quality. “My goal is to bump up the level of quality in our market by creating more pastry cooks who could easily compete in Chicago or L.A.” For Hite, she is just happy to remain here in Kansas City, doing what she loves—making pastries. It’s a passion that started when she got her first apartment, in college.
“The people are so happy to be here at the shop, buying our products,” she said. “It’s exhausting, but I always come home on Thursday and Friday nights with a smile on my face. The community has had an outstanding response to us, and we’re grateful.”
Paula Peters is a freelance writer and the owner of Peters Writing Services, Inc., which specializes in writing technical and marketing materials. She can be reached at (913) 485-4537 or .
