65 bakefromscratch
The English
Teacher
JOHN WHAITE
Cookbook Author & Baking Instructor
at John Whaite’s Kitchen Cookery School
Lancashire, Englandjohnwhaiteskitchen.com & johnwhaite.comFollow on Instagram: @johnwhaiteskitchen & @john_whaiteOne of the top baking schools in the world is located in
a renovated barn in Wrightington, Lancashire, England.
It begins and ends with John Whaite. After winning the
third season (series 3) of The Great British Bake Off in 2012,
John quickly decided to transform his baking passion
into a full-blown career, with his particular niche in the
teaching realm. Five consecutive cookbooks and one John
Whaite’s Cookery school later, he’s a full-blown baking
guru. John believes baking can be much more than a hobby;
it’s a perfectly attainable skill. “I want people to know that
baking isn’t reserved for a small, talented group of people
but is something that every single person on this planet is
capable of; it’s just a question of working out how they best
learn,” he says. There’s an intimacy in each of the courses
offered at the school. Bakers who enroll in a course kick off
their mornings with hot coffee and warm conversation with
John and fellow classmates. Then, after John fi gures out
what makes his bakers tick, a master class begins. Classically
trained at the Le Cordon Bleu in London, John believes in
blending disciplined technique with boundless creativity.
Take his Afternoon Tea Class, a chance to bake thoroughly
British bite-size pastries to accompany teatime but with
John’s signature fl air for the unexpected. In the end, each
class has one goal: “Self-belief,” John says.The Inclusive Baker
ANGELA GARBACZ
Head Baker & Owner of Goldenrod Pastries | Lincoln, Nebraska
goldenrodpastries.comFollow on Instagram: @goldenrodpastriesWhen Angela Garbacz founded Goldenrod Pastries in Lincoln,
Nebraska, she never intended to make “healthy” desserts. Instead,
she wanted to create baked goods that catered to a variety of food
restrictions, from dairy-free to gluten-free, but were delicious
enough to rival their traditionally made counterparts. This is what
Angela calls “inclusive baking.” From her Fluffernutter Buns to her
best-selling Peach Coffee Cake, she uses ingredients like coconut
oil and sorghum fl our as substitutes for dairy and gluten. Unlike
many pastry chefs making dairy-free, vegan, or gluten-free baked
goods, Angela keeps sugar and fat in her desserts to ensure fl avor
and texture aren’t sacrifi ced. This is what makes Angela’s pastries so
indulgent—so much so that half her customer base doesn’t even
have dietary restrictions. “My standards are very high for how my
pastries should taste,” says Angela. “We don’t make a carrot cake
that’s ‘good for a gluten-free cake.’ We make one that stands up to a
traditional cake, or we don’t sell it.” Angela is currently working on
bringing inclusive baking beyond Nebraska with Goldenrod Pastries’
fi rst cookbook, releasing in the spring of 2020.