Category Archives: The Dessert Cup

Kevin Lindee

Kevin Lindee

Ganache: Truffles For Every Occasion

Chef Kevin Lindee is the owner and chocolatier of local Minnesota company, Ganache: Desserts and Confections. After rejecting two music scholarships to pursue a BS in Culinary Management and an AA in Baking and Pastry, Kevin’s passion for culinary arts flourished as he began creating specialty confections and unique desserts. He creates distinctive flavor profiles and contemporary combinations while infusing modern techniques in every tantalizing treat. By introducing herbs, spices, exotic fruits, and savory applications, Kevin creates seasonal and refreshing concepts that are comforting and delicious.

Kevin creates exceptional desserts by expanding as a boutique dessert caterer focusing on truffles, confections, cupcakes, wedding cakes, dessert stations, and international desserts for that ‘one-of-a-kind’ dessert experience. With his formal training, he experiments with new flavors and unique compositions to make each tasting experience memorable.

Cesar Barachina

Cesar Barachina

Chef Cesar Barachina started his career at an early age. When he was able to walk and talk, he was in the kitchen with his parents helping them cook the next family meal. As he grew up, the culinary arts was in his blood with his grandfather, father and brother being executive chefs. It was destined that he was to follow into the family tradition and take the culinary path.

So after graduating high school he attended the Florida Culinary Institute of West Palm Beach and enrolled in there International Baking and Pastry program where he discovered his love and passion for pastries. Studying under Chef Jack Marshall and Chef Manfred Schmitcke, Cesar honed his pastry and bread making skills. After graduating and earning his Associates degree, he decided to travel and learn from other great pastry chefs around the world. He traveled to Europe, Asia, and Australia to name a few, while staging in hotels, restaurants and anywhere he could, to learn and work with some of the great pastry chefs of the world.

When he finished traveling he settled down and started to work for companies such as The Ritz Carlton Hotels, Norwegian Cruise Lines, and Hilton Hotels. Most recently he has worked for L’Auberge Casino Resort in Lake Charles, Louisiana as the Pastry Sous Chef and was the assistant to Pastry Chef Bill Foltz, one of the top 10 sugar artist in the US. Now Cesar has taken a bigger role in his career as he has assumed the role of the Pastry Chef at Turning Stone Resort & Casino in Verona, New York.

Cesar is asked all the time why do you like pastry so much? His response “It’s not that I like it. It’s that I love it. It is my passion and my love to create great works of art and to put great flavor into them.” Cesar doesn’t see being a Pastry Chef as a career, but he sees it has his life and an adventure. Even with his new role, he never stops learning by attending pastry classes, keeping abreast with the latest pastry literature, competitions and pastry trends, he continually push himself forward. His very good friend Chef Rudy Van Veen once said, “Pastry will consume you and take over you and just enjoy the ride.”

Most recently Chef Cesar has competed in Pastry Live 2014 in Atlanta,GA in the categories of Chocolatier of the Year; Signature plated Dessert, and The Verrine competition. Chef Cesar also competed on The Food Network’s show called Sugar Dome in the episode “Cops and Robbers” in which he won 1st place and $15,000 in prize money. and he also competed in the 24th Annual US Pastry Competition for Pastry Chef of the Year in New York.

Jan Lewandowski

Jan Lewandowski

The Blue Cake Company

Chef Jan Lewandowski, CEPC, is an instructor of Baking and Pastry Arts at the PTC Culinary Arts and Hospitality Management Institute (CAHMI) and co-owner of The Blue Cake Company, both in Little Rock, AR.

Jan graduated from the Scottsdale Culinary Institute in 1999, where she met her husband Steve. After a few years gaining pastry experience at The Country Club of Little Rock, The Peabody Little Rock and The Capital Hotel, she and Steve opened the Blue Cake Company in 2005, a custom cake shop that focuses on cakes from scratch and modern cake design. Blue Cake has been voted Best Wedding Cakes and Best Birthday Cakes in various local publications for the past several years.

Jan continues to create cakes for Blue Cake around her teaching schedule, but has spent the past few years focusing on teaching. At CAHMI, she oversees the ACF accredited baking and pastry program and instructs students in cake design, pastry techniques, breads and confections. CAHMI just moved into a brand new 60,000 SF building, with 11 kitchens, including it’s own baking lab and chocolate & confectionery lab- a dream come true for any pastry chef!

Ashley Baughman

Ashley Baughman

Indiana Memorial Union Restaurants and Catering by Sodexo

Ashley Baughman, CPC, a rising star in the pastry world, has achieved great success in her young career. Baughman joined The Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia in October 2013 and was recently promoted to her current role as pastry supervisor as a result of her organizational and leadership skills. Her strong work ethic and adaptability to changing needs, along with her advanced culinary skills and initiative have been valuable throughout her career.

Prior to The Omni Homestead, Baughman was pastry cook 1 for the Taj Boston Hotel in Boston, Massachusetts, where she prepared items for breakfast, lunch and dinner service, culinary amenities, brunch displays and showpieces. Earlier in her career, she was the lead baker for Wright’s Dairy Farm in North Smithfield, Rhode Island and a pastry intern at the Cliff House Resort & Spa in Ogunquit, Maine.

At Johnson & Wales University, Baughman graduated magna cum laude in 2010 with an associate’s degree in applied science, baking and pastry and summa cum laude in 2011 with a bachelor’s degree in baking and pastry. While studying at Johnson & Wales, Baughman achieved the distinction of Certified Pasty Cook from the American Culinary Federation and in June 2011, she earned a certificate of completion from DCT Switzerland. In addition, she studied various chocolate techniques including sculptures, garnishes and truffles as well as sugar work in Vitznau, Switzerland. While in Europe, Baughman enhanced her culinary education with wine classes where she learned to create plated desserts based on the flavor profile from a sip of wine.