Dessert Chef Job Description: What Education Do You Need to Fill this Position?

Dessert Chef Job Description: What Education Do You Need to Fill this Position?

Seriously -- what could be more fun than a job where you create desserts? After all, dessert can be the crowning moment of any repast, when diners indulge themselves in delectably gorgeous concoctions designed to elicit oohs, aahs, and even applause. So if your culinary career leanings are taking you into the realm of torts, chocolate ganache, or multi-tiered cakes, here are some tips on how to get started.

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Becoming a Pastry Chef

Whether you call your career objective a pastry chef, patissier, or baker, you're going to need some preparation. You might choose the route of apprenticeship -- getting in on the ground floor at a restaurant, and learning from a professional pastry chef. However, your education might be somewhat limited to learning to create desserts one way.

Eventually, you'll probably want to expand your palette of desserts, so it may be helpful to learn your craft in a way that exposes you to a broader range of possibilities. Enrolling in a culinary school to earn a diploma could be one of the best ways to provide you with a more extensive learning experience.

There are several types of culinary arts programs available, including those found in the following:

  • technical schools
  • community colleges,
  • four-year colleges
  • independent culinary institute
  • culinary arts schools

These schools will have diverse programs, and the length of study will vary. You will need to do some research into the different types and learn which will work best for you. You can consult such organizations as the National Center for Education Statistics for names of training institutes. The National Restaurant Association offers an online directory with the names of post-secondary schools that offer programs in hospitality or restaurant management; among them, you will find many that will offer training as a dessert chef.

The American Culinary Federation publishes a list of traditional schools with culinary arts programs that offer degrees; the ACF also publishes a list of centers and institutes with culinary programs that do not offer a degree.

Once you narrow down your choices, you can decide if you should go for a diploma, certificate, or degree. If time is of the essence, you might look for an accelerated program where you could earn your credentials in much less time than a traditional program will require. Courses in accelerated programs often pack in just as much instruction but are shorter than the traditional 16 weeks in a semester.

For instance, a typical accelerated program that offers a diploma in baking and pastry arts might allow you to complete your studies in as little as 40 weeks. Generally, these courses proceed in rapid succession, without a break, as occurs between semesters in traditional programs.

Advantages of a Culinary Arts Program

A good culinary arts program should expose the aspiring dessert chef to a wide range of recipes. Your program should have several professionally trained instructors with extensive backgrounds. You'll want to learn about desserts from different countries, as well as new trends in the pastry industry, plus new ways of food preparation.

But first, you need to learn to bake. Maybe you've got some experience at home baking for family and friends, but you'll benefit from instruction in a commercial kitchen, learning how to bake larger quantities of breads and pastries. Among the skills you should master are baker's math, baking methods, baking sweet doughs, laminated pastries and artisan bread, and piping, icing, and torting.

And while you'll want to get a diverse education in desserts from around the world, you'll need basic instruction in the traditional types of pastry, such as custards, creams, frozen desserts, and petit fours. You'll also want to try your hand at multi-layer cake design (learning about production and transportation while you're at it), as well as sugar, chocolate, and pastillage showpieces. It's also important to learn plating, tableside cookery, and buffet presentation.

In addition, you should learn something about the business side of a bakery or restaurant. One day, you may well be in charge of your own operation, and you'll want to understand operational issues that lead to profit or loss, as well as business practices, including these:

  • kitchen sanitation and safety
  • production efficiency
  • purchasing
  • cost control

You should also devote some study to nutrition and ingredients. This can come in handy if you have a client with food allergies or special dietary needs. This will help you prepare the perfect dessert for them that will fit in with their diet.

Career Possibilities

With a diploma in baking and pastry arts, a number of job possibilities could be open to you. Looking beyond restaurants, you might work in commercial bakeries, or for companies that require examples of prepared desserts for the media and for advertising.

Dessert Chef Job Description: What Education Do You Need to Fill this Position?

Are you interested in a career as a dessert chef? If you’d like to earn a Diploma in Baking and Pastry Arts, ECPI University’s Culinary Institute of Virginia offers this course in an accelerated format. For more information about this exciting program, connect with a friendly admissions advisor today.

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Gainful Employment Information – Baking & Pastry Arts - Diploma

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