One of our EV employees Michael Nager had the opportunity to travel down to Miami, FL with his family to learn from Chef Ricardo, a pastry chef at Le Cordon Bleu of Miami. Michael and his mother Faith Nager learned about this opportunity at the EV Conference held last winter when they met Andy Travaglia, the owner of Lee & Marie’s Cakery in Miami. Read all about Michael’s experience in his article and how he is using his training back home in North Carolina.
I had the opportunity to train with Chef Ricardo, a pastry chef of Le Cordon Bleu of Miami, Florida. This opportunity came about when my mother attended a conference that was sponsored by EV. I got this opportunity because my mom met Andy Travaglia, the owner of Lee & Marie’s Cakery in Miami. From this conference my mother & Andy coordinated a week of training with Chef Ricardo.
In Miami, Chef Ricardo taught me the creaming method for cakes. I learned how to make red velvet cake, cranberry muffins, cheesecake, peanut butter cookies, & brownies. With what I learned in Miami, I got more responsibility here with my job at Weaver Street Bakery in Hillsborough, North Carolina. Now they’re letting me scale the ingredients & make Carrboro Bars, which some of you might have eaten.
Lee & Marie’s Cakery is a bakery in Miami has a mission to offer creative twists on American bakery classics and to provide support and employment to adults with Autism. To learn more about Lee & Marie’s Cakery click here.