By Chris Martin
Based on the astonishing number of bakers and bakeries in Charlottesville, the city appears to have a voracious appetite for carbs. A quick search on Google lists almost 30 area bakeries, cake spots, bagel makers, patisseries, and farmers’ market stands that offer a wide variety of floury treats. What follows is a sampling of a few of them.
Norkeita Goins of Caked Up Cville began baking to pass the time when she was furloughed at the beginning of the pandemic. “I started baking again, posting on Facebook, and I made an Instagram,” says Goins. “It seems like it happened overnight…it doesn’t feel like a whole year has passed already.” Goins uses abstract layers of bright buttercream, curated sprinkles, and gold details in sweets that stand out. For fall, she’s planning a pumpkin oreo cheesecake cupcake, and will incorporate Chinese five-spice powder into her bakes to accentuate the season’s flavors. Goins takes orders via cakedupcville.com, and her creations are on Instagram @cakedup_cville. Catch her at the City Market on November 6.
Drew Reynolds is one of the talented bakers who works at Bowerbird Bakeshop. With a line cook origin story, he made bread at C&O Restaurant, on top of food prep and dinner service. His penchant for pastry landed him a gig at Albemarle Baking Company, and as his time and his experience increased, so did his creativity. Reynolds’ current offerings include a spiced pear butter and marsala zabaglione eclair, an Italian-style whipped custard piped inside pâte à choux, macarons, and more. Peep him on Instagram @druhoo_98.
Mary Schwartz got her start by working in the front of house at Charlottesville’s Sweethaus cupcakery, and was baking in her spare time before she began working at the Ivy Inn a few days a week to learn more about pastry. When it became clear that breadmaking was her passion, Schwartz made the jump to Albemarle Baking Company, where she’s been developing her talents for the past four years under the mentorship of bakery owner Gerry Newman.
Schwartz says Newman has taught her to see the fruition of fermentation, and understand the daily changes in the dough. She says that “seeing the racks filled and the bread looking good,” it’s satisfying, “knowing that what we did was the right thing.” Schwartz is currently developing a pickled grape loaf by pickling local grapes with white vinegar, tarragon, and garlic, and utilizing them in the levain. Find her on Instagram @maryfschwartz.
In another realm of delicious things, Sidney Hall of Moon Maiden’s Delights creates plant-based and gluten-free pastries. She mills, soaks, and sprouts the specialty seeds, nuts, legumes, and flours she uses, and, with incredible mindfulness to nutrient density and wellness, she creates an option to indulge without compromise. “I so delight in being able to share delicious, gentle food with folks who have different dietary restrictions, as I myself have been on a healing journey for some time,” says Hall.
She says she’ll be bringing her signature turmeric black pepper coffee cake back to the IX Art Park Saturday market. She also loves to work with carob in the fall, and its complex caramel and coffee flavor might be the perfect complement to a cardamom and green apple pastry that she has in the works. Look for Hall at IX, or Moon Maiden’s Delights on Instagram @moon.maidens.delights.
Vincent Derquenne is not simply a baker, he’s one of the chef-partners behind Bizou, Luce, Bang!, The Space, and Crush Pad Wines, along with Tim Burgess. What you may not know is that Derquenne has been producing all the croissants for Bizou’s brunch for the majority of the past 10 years—by hand. Humbly, he says he’s turned over croissant production to a recently purchased sheeter, but transitioning from hand lamination is no easy feat for the French chef. Derquenne can be found all over C’ville, hopping between his restaurants, and if you’re lucky, you might hear tales of his time cooking at the Eiffel Tower. More on Derquenne at bizoudowntown.com.