French Pastry School facts for kids
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Other name
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FPS |
|---|---|
| Type | Private |
| Established | 1995 |
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Academic staff
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Jacquy Pfeiffer (Dean of Student Affairs) Sébastien Canonne, M.O.F. (Dean of Faculty and Programs) |
| Location |
226 W. Jackson Blvd.
Chicago, Illinois 60606 41°52′42″N 87°38′06″W / 41.8783°N 87.6349°W |
The French Pastry School (FPS) is a special school in Chicago, Illinois, in the United States. It teaches students how to make amazing pastries, bake delicious treats, and create beautiful candies. It's the only cooking school in the U.S. that focuses only on pastry arts.
Contents
How the School Started
The French Pastry School was founded in 1995 by two master pastry chefs: Jacquy Pfeiffer and Sébastien Canonne, M.O.F. They met in Chicago in 1992 and realized there wasn't a really good school for pastry in the United States. They wanted to teach traditional French pastry making, just like how a master teaches an apprentice in Europe.
At first, Chef Pfeiffer and Chef Canonne taught professional classes in a small studio. More and more students wanted to learn, so in 1999, the school moved to a bigger, modern building. This move was helped by Mayor Richard M. Daley. The school also teamed up with City Colleges of Chicago. This partnership made it possible for students to get financial help to attend the school. In 2009, they made the school even bigger, adding more kitchen space.
What You Can Learn
The French Pastry School offers three main programs where you can earn a certificate. These programs teach you different skills in baking and decorating.
L'Art de la Pâtisserie (Pastry Arts)
This program is 24 weeks long and teaches you all about classic French pastry. It started in 1999. In this course, students learn many things, including:
- The science behind baking
- How to keep food clean and safe
- Making different kinds of breads and breakfast pastries
- Creating delicious cakes and tarts
- Decorating with chocolate and sugar
L'Art du Gâteau (Cake Decorating)
This program started in 2010 and lasts for 16 weeks. It's perfect if you want to become an expert in baking and decorating cakes. Students focus on making cakes for weddings, celebrations, and other special events. You'll learn skills like:
- Baking and building cakes
- Making small pastries and party favors
- Working with special edible materials like gumpaste and pastillage
- Using rolled fondant
- Decorating with sugar and chocolate
- Using an airbrush for designs
- Making molds
- Planning a cake business
L'Art de la Boulangerie (Bread Baking)
This 10-week program began in 2011 and is for students who want to specialize in baking bread. You'll learn how to make many different types of bread, including:
- Basic French breads
- Using special dough starters called pre-ferments
- Working with sourdough (levains)
- Baking with whole grains and organic ingredients
- Making advanced breakfast pastries and viennoiseries (like croissants)
- Creating unique specialty breads
The school teaches students to be very careful and follow instructions exactly. They also learn to be persistent and not give up if a recipe doesn't work the first time. Class sizes are small, with only up to 18 students. This means students get to work closely with the master pastry chefs. After graduating, students also get help finding jobs and advice for their careers. The school also offers shorter, hands-on classes (3 to 5 days) for both professionals and people who just love to bake as a hobby.
