Pastry chef flying high with new shop

To hear his grandmother tell it, Joshua Baudin was destined to work in the kitchen. As a youngster, he would hang on her apron strings, never swiping a cookie from the jar, but eagerly pouncing on the treats when offered.

"I do have some great memories of baking with Grandma and Grandpa," Baudin says. "I stood by Mema's side as she prepped and baked her amazing Christmas cookies. After they were baked, the cookies were released to Papa and me for decorating.

"We were able to jam a huge amount of love into these little cookies. The cookie was simple, but it expressed so much. I smile thinking about it."

After graduating from Crystal Lake High School in 1999 he became a flight attendant and then worked at Walt Disney Resort before he realized he was happiest in the kitchen. He returned to Illinois and enrolled at the French Pastry School in Chicago.

Earlier this year, with the help of family, he opened Sweet Wimsy, a Long Grove bakery that specializes in French-style pastries. He lives in Crystal Lake with is wife, Kirstin.

What was your first pastry job

I volunteered in the bakery at Willow Creek Community Church before I went to school. That was my only "commercial kitchen" experience. Needless to say, I was terrified the first day of pastry school.

The owners, chefs Sebastien Canonne and Jacquy Pfeiffer, and the entire bunch at the French Pastry School were great at calming my nerves. They developed my inherent skill and prepared me to enter the world of pastry.

I call chefs Sebastien and Jacquy as well as some FPS grads-turned-shop owners for guidance weekly.

How did Sweet Wimsy evolve?

After school, I had the amazing support of a friend in Crystal Lake who let me have access to her commercial kitchen. I needed a place to sell my stuff, so some folks from school suggested farmers markets.

At our busiest time we were doing eight markets in five days; we were like circus people. I always have wanted to join the circus so I thought it was a blast!

We will continue to have a presence in local markets. It is a great way to meet our guests in their neighborhoods.

Tell us about the shop

At Sweet Whimsy, we love to take sophisticated, classic French recipes, and make them accessible. Most of the pastry you find in our case is petite; they are perfectly portioned for a single serving.

People absolutely love our from-scratch croissants. They like the almond croissants even more! Another big seller is our "brakes": too good to be a brownie, but it is not exactly a cake. So brownie plus cake: brake. They are fantastic little circles of a dense chocolate sponge made with imported Belgium chocolate.

Another huge seller is my mother-in-law's carrot cake. It flies off the shelf!

Describe your typical day

I get to the shop pretty darn early. I prep things for the day and work on our orders. My family arrives in time to open the shoppe. We all leave after we clean the store from top to bottom.

I try to have production occur throughout the day so folks passing by can see the kitchen in action (we have an "open kitchen" with windows to the walkway and store). You gotta love a good show. Especially if you can eat the props!

What and when was the last meal you cooked at home?

Honestly, I am on a clear liquid diet for a couple weeks, so the last thing I made at home was Jell-O and a box of organic chicken stock.

I do love to cook at home. I love to cook for people and with people. We just made rotisserie pork with rosemary and thyme, garlic mashed, French baguettes and chocolate souffle. I really enjoy simple food done well.

Where do you like to eat out?

I have been frequenting the Long Grove restaurants lately. We have Greek to Italian and everything between. I love all food, so I like to try different spots. I really love Middle Eastern food and pizza. Strange combo.

What do you do in your free time?

I love spending time with my sweet little dogs. Oh, and my wife too.

I was a flight attendant with United for a number of years, so the travel bug still has a hold of me. The favorite place I have been so far is Oktoberfest in Munich.

Do you have any advice for home bakers?

Baking is scientific. Here are some tools and tips to achieve consistent results:

You should buy an oven thermometer and hang it in your oven to make sure your oven is baking at the right temperature.

Baking is not forgiving like cooking. Good recipes are proven formulas. If you mess with ingredients too much you may not be happy with what you pull out of the oven.

Use a scale instead of measuring cups/spoons.

Tell us about this recipe for Carrot Cake

The recipe is one of my mother-in-law's. I changed one thing; it is my secret, but I will share it with you. I grate my carrots rather than shredding them. The pieces of carrot are really fine so they disperse throughout the cake nicely. That also releases more juices from the carrots so your cake has a nice carrot flavor.

Try it at home or at Sweet Wimsy, 251 Robert Parker Coffin Road, Long Grove. (847) 821-2021.

• To recommend a chef to be profiled, write to food@dailyherald.com.

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