Before she was chosen to compete on season 3 of TLC’s The Next Great Baker and work alongside The Cake Boss Buddy Valastro himself, Gretel-Ann Fischer spent years fi ghting to make her dream of baking professionally come true. The owner of Cupps Café & Bakery in Winooski, VT recently took the time out of her crazy schedule to answer a few questions about being on the show and doing what you love for a living.

1. What was the "Aha!" moment in your life when you knew you wanted to become a pastry chef?
When I was 7 my aunt brought me into a family bakery. Her sister in law was working on a cake in the back and I thought that it was the most amazing thing I had ever seen. I didn’t realize that I could do this for a living until my high school guidance counselor handed me a pamphlet to Paul Smith’s College. Then a light bulb went off.

2. What unique qualities or talents do you feel you offer, as a woman, to how you run Cupps?
I am great at multi tasking or at least I think I am doing a good job  I can have 20 things going on at once and be ok with it. I can be compassionate yet strong when necessary.

3. What has been one of the biggest professional challenges (career-related, not competition - related) you've faced and how did you overcome it?
Learning how to say no. It was hard to say that it was ok if I took a day off or had a lot of orders and couldn’t take another one without losing my mind. There needs to be a good balance. So finding that balance and learning to say no has been the hardest thing I’ve had to learn.

4. How did you balance running the shop, being in a reality competition and being a wife and mother to two children?
 It’s a constant balance. I have learned to take those little moments when I have them and cherish them. If I am reading a book to my kids I read an extra one and make a big deal about it. With my kids it’s never been about toys or trips or things that money could buy it’s always about time with my husband and me. So we concentrate on when we can have that time. Even if we have to schedule it it’s ok. Friday is family night, no excuses! Even if I have to get a cake order out the door I will stop my work at 5 and go have family night. I might have to go back to work after they have gone to bed but those moments are important. My husband and I will have “date night” in our family room with a bottle of wine, cheese and a movie. It’s not a lot but it’s special to us. It’s about finding those little moments that you have with each other and turn them into memorable moments.

5. What's the most important thing you've learned about yourself while competing on the show?
You fight! You fight for everything you believe in! You fight until you have no more fight left in you and then you dig deeper and find more fight. Nothing is worth giving up if you really believe in it. I learned I really am a fighter. I don’t give up on anything if I truly believe in it.

6. What's been the most memorable thing you've ever baked for someone?
The most memorable thing I have ever made was when we received a call at the bakery when we first opened. There was this couple who wanted to get married that night. The reason was he was dying and wasn’t expected to live more than a couple of days. They didn’t want to waste another moment and got married and they wanted the tradition of cutting that first slice of cake on their wedding day. To this day I think about how important food is in our life and how it seals those memories deep inside of us. I realized then how blessed I am that I get to be part of other’s special moments in life. It honestly is an honor for me to be part of traditions and celebrations in people’s homes.

7. If you could give one piece of advice for someone who dreams of baking professionally, what would it be?
 Sleep now while you can! If it is something that you are truly good at, that your passionate about, than do it! Don’t waste another minute to think should I or shouldn’t I? It takes a lot of courage to do and even if it fails at least you can say you tried. Never waste your breath on “what if it doesn’t…”. Well what if it does great, what if one day you get a call from a production company and they say they think you would be great for this national television show? What if one day you wake up and you say wow I am totally living my dream! Do it! It’s a lot of work, and I mean a lot. Food industry is one of the most high-risk businesses to open up but the pay off is huge when it works out! Never in a million years did I think I was going to do a national television show but I did it. It happened to me, this chick from Vermont, it can certainly happen to you! I didn’t have any “connections” I worked my butt off and I can honestly say I love what I do. I mean come on I get to play with frosting for my job, what can be better than that?!

Gretel’s Classic Cheesecake
Her take on this staple dessert is now the new secret weapon in your recipe box. Whip this up the night before your book club meets and surprise your guests with this perfect compliment to a hot mug of coffee.

Ingredients:

  • 32 ounces of cream cheese, softened
  • 1 ¼ cup of sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 3 tablespoons of lemon juice
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 ¼ cup of graham cracker crumbs
  • ¼ cup butter, melted

Directions:
For the crust, in a medium bowl combine graham cracker crumbs and butter. Press into the bottom of a round spring form pan and freeze.

For the filling, beat softened cream cheese and sugar on medium high for three minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating after each addition. Stir in lemon juice and vanilla. Bake at 350 degrees for 60 minutes. Let cool to room temperature, and then chill in the refrigerator for 4 hours before serving.

Suggestions for dressing up your cheesecake for the holidays: sugared cranberries, raspberry coulis, and/or chocolate shavings/curls.

Find Cupps Café & Bakery on the web:
www.cuppsvt.com
facebook.com/cuppsvt

Want to follow your bliss (but can’t quit your day job)?

1. Talk to someone who's been there
If you’re friendly with someone in the same business (in a non-competing area), invite them out to lunch and pick their brain. You’ll want to get to know about the less glamourous aspects of being your own boss, too.

2. Make your local debut.
Dip your toes in the water at local events by tabling at craft fairs and entering recipe contests. Posting about your venture on facebook? You can now pay a small fee to “promote” a post, which will bump your message to the top of your friends’ message feeds for a while. It’s a small investment that could make all the difference on event day.

3. Contact your SBDC.
The North Country Small Business Development Center in Plattsburgh offers free one-on-one counseling to up and coming entrepreneurs. A few meetings with someone here will save you a lot of time and questions. www.northcountrysbdc.com 518.564.2042

Add this page to your favorite Social Bookmarking websites
| More...
Comments (0)
Only registered users can write comments!