How to Obtain an Excellent Pastry Chef Salary

First, Whether your looking for a job, changing jobs or changing careers, you have come to the right place. At pastry chef salary.org we help people research job, salary and school information! Pastry chef salary.org is one of the number one resources for job seekers who are looking for a great high paying career in the Culinary Arts industry. We provide up-to-date job information, requirements, research tools, as well as the resources to perform a successful job search that may give you an advantage over your competition. And in today’s tough job market, that is more important than ever. It is also advised to check all avenues when looking for information in this career field. These articles supply a lot of good information about the pastry chef career field, but there is always more information out there.

It is also advised to do plenty of research before committing to a career in this profession. It goes without saying pastry chefs need to be able bake, this involves attention to details knowledge of ingredients and have a lot of patience. Is this a career that is right for you? Pastry chef jobs, if you are creative, have a strong work ethic you may have a successful pastry chef career in this competitive field and receive top pay as an executive pastry chef, pastry chef salary is upwards of ninety-thousand dollars annually. Now saying that obtaining a position as a pastry is not an easy road. There are several different educational opportunities and pastry chef schools for you to choose from if you want a pastry chef job in this profession.

You can get a certificate or diploma in less than a year usually if you have the skills and determination to do so. This entry level knowledge will get you an entry level position. An associate degree will give you more skills and the basic education but you will probably qualify for the same position as a diploma graduate from a culinary school. The goal as in any job is to become management, and in this case an executive pastry chef, for this you will need an advanced degree and attend one of the many pastry chef schools. Whenever looking at schools and comparing culinary programs and pastry chef schools, the most important thing is to research. Researching will give you the tools to becoming a chef that is successful and obtaining top pay in this field.

First research the faculty, the faculty should be well educated in the culinary field they should also have a good reputation for teaching his or her peers and also have the appropriate education. When researching the pastry chef schools, you will need to check on accreditation and the facilities themselves. For accreditation what you are looking for is any recognized culinary accredited school from the American Culinary Federation, Cordon Bleu, etc. You want to and cook in a professional culinary kitchen with industry approved equipment, check the facilities first hand you will be spending many, many hours in the facilities kitchen.

Being the chef offers many opportunities such as earning a high paying pastry chef salary, and it is not limited to making cakes and desserts. You can use your culinary skills to open your own restaurant, bakery, maybe even be a food critic who knows where your skills will take you .You could work at a five star restaurant or be an executive chef at the White House.

Education and Pastry Chef Schools

Employment as the chef or cake decorator does not necessarily carry any educational requirements or attending pastry chef schools, but pastry baking certificates and degree programs are available, however individuals interested in becoming pastry chefs can begin learning relevant job skills before enrolling in programs or ever while in high school. Elective courses in Home Economics or Baking are available in mostly all high schools. Those out of high school may look to community colleges or local colleges. In many cases credits towards other related courses may be accepted to be put towards a chef certificate or degree program at pastry chef schools. Completing such courses is generally not mandatory if entering an apprenticeship program at a restaurant or bakery.

But certificate programs provide students with applied and theoretical instruction in baking pies, cakes, tarts, chocolate candy, and cookies. Students also learn about general food handling safety and sanitation. Associates degree programs teach students various types of baking services such as catering and cake decorating which will lead to earning a pastry chef salary in the future. These two year programs provide education in additional dessert types, such as donuts, tortes, and wedding cakes. Students in Associates degree programs are also educated in the business side of pastry baking. Coursework will also be completed in the areas of bakery and restaurant management, food purchasing and product marketing. There are also apprenticeship programs for budding chefs.

American Culinary Federation will connect individuals to programs in various locations across the country. These pastry chef schools and programs are coordinated in conjunction with community colleges, trade schools, and has chapter in twenty-eight states. Apprentices work for two to three years in a participating facility and must log their training hours and undergo evaluation conforming to standards set by the American Culinary Federation. Additional career education can be attained by taking courses at a culinary institute or enrolling in a bachelor degree program in culinary arts. These types of schools offer financial aid programs, hands-on training, professional chef instructors, industry current kitchens and equipment, and apprenticeship programs at local restaurants and hospitality institutes. Most of the pastry chef schools offer the same degrees such as AS in baking and pastry and a Diploma in Professional baking and pastry.

They also may offer the following featured programs such as culinary arts, pastry and baking, hospitality and restaurant management and Bachelor of Arts in culinary management. Some of these types of schools are The International Culinary School at The Art Institute, French Culinary Institute, The Institute of Culinary Education, Culinary Academy of Long Island, Lincoln Culinary Institute, Keiser University, and Le Cordon Bleu. All of these schools have numerous locations for those interested in pastry chef jobs. The International Culinary School at The Art Institute has schools located in Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and British Columbia. The French Culinary Institute, The Institute of Culinary Education, and the Culinary Academy of Long Island are all located in New York. The Lincoln Culinary Institute and The Keiser University are both located in Florida. Le Cordon Bleu has locations in Arizona, California, Georgia, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon, Texas and Washington.

Daily Duties for the Budding Pastry Chef

Even if you have spent your entire life dreaming of making desserts in five star restaurant, corner patisserie, or upscale bistro, and earning a high paying pastry chef salary, consider both sides of this career as a chef before you make a final decision. But once you have been bitten the by the pastry making bug it’s a difficult dream to shake. On a typical day as the chef, you may be called upon to perform many, many tasks, some of which are strictly administrative and logistical and do not involve any food preparation at all. Common responsibilities and duties include: working with other members of the kitchen staff to devise dessert menus that complement the rest of the menu. Developing and testing new pastries and deserts. The pastry chef is an individual who oversees the culinary staff and is required to have knowledge of many jobs in their workplace.

Frequently pastry chef jobs will oversee the staff, place orders for the ingredients for desserts and all other culinary foods and the overall preparation of the food that will be served with the dinner of the day. From time to time as an executive chef you will put on the apron and help prepare the meals as well. One who holds the title executive pastry chef has quite a few different general responsibilities related to their professional role. The chef is responsible for overseeing all who work in the kitchen below his title in the restaurant to ensure that all their duties are being carried out to the fullest of their potential. The chef will also be responsible for any kitchen tool orders to enable the preparation of all the meals. The chef will also address any complaints which may affect his kitchen staff and resolve such issues. The pastry chef is a meal planner with regards to the dessert items and any specials. Being a chef allows you to be inventive and creative which allows you to create new recipes and new menu items.

A chef will spend many hours developing their recipes and making them as perfect as they can. A pastry chef will also have to monitor kitchen stock is maintained so that ingredients are always plentiful and available. This means setting up the required quantities of stock and determining how long the stock will last and a new order will have to be made. The last main duty of a pastry chef is the preparation of all the desserts, breads and other treats they are going to be served that day. An individual with a pastry chef career must know how many desserts what kind of desserts and pastries must be cooked to prevent the wasting of precious inventory. This is very important due to the wasting of products will cause the restaurant to lose money making to little will cause income lose as well by not having the desserts advertised on the menu of the day. Some may view a chef to be an individual with great experiences and cooking flair but in fact he counts on his staff and knowledge to create a functional and organized kitchen.