Have you ever wanted to know how to bake a delicious cake, complete with colourful swirls of icing and delicate patterns that make your mouth water before taking a bite?
It’s Jhana Small’s mission to help you turn your dream of the perfect handmade cake into reality.
“Baking can be a therapeutic and relaxing activity; it brings out the creative side of you when you understand the science behind baking,” she says.
The Cakes
Small is relatively new to Airdrie, but has owned her business, Little Patisserie Cakes & Baking Classes, for five years. She was first introduced to baking when she was 13 years old and went to a family friend’s house where they taught her some recipes for basic butter cookies and cakes.
“My love for baking kicked off from there!” she says.
She was so passionate about the craft that she studied baking and pastry arts management at Centennial College in Ontario in 2020.
Small started the business off by making and selling cakes before adding classes after moving to Airdrie. She now sells about 70 cakes per year.
“I make buttercream cakes, cheesecakes, vanilla, chocolate, red velvet, carrot and tiramisu, but, most recently, I transitioned over to mini cakes due to my schedule and being able to balance everything,” says Small, who is also a full-time bakery manager.
“I love seeing those happy faces from customers when receiving their products. My baked goods stand out since I don’t enjoy overly sweet desserts, so I try to put this concept into what I produce, and people love the balance.”
Small adds the most challenging part of her work with Little Patisserie is the misconception that home and specialty bakeries charge too much for their products.
“The prices of ingredients are constantly going up,” she says. “I am not a commercial bakery, so my cost for products will definitely not be the same as the grocery store, but I use real ingredients and no preservatives, and you can certainly taste the difference.
“I would like people to appreciate home bakers because they are trying to make a living for themselves and families with the resources they have. Supporting local can help a family within your community and get you a beautiful product you will love.”
The Classes
Small has only hosted a few classes so far, but says they have been a huge success. The classes are held in her home kitchen or in the comfort of the student’s own.
“These classes are completely personalized,” she says. “Whatever the student wants to learn, we will go about executing that. For example, if they want to learn to make chocolate cake, we go through the recipe from scratch.”
The classes can be one-on-one or a group class for a birthday, ladies’ night or family gathering.
“For my students, I love to see the progress from start to finish, she says. “Some people come not knowing the first thing about baking, but, by the time they leave, they can at least follow a recipe for a basic cake and do basic piping techniques to make cake for their kids or families.
“The end results are always the best part for me when the client has never even used their oven to bake any cakes before. To see their happy faces with the final product that we made is priceless.”
So, what kind of cake is this baking queen’s favourite?
“My favourite cake is tiramisu,” Small says. “Like I mentioned before, I love non-sweet desserts. It’s the perfect blend with coffee and dark rum.”
Learn more, purchase a cake or sign up for a class at littlepastrychef.home.blog.
