Cindy Mushet

Cindy Mushet, the author of our new baking book titled The Art and Soul of Baking, has been a pastry chef and culinary instructor for nearly 20 years, beginning her career at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, CA. She has since headed pastry kitchens in restaurants and bakeries from Napa to San Diego, and has taught professional training courses at Le Cordon Bleu, the Culinary Institute of America, and the New School of Cooking, among others. She has also taught hundreds of recreational classes across the country.

For five years she wrote and published the highly regarded Baking With the American Harvest, a quarterly baking journal with subscribers nationwide. She also is the author of Desserts: Mediterranean Flavors, California Style and was a contributing writer to The Joy of Cooking, The Joy of Cooking Christmas Cookies, and The Baker's Dozen Cookbook. Cindy's recipes and articles have been featured in magazines and newspapers across the country, including Bon Appétit, Fine Cooking, Gourmet, Country Home, and The New York Times. In addition, her recipes were among the few to be chosen for The Best American Recipe books.

Cindy lives in Los Angeles, where she is a patisserie chef-instructor in Le Cordon Bleu program at the California School of Culinary Arts, and she consults regularly with restaurants and bakeries on menu development and staff training. Cindy is a regular guest on KCRW's Good Food radio show. She has been a spokeswoman for the American Butter Institute and a guest chef at food conferences across the country.