la·de·da

Last week I started a two-month apprenticeship at Sara Spearin’s Dynamo Donuts in the Mission. Every Thursday or Sunday, I show up at 6:30 am to catch the last couple of hours of mixing, proofing, cutting, filling, glazing, and garnishing in the kitchen. My head coach is Jeremy, an incredibly patient guy who only started baking professionally in the last year. Like me (and most of the Dynamo staff), Jeremy discovered a love of baking mid-career. He’d already earned a bachelor’s and trained as a massage therapist, so he wasn’t looking to dole out another $20,000 for a third education at culinary school. Instead, Jeremy asked the owner of his favorite bakery in Russian Hill if he needed an extra hand in the mornings, when they handle the dough. The owner was excited to have help and appreciated Jeremy’s enthusiasm, so he took him under his wing for several months as an intern.

Now Jeremy’s showing me the ropes at Dynamo. So far, it’s been a lot of fun sipping rich Four Barrel coffee and learning how to best transform the springy dough as you knead it. I love the special care and attention paid through the whole process—right down to the eight sea salt crystals lovingly arranged on top of the caramel doughnuts. It’s also fascinating to see how many want-to-be cooks and bakers are skipping school and heading straight to the kitchen for their training. 

“Pastry school really only teaches you the very basics,” says Shauna des Voignes, owner of Knead Patisserie, just a few blocks away from Dynamo. “If you’re willing to work early in the morning, have a little experience in the kitchen, and can take it when a chef says you did something wrong, most bakers are happy to have you come in and learn.”