Maddy Stange is no stranger to the kitchen, and after nearly two decades perfecting her baking skills, she has traveled to Yssingeaux, France to enroll in a 13-week intensive pastry program learning from top French pastry chefs and mastering classic techniques.
A graduate of Cadillac High School and now a student at Johnson & Wales University in Rhode Island, Stange’s love for baking began when she was first learning the basics in the kitchen from her grandparents.
“It started with my grandmas Gail Nelson and Penny Stange, both of them love to bake,” Stange said. “It kind of started in the kitchens, and I just eventually started with cookies and then I found cupcakes. For me, that was like, ‘Whoa, amazing.’ I really loved doing cupcakes. I loved piping them and frosting them. Anything related to cake was what stuck out in my interest, but it’s always been cookies. What I’ve always seen with baking with my grandmas is the love behind it.
“One of my grandmas, we call her Cookie because she makes the best cookies ever,” she said. “My other grandma, she was really good at pies, and I loved making pies with her and incorporating all of the knowledge from both of them. When I sit down with my grandmas, we do the ‘How are you? How’s life?’ then we get talking about recipes we saw online, or ‘I tested this recipe. Here’s how it went.’ It’s just a language of love. No matter the age difference or what we’re doing in the world, whatever’s happening we can always come back to food and recipes.”
After exploring nearly every American baking recipe and realizing there was a large market for her creations between family and friends requesting batches, at 12, Stange officially started her own small baked goods business, Maddy Cakes.
After graduating high school, Stange moved to attend Johnson & Wales University and majored in food and beverage entrepreneurship with a baking and pastry associate’s degree.
As a part of the college program, Stange got the opportunity to study at École Nationale Supérieure de Pâtisserie (ENSP) in Yssingeaux in a class of 18 other students.
Per the school’s website, the ENSP has been a benchmark school in France and internationally for professionals in the arts of pastry-making, baking, chocolate-making, confectionery and ice cream.
In 2023, the ENSP expanded with the Yves Thuriès Campus and became the world’s largest campus dedicated to Pastry Arts.
“When I went to my first two years of university back in the U.S. at Johnson & Wales, I got the cakes, cookies, breads-type aspect,” Stange said. “I’ve always been interested in the very delicate, elegant cream desserts like mousse and pastry creams, all of that stems from French pastry. When I came out here, it was definitely a culture shock regarding the way they handle food and the way they go about it.
“For my first experience I went to the grocery store I was looking for eggs and they don’t refrigerate them, so I was looking all over for eggs, same thing with milk. I realized things are a little bit different here when it comes to ingredients. As I got deeper into the way that they grade their ingredients I learned the quality difference and the production behind cream is way different than what is in the U.S. I’m a learner at heart, and I love to learn so any opportunity that I get, I take advantage of it. Coming out to France is another great, amazing opportunity.”
Made by Maddy Stange.
Made by Maddy Stange.
Made by Maddy Stange.
Stange said when she got into the lab itself she learned about combining chocolates with fruits, fruits and nuts and flavors that aren’t very common in the U.S.
Learning what was required of daily classes and new French techniques was another adjustment for Stange.
“We did an entremet class and those start off where you’re in a lab at 6 a.m. sharp,” Stange said. “You get there a little bit early, you’re in full uniform of jacket, pants and shoes so everyone looks very similar. Once you start the chef will essentially go over the to-do list for the day and throughout the day we’ll do periodic demos where they’ll show you the trickier type of things that you can’t necessarily read on a recipe and know how to execute as easily. We’ve done cookies and cakes, we’ve made about four different pound cakes and then about three different cookies. It depends on the lab. From there, you work with a lab partner, and you produce everything. Then, of course, you have to take photos.”
Learning the different methods for mixing was one of the new aspects Stange has been getting the hang of, and she said it’s been a lot of math and science learning what batters require to come out correctly. Mastering the perfect mousse mixing technique was a highlight of one of her course days in the lab.
According to Stange, at the end of the week, the class sets up a buffet where they get to display all of the work done in the kitchen. Along the way, the students are tasting and testing how successful each attempt was.
After each taste test, there are plenty of leftover treats which the school donates to the local elementary school and local community institutions like elderly care facilities.
“All of that is incorporated into a six-hour lab from 6 a.m. to noon,” Stange said. “After that, it’s coming back and going to your kitchen and your apartment and trying stuff again. The school is located in is quite small, very tight-knit community. Everyone’s super friendly and welcoming. You’ll see the desserts be picked up and they’ll be distributed throughout the community.”
While she hasn’t had much time outside of the kitchen, Stange said she is planning to explore more of the French region she is staying in and exploring more French cuisine.
For Stange, centering community and care for friends, family and customers has always been a special ingredient in her baking.
“My favorite thing to do is, whenever I’m hanging out with friends or doing something with my family, I’m like, ‘I’ll bring the dessert,’” Stange said. “It’s just something that is always around us. Food sometimes loses its touch because three times a day you’re eating meals or snacks and it loses some of the the love that it deserves. Ultimately, food is such a great avenue for connection, because not only when I’m here at the university they have a restaurant within the campus and they only speak French, but the language of food is very easy to communicate, especially if it is good.
“It’s an easy conversation starter that you don’t even realize how welcoming food can be. It tastes good and it brings people together. In my class, we will all sit down, all 18 of us, and we have a family dinner. It just works out that I’m meeting new people, learning new cultures and it’s all surrounded by food. Everything that’s brought me here is food.”
After the program in France ends, Stange is determined to slowly begin incorporating more French baking techniques and dishes into her small business.
Though some harder techniques may take more time, she said taking the time to get her treats right is the biggest focus when in the kitchen at home.
“It might take some time and there might be a little transition period but I want to take the elements that I’ve learned and apply them back home,” Stange said. “What I’m seeing here, I don’t see necessarily back home when it comes to food and pastries. With my business itself, I’m just so thankful for the community who supported me because it started with my first-ever order, to now every weekend during the summer doing farmer’s markets and custom orders throughout the school year when I was back in Michigan. It was overwhelming, and that support meant so much to me that it kept me going to where I am today.”
As for advice for other young bakers, Stange said her advice is to first learn how to fail and get back up when getting started in the kitchen, and growing skills from fundamentals.
She admits that it took plenty of failing and trying again with recipes to get to the level of mastery and recipes she can tackle today.
“The best thing to learn is you’re gonna fail, but you just have to get back up,” Stange said. “Keep pushing forward — try something new. Try something innovative. If it doesn’t work out, figure out a different plan. There’s a lot of revision and a lot of back and forth. Both the science behind baking and the enjoyment behind baking are going to be different, the enjoyment comes at heart. Have fun when you’re doing it and enjoy what you’re doing. Eventually, the skills will build up, but don’t quit.
“Once you kind of figure out your language within the realm of food or pastry, whatever it may be, use that and give it away. Explore, challenge your thoughts and share them with people, that’s the best thing you could do, is share. The nice thing about food is you have an end product. In pastry, you have an end product that’s meant to be shared and so whoever you can share it with that’s the best thing to do.”
While the rigor of the program has taken much of Stange’s focus, missing home has been a part of the experience as well.
The support of family and friends is what keeps her motivated and positive along with a deep love of baking, according to Stange.
“It’s been a long time since I’ve been this far away,” she said. “A wild 12-hour plane ride away, and people are so supportive of me. I just want to thank them for their continuous support. Ever since I was young they fueled this passion, I had that little spark and my family fueled it. They gave me the opportunities, they’ve put things in front of me and they’ve just let me go with it. Every step of the way, I’ve been so thankful for both my parents, my grandparents, my aunt, my cousin — everybody. I like to call it a whole family shindig, because in the summer they are helping me make the cupcakes, they’re down there at 7 a.m. in the morning with me right beside me.”
Looking ahead, Stange said she is positive about growing her business and continuing to connect with fellow bakers and pastry lovers of all kinds through sharing her love of baking.
For more information on Maddy Cakes or to connect with Stange, click here.