About

Food is in Barbara Caldwell’s blood… literally and figuratively.

Born and raised in Nashville, TN, with an aunt and grandmother who were professional chefs, Barbara was brought up on a mixture of down home Southern food and classic French cuisine. Bewitched by the tastes and smells that seemed to erupt from all corners of the Caldwell family, it was inevitable that Barbara would delve into the culinary arts; baking was her preferred muse.  As a sophomore at the University of Vermont, Barbara would frequently call home for ‘professional’ advice, which was then integrated with her own ideas and emotions to cement her love affair with the art of baking.

It was in the fall of 2004, while living in Santa Cruz and working at Bonny Doon Vineyard, that Barbara decided it was time to bake professionally.  She enrolled in the pastry program at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris in 2005, where she completed her course and a three-month stage at the Michelin-starred Eiffel Tower restaurant, Le Jules Verne.

Barbara moved to the food-centric city of San Francisco in 2006 where she worked first as a pastry cook at Aqua and then as a baker at Tartine.  Having decided in 2007 to embark upon a career in the music industry, Barbara finally decided it was time to stop traveling the world in luxury and come home.  To her real passion. To her muse.  Baking. Creating culinary treats and enjoying the glorious beauty of a craft which few can master.  Pie-maker, pastry chef and baker, the clearest taste in all of Barbara Caldwell’s kitchen creations is the love that goes into every single crumb.