Nicole Plue

A recipient of the James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef, Nicole Plue’s culinary career spans from coast to coast. She began her career at San Francisco restaurants One Market, and Hawthorn Lane where she led the celebrated bread program. New York called and Nicole was recruited as pastry chef on the opening team at Eleven Madison Park in Manhattan. Martha Stewart sought out Nicole to develop recipes for the pastry and baking segments for “Martha Stewart Living” television show. 

 Nicole returned to Calistoga, California and spent several years at Julia's Kitchen (Napa), Redd (Yountville), and was executive pastry chef at the Michelin-starred Cyrus (Healdsburg). In 2012, she launched her own line of hand-crafted sweets called Sideshow.

 Sonoma Magazine wrote of her desserts, “Plue’s list of ingredients and techniques is mind-blowing…inspired by a magical coeur a la creme (a creamy dessert), incorporating Fontainebleau (an ultra-luxe sort of whipped cream), goat yogurt creme fraiche, and fried farina fritters. There are pecan-caramelized milk chocolate covered cornflakes, a honeycomb parfait with milk chocolate mousse and popcorn tuile (whisper-delicate cookies).”

Answering another call, this time to teach, Nicole served as Director of Pastry Arts at San Francisco Cooking School which was open to the public as well as to professionals. 

 Since 2015, Nicole has been teaching aspiring pastry chefs and avid bakers at the Artisan Baking Center in Petaluma where she loves to share her secrets with her students. Nicole’s students quickly realize they’ve hit the dessert jackpot under her tutelage.