Meet one of the masterminds behind
the creations at Edwards Dessert Kitchen
May 24, 2019 — In the summer
of 2018, Schwan’s Company embarked on a new journey fueled by a curiosity for
innovation and a love of all things desserts. That journey was Edwards Dessert Kitchen, located in the North Loop neighborhood of Minneapolis, Minnesota.
At the helm of
Edwards Dessert Kitchen is Executive Pastry Chef Christina Kaelberer,
but we know that every great leader has support from their team. At Edwards
Dessert Kitchen one of those people Christina seeks extra support from is
Pastry Sous Chef Jasmine Weiser. In this post, we will share with you
what Jasmine is bringing to the dessert counter at Edwards Dessert Kitchen and
what drives her love for pastries.
Chef Jasmine’s
passion for food began as a child, however, it wasn’t until she was in college
pursuing a degree in astronomy and physics that she realized her true dream of
a career in culinary. She then traded her textbooks for a chef coat and
graduated from Le Cordon Bleu in Minneapolis.
Later, taking
a pastry assistant job at Minneapolis’s Marin Restaurant (now Mercy), Jasmine
met her better [culinary] half and mentor Chef Christina Kaelberer. Under Chef
Christina’s leadership, Jasmine developed her distinctive, artistic dessert
style — bringing together complementary colors, textures and ingredients to
create uniquely delicious desserts.
When Chef
Christina was pulled in by Schwan’s to lead Edwards Dessert Kitchen she knew
exactly who was going to be her wing woman. Pulling in Jasmine, the two created
an original menu full of unique desserts and a team of people just as
passionate about desserts as them.
“Building a
team was a new experience,” Jasmine said. “This was the first time I had this
large of a team that I was responsible for managing and developing. And, it was
fun being able to pass on what Christina has taught me and hopefully inspire
others to further pursue their culinary careers.”
Jasmine also
hopes to inspire the guests at Edwards Dessert Kitchen.
“I want to
inspire other people when they look in our dessert case and ask themselves,
‘How did they do that?,’” Jasmine said. “I love to hear the questions people
have about the desserts and watching their reactions when taking the first
bite.”
For creating
desserts, seasonality is a major component. Jasmine said she gravitates toward
creating desserts based on what is available and in season. She also likes the
palates of desserts and trying to make solid-colored desserts.
“The artistry
of creating the color palate and figuring out how to plate the dessert is one of
my favorite parts of the job,” Jasmine said.
Some of
Jasmine’s signature dishes on the menu demonstrating her push for the unique at
Edwards Dessert Kitchen are the Passion Fruit Chocolate Mousse, which is vegan,
and inventive made-to-order items such as the Hibiscus and Crème.
Some may not see those flavor pairings come together in a million years, but Jasmine says when someone is truly interested in food it is natural for them to go and find different ingredients and try unique pairings. They don't all work out, but when they do they are remarkable and memorable.
