The perfect recipe for a Food Network baking competition show includes equal parts sugar, spice, skill and stress. There’s a new show with exactly that, filled with pâte à choux, chocolate sculptures and ticking clocks.
One of the competitors has been fine tuning her craft not too far away, in her pastry shop downtown on Higuera Street.
Florencia Breda, Michelin-star pastry chef and co-owner of chocolaterie and patisserie Breda, is one of 16 bakers who are competing in the first season of “The Ultimate Baking Championship” on Food Network. The winner will receive $50,000 and the title of Ultimate Baking Champion, according to Food Network’s website.
The show airs Monday nights at 9 p.m. on Food Network since its premiere on Mar. 9 and is hosted by Jesse Palmer. Pastry chef Duff Goldman and a weekly guest judge score the competitors on core pastry techniques.
“It’s scary because it’s something I never did before,” Breda said. “It’s my first competition show on TV, on Food Network, no less.”
Breda will advance to the finale in the ninth episode of the show on Monday. In a past episode, she baked a sachertorte cake with apricot compote, chocolate mousse and salty chocolate crumble, according to a post from her Instagram.
At first, Breda ignored Instagram messages from a member of the casting team because she thought it was spam.
“I was like, ‘there’s no way this can be real,’” Breda said. “She was saying that they were looking for contestants and she admired my work, but I didn’t think it was legit. I didn’t answer, and then a month after, she contacted me again on my email. So I was like, ‘okay, maybe this is legit, right?’”
After some interviews to see if she would be a good fit, Breda was notified that she was chosen to compete.
“I love to watch [Food Network] when I’m at home, and I know that it’s always amazing judges,” Breda said. “I was very happy that the main host and judge is going to be Duff Goldman. I watch him all the time. I love him. I think he’s so funny and I love the way he judges as well.”
The Ultimate Baking Championship
Breda is no stranger to fast-paced kitchen environments. She’s worked in Michelin-star rated restaurants in Italy, Portugal and even Miami with Antonio Bachour, who was elected best pastry chef in the world in 2018 and 2022, according to the Best Chef Awards website.
However, baking on a reality competition show provides a new challenge, Breda said.
“I think I’m very well trained to work under stress,” Breda said. “Of course, I’m going through something new and these are different kinds of stress. I never had to be in front of cameras. That’s an extra fear to add to it.”
Since her business just opened last year, Breda is looking forward to gaining more exposure from the show. She also hopes to grow personally and connect with other contestants in the show.
“When I watch the shows from my car, I see how people bond together,” Breda said. “Even if it’s one episode or 10 episodes, you always form very nice friendships. Hopefully I can bring some home with me.”
When crafting pastries, Breda likes to stay true to her Argentinian and Italian roots, after growing up in Treviso, Italy, since she was two years old.
Credit: Courtesy / Florencia Breda
Credit: Courtesy / Florencia Breda
Credit: Courtesy / Florencia Breda
“I try to stick with Italian flavors and European textures and profiles,” Breda said.
Starting a business inside Mistura
Breda previously worked as a pastry chef for Mistura Restaurant, where she formed connections with other business owners. She planned to open her own store in 2022, when she acquired her own business license — until Mistura owner Nicola Allegretta made her an offer.
“He said, ‘it’s gonna be very difficult. You’re gonna need a lot of money backed up, how about you start here with me?’” Breda said.
He suggested Breda rent out a space within the Mistura restaurant to showcase her products while also saving on expenses.
“I said yes, and that was the best advice and help that anyone could ever give me,” Breda said.
Breda says she owes a lot to Allegretta. To this day, he still buys chocolates and desserts from her for Mistura.
“He’s been supportive from the very first day to now that I already have my own location. He’s Italian, like me, so he really is like an older brother,” she said.
Meeting Christine and opening their own place
Mistura is not only where Breda started her own business — it was also where she met her wife, Christine.
“That’s the best thing that could have ever happened to me,” Florencia said. “I was there one night, and she came to ask for my number because she saw me on Instagram for an event for the LGBTQ community that we did there. I already had this idea to move out of Mistura and do my own location, and then we kind of got more serious, and we decided to do this together.”
When a place on Higuera Street opened up, Florencia and Christine took it. Her wife was a phlebotomist, but quit her job to work at the shop full time. Florencia then trained her in the kitchen.
“It’s amazing because it’s always having someone there, your right hand,” Florencia said. “There’s a lot of laws running a business, so it’s nice knowing that you have someone else there, going through it with you.”
Finding community in SLO
Florencia says safety for the LGBTQ+ community is “a huge part” of what she enjoys about SLO.
“San Luis Obispo is a very beautiful, little town,” Florencia said. “It’s very safe, also for the LGBT community. Unfortunately in Italy, we are not at the same level of acceptance and inclusivity.”
Florencia said the locals were very understanding when her business was starting out.
“A lot of times in the beginning, we were sold out a lot, and I had no time to really prepare,” Florencia said. “But we had to close earlier, and people are very understanding. I think we are very lucky.”
Owning a business comes with its ups and downs, Florencia said.
“There’s always something popping up and you also learn the hard way a lot,” Florencia said. “There’s a lot of hard learning processes, things you never expected. You have to figure it out as you go most of the time.”
Discovering her passion for baking
Florencia didn’t discover her passion for baking until she was 16. For two years, she went to accounting school because her mom wanted her to be an accountant, which Florencia said “were the worst years of my life.”
“One day, my dad said, ‘okay, let’s drive around some schools and let’s see different realities,’” Florencia said. “He drove me around hairdresser schools, scientific institutes and I didn’t like anything.”
The last school they drove by was a culinary institute.
“As soon as we entered the kitchen, I remember seeing this white chef’s jacket and everything very organized and so clean, kind of like a little army,” Florencia said. “I fell in love with it as soon as I entered the door. I think that’s when it was the wake up call for me. I was like, ‘this is what I want to do.’”
Florencia was born in Argentina, grew up in Italy and has worked in many cities, so she’s been able to see how different chefs pair flavors from around the world. She says traveling is formative for her personally and professionally.
“Meeting a lot of different chefs shapes you in a way,” Florencia said. “You choose what to take from each of them, right? We are all different and do things differently. You take something you like from each one of them like, ‘okay, I can bring this with me and make it my own.'”
Advice for learning and perseverance
Florencia says she has learned there is always space for growth because the culinary profession is constantly evolving with new techniques.
“You can never think, ‘I’ve done it all,’ or ‘I’ve seen it all,’” Florencia said. “On the show, there are also people competing that are way younger than me. There’s always something to learn from everyone and that’s why friendships are also so nice, because you share knowledge.”
Her advice for Cal Poly students: don’t give up.
“Hard times are gonna come, and you’re gonna want to quit a lot of times, but never, never,” Florencia said. “When you least expect it, something very amazing is gonna pop up.”
