By Shannon Finley, photos by Bob Dunham
Have you ever wondered where John Knox Village gets its delicious cakes? Would you be surprised that John Knox Village has our own pastry chef who makes them all on-site?
Meet Kellie Taylor, baker extraordinaire of John Knox Village.
Kellie began her career in the Village in 2008, and from the look on her face when she and I met up in the kitchens, she loves her job!
Before joining John Knox, Kellie was a line cook at Bennigan’s. However, when Bennigan’s went out of business, she visited John Knox Village to see if she could join our staff. At the time, there were no openings for line cooks, but she was offered a job as a baker.
With the prospect of a slight career shift in front of her, Kellie returned to school to become a certified pastry chef; she put herself through school and received her certification in 2014 from Daytona State College.
While she does not consider any one thing her specialty, she did share that the most requested cakes in the Village are carrot and chocolate. In fact, Kellie tells us that if John Knox had a signature cake, it would be her death by chocolate cake.
On any given day, Kellie’s corner of the kitchen produces five hotel-sized pans of cake or 16 pies, cobblers, or strudels, which equates to enough dessert to satisfy the sweet tooths of 128 to 150 residents in our dining venues, in addition to special events and requests. In addition to the restaurants in independent living, Kellie also whips up gourmet treats for assisted living.
But Kellie is more than just delicious cakes. Since I was allowed into the inner sanctum where Kellie makes magic happen, I took a peek at her six-week rotation of confectionery perfection, which included pies (chocolate mousse, blueberry, apple, Bailey’s Irish cream, pecan); strudels (apple-caramel-walnut, cherry cream cheese); bread pudding; cobblers (strawberry-pineapple, mixed fruit); Crème Brûlée; and brownies.
Besides keeping the restaurants and assisted living well-stocked with desserts, Kellie also gets a lot of special orders from residents for their special occasions. If you have a special occasion planned and want one of Kellie’s cakes or desserts made especially for the occasion, order forms can be filled out at the SH Cranes hostess stand. Prices range from $25 for a 10-inch cake, which can serve up to 16 people, to $125 for a full sheet cake, which can serve up to 100 people. Typically, she will need a four-day lead time to work the special order into her regular baking schedule.
When asked if she could bake only one thing for the rest of her career, the answer was easy… chocolate cake.