Many students come to George Brown College’s Chef School with dreams of baking-show stardom. Jasmine Linton did the reverse.
After making it to the quarter finals of season three of The Great Canadian Baking Show, Jasmine started her first year of the Baking and Pastry Arts Management program in September 2020.
We caught up with Jasmine after she finished her midterms in October and asked how her program and remote learning have been going so far.
“I always wanted to go to George Brown,” she said. “For the most part, it’s been really fun and really informative. I’ve been learning things I haven’t tried before.”
Jasmine has particularly enjoyed learning how to shape various bread doughs. “We did challah last week, and I had so much fun braiding it!”
Competing on a national baking show — at 22 she was the youngest contestant — provided a big confidence boost heading into formal training at the Chef School. She was named the star baker on episode four.
“[Being on the show] made me a more confident baker,” she said. “I’m definitely willing to try things and accept that they might fail.”
Jasmine earned a criminology degree at Carleton University before coming to George Brown. When she finishes her Chef School program she hopes to work in the industry and continue on a path of lifelong learning.
A STUDENT & ENTREPRENEUR
Jasmine admits she doesn’t like to sit still. Aside from being a full-time college student she’s also preparing to expand her online baking business called Dibs Scratch Bakery. The idea started small in the summer of 2020, preparing orders for friends and family out of her home kitchen. Now, she's taking a bit of a breather while she works out the expansion details.
“I need to do this right,” she said, adding that she’s looking to rent a professional kitchen and taking time to ensure she has the required certifications.
FOR THE LOVE OF BAKING
Jasmine started baking with her grandmother as a young child and said she loves all aspects of the trade.
“I like the continuity of baking,” she said. “I like when I have a lot of things to make and I go through them and check off the items on my list. But I also like the artistic canvas process of planning out what I want to design and then watching that take form as you decorate your cake.”
Her favourite thing to bake?
“My brother’s birthday cake, which is layers of brownie and chocolate fudge cake and chocolate custard,” she said. It takes about two or three days for her to make all the components. “It’s multiple layers and it’s so thick. You need eight glasses of milk to wash it down.”
You can watch Jasmine on season three of The Great Canadian Baking Show on Netflix or CBC Gem.
