Christina Tosi on bringing Milk Bar to the masses

Home baking has surged in popularity recently, and some of surge can be attributed to James Beard Award-winning pastry chef Christina Tosi of Momufuku Milk Bar fame. Her cookbook of the same name was a huge success, and she’s followed up with a second book that is part cookbook and part memoir. She recently spoke with Emma Bazilian about Masterchef, endorsement deals, and her famous crack pie.

Tosi discusses why, after pursuing a degree in mathematics, she chose to be a pastry chef. One her hobbies during college was baking. Says Tosi, “I started baking two or three recipes a night, every night-that was my happy place. And when I was nearing the end of college, I knew that I didn’t want a real job – I didn’t want to really be a grown-up – so I decided to move to New York and go to culinary school.”

The article delves into how Tosi came to work for David Chang, and how she’s been growing her bakery empire – in addition to her bestselling cookbooks, she has several bakeries in the U.S. and Canada, plus a line of mixes at Target. Tosi also talks about her excitement for being a judge on MasterChef and now on MasterChef Junior. Speaking about the latter program, she says: “… It was one of those things where the next day I went into work and said, ‘Every single person needs to go home and watch this show.’ It completely restores your faith in humanity.”

Photo of Crack pie from Momofuku Milk Bar by Christina Tosi