Claire Ptak

To Claire Ptak—Jamie Oliver’s “favorite cake maker in the whole world”—add a selection of  seasonal cakes and savory treats from Claire’s Violet Bakery Cookbook, inspired by her popular London café. (Watch the interview on CBS.) Serve with English teas, a splash of champagne, and a goodly amount of sparkling conversation in the historic Olema Schoolhouse. Combine all ingredients for an afternoon of yummy nibbles and delicious stories about food, foraging, family, and Claire’s baking mentors in conversation with food writer Tanya Henry. Books will be available for purchase and signing. Presented by Point Reyes Books as a benefit for the Point Reyes Farmers Market.

About Claire Ptak: When West Marin native Claire Ptak was 15, she got her first bakery job at the newly opened Bovine Bakery in Point Reyes CA. Parttime jobs during her college years included baking bread and making wedding cakes and four summers as the pastry chef at a Wyoming dude ranch. After college where she studied film and studio arts, her career path took her to Chez Panisse for a 3-year stint as pastry chef and then to London where she started a small business selling cupcakes at a traditional outdoor market stall. In 2005, the street stall evolved into a bakery of her own called Violet located in London’s East End. There she sells baked goods to a loyal and enthusiastic following. Her bakery has been featured in Edible Selby, Elle, Food & Wine, the New York Times, and Jamie, the Wall Street Journal, and on CBS This Morning. She is the author of five cookbooks and in December, 2015, launches a weekly food column for the Guardian newspaper. Violet Bakery video

About Tanya Henry: An accomplished journalist, Tanya has written for numerous publications including the Pacific Sun, Marin Independent Journal (as restaurant critic), San Francisco Chronicle, Best Places Northern California, San Francisco Magazine, and the Specialty Food Association for which she is a consultant. As an editor at Weldon Owen Publishing, she worked on Williams-Sonoma’s extensive cookbook program where she oversaw and managed the editorial responsibilities for books including Kids Baking and Taste: Recipes for Entertaining. As Senior Food Editor at Cooking.com she wrote feature stories, created a recipe database of more than 5,000 recipes and produced cooking technique videos for the site. She enjoyed the role of lifestyle editor at Northern California’s free weekly, the Pacific Sun, and has been a judge for the prestigious James Beard Journalism and Chef Awards. A graduate of the California Culinary Academy, Tanya also holds a degree in nutrition from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo.