Meet Justine…

At just 28-years-old, Justine Redding owns and operates Chez Justine Bakes (@chezjustinebakes) out of her very own home kitchen. Born and raised in Lompoc, Justine believes that “the central coast really is the best” as “nothing beats [the] mountains and water, the best produce you can find, and 74 degrees every day of the year!” After having enrolled at Santa Barbara City College’s well-respected School of Culinary Arts, Justine found herself working diligently at Mattei’s Tavern in Los Olivos as a pastry assistant. She considers her time spent between Mattei’s Tavern and her on-the-job training with world-renowned pastry chef, Michelle Polzine at 20th Century Cafe (San Francisco), as having truly shaped her career.

Some of her earliest childhood memories include helping her mom whip up spectacularly delicious creations in the kitchen, “I loved to see what was happening, how meals came together, or the transformation that takes place when you bake something...I loved it all. [My family] loves to cook and we love to eat. It brings us together!” These days, however, you can be sure to find Justine in her very own kitchen baking up a storm while listening to a medley of fun tunes, “Recently, all I’ve been listening to is Pavement, Hole, Pixies (90’s nostalgia) but my general go-to's are oldies – Brenton Wood on-repeat!”

Chef Justine values fresh ingredients above all, as she expresses, “I think that food speaks for itself when it is made with high-quality ingredients. There’s a huge difference in a chocolate chip cookie made using store-bought ingredients or a chocolate chip cookie using freshly milled flour grown in California, chocolate produced in Berkeley, eggs from the Farmers Market.” After taking a bite out of one of her extraordinarily delectable cookies, it’s clear that “it’s brilliant what good ingredients can do!” Here at Farm Cart Organics, we strive to offer the highest quality of organic produce and grocery items made available to us locally. We asked the Chef what her go-to weekly add-on items were and the verdict is in: ZUCCHINI AND TORTILLAS! Justine divulges, “Aside from that, you guys offer access to such amazing local markets that I would otherwise have no idea existed – like Sideyard Shrubs (@sideyardshrubs)! Incredible.” 

In closing, Justine Redding started Chez Justine Bakes under the simple yet wholesome premise to “share quality food that showcases local ingredients with my community” as to best “help bring people together.” Food and community will always remain at the centerpiece of her culinary work. Chef Justine hopes, “that I can help create great memories for people by sharing pastries that they enjoy! I am so happy to be an add-on via Farm Cart Organics, and to work alongside like-minded people that want to showcase what the Central Coast has to offer.”

Thanks, Chef Justine! We sure look forward to enjoying many more cookies and bagels from your kitchen, and in the process creating many more memories with the people we love around your wonderful culinary works.