The Culinarian: From bar exams to cupcake bars

Many people talk about following your heart and doing what you love to do, but few actually do it. Warren Brown is one of those people who did.

In 2002, Brown opened CakeLove on U Street in Washington, a bakery specializing in made-from-scratch cakes that taste better than anything else around. CakeLove was so popular that, a year later, he opened Love Café across the street, selling slices of his cakes along with a multitude of other sweet treats and simple sandwiches.

A story of small-business success in a big city such as Washington is impressive, but Brown's story involves much, much more.

In 1999, Brown was practicing law in the Office of the Inspector General for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, going after alleged instances of fraudulent health care providers and helping to enforce emergency room regulations against hospitals. As a New Year's resolution heading into the new millennium, Brown vowed to learn more about baking.

"I wanted to broaden my horizons with food. I loved cooking, I always considered myself a foodie, but I wanted to expand my knowledge and learn more about baking," Brown said in an interview with Diversions. "I started with cakes and then moved on to pies, cookies and tarts. I really didn't expect to get into it that much."

But luckily for the Washington area, Brown found himself surprisingly good at baking, finding his time consumed with it as he used all manner of resources to learn more about the craft.

"The first book I got was called How To Bake, and I read selections from that. I also bought lots of books and magazines and read recipes and articles online," he said. "I learned the dynamics of the ingredients - how flour becomes gluten and different types of fats, using butter versus using cream. I did a lot of math to find the ratios of ingredients. Nutritional labels were a big help - I would read the cake labels to find out the amounts of fats and proteins and what would make a good cake. I used this to come up with my own recipe, a sort of cake skeleton that I have used and adapted since then."

CakeLove and Love Café both offer a wide variety of cake flavors, many of which grew out of the initial recipe that Brown came up with when he started.

"I like to think of it as a tree of cakes. I started with one recipe that would be the trunk of the tree, a basic pound cake, and from that I have created all different cakes," Brown said. "Once you have the formula down, cake is really simple. It's just a balance of air and ingredients in an emulsion and you can adapt that to whatever flavors you want."

Luckily for Brown, his family understood and accepted his career switch from law to baking.

"I invited everyone over for a brunch, and everyone loved what I had made. ... When we were done eating, I explained that I was going to try to do this for a living. It was surprising, they were all very supportive," Brown said.

In addition to his double duty as owner of two bakeries (a second location opened last year in downtown Silver Spring) and a café, Brown also hosts Sugar Rush, a show that airs every Saturday on the Food Network. The show highlights different specialties in the field of desserts.

"I had done multiple guest appearances on Food Network shows, and we had discussed the possibility of doing a show, but I didn't think anything would come of it," he said. "The executives called me and I auditioned to do the show, and they offered me a job. The show is very different from what we do here. Most of the stuff is about fancy presentations and designs, while we make stuff mostly for eating. Taste comes first."

The phenomenal taste of Brown's various cakes (flavors include Chocolate Knockout, Heavenly Hazy, Strawberry Shortcake and Lemon Coconut), cupcakes (Amaretto, peanut butter, key lime and German chocolate are some of the unique flavors offered) and other baked treats (Crunchy Feet, or mini-pound cakes; Buzz Balls, a twist on the classic éclair; or Bedrolls, walnut cake layered with cream cheese) directly contributes to the 40 to 60 cakes that each bakery sells on a daily basis.

The Love Café also sells cupcakes for $3 each, and various baked goods and cakes by the slice - $7 for premium cakes and $6 for basic cakes.

Indulge yourself with a large piece of cake and a glass of milk, or perhaps a cappuccino if that's more your style. The Café has also just finished the installation of a design-your-own-cupcake bar - you pick your style of cupcake, then a buttercream frosting and your selection of toppings, and it's put together right before your eyes. While the cake slices are on the expensive side, they are a great treat, and the cozy atmosphere makes Love Café a great place to take a date or relax and use the free WiFi.

If you want more Warren Brown, CakeLove Silver Spring offers baking classes on Tuesdays, taught by a member of the staff or Brown himself. Or catch Sugar Rush, airing every Saturday at 2 p.m. on the Food Network. But if baking at home is more your style, Brown's first cookbook is due out this fall and features recipes used at both CakeLove and Love Café.

Contact reporter Tripp Laino at tripp@umd.edu.