CakeLove founder and dessert whiz Warren Brown to speak here Thursday

CakeLove founder and dessert whiz Warren Brown to speak here Thursday

Warren Brown, a former lawyer who became one of the country's best-known dessert chefs, will discuss "CakeLove: Find Your Passion, Follow Your Calling" at 7 p.m. Thursday, May 7, in the auditorium of O'Shaughnessy Educational Center on the St. Paul campus of the University of St. Thomas.

His talk, free and open to the public, is sponsored by St. Thomas' University Lectures Committee. No tickets are required.

Warren Brown

Following the lecture, the audience will be invited to sample some of Brown's treats that will be served in the atrium outside the auditorium.

Brown is the founder and owner of several CakeLove bakeries and Love Cafes in the Washington, D.C., and Maryland area. He became known nationally as the star of the "Sugar Rush" television program on the Food Network, and through his book, CakeLove: How to Bake Cakes From Scratch.

Brown will discuss why he walked away from practicing law to pursue a career in baking, the highs and lows of starting a business, and what he believes is so special and powerful about cake.

Brown, who lives in Washington, D.C., graduated in 1993 with a bachelor's in history from Brown University. He went on to earn a law degree as well as a master's in public health.

He was working as a lawyer with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services when, in 2000, he decided to become a baker. Within two years he opened the first of his bakeries and cafes.

The winner of several "best bakery" polls in the Maryland area, Brown has been featured in many magazine stories and on national television programs. His entrepreneurial spirit was recognized when he won a 2006 Small Business Person of the Year Award from the Small Business Administration.