On The Line: Jasmine Macon of Beyond Amazing Donuts (B.A.D.)
Age: 32
Relationship status: Single
Hometown: Thomasville
Currently lives: Northlake
Currently watching: “I watch a lot of anime.”
Favorite sports team: Duke men’s basketball
Charlotte, North Carolina – August 6th, 2022 :
Jasmine Macon
Former Leah & Louise pastry chef opens BAD donuts
Photographed by Peter Taylor in Charlotte, NC. August 6, 2022.
Where does your love of food come from? I think from always being hungry (laughs). My mom and grandma cooked a lot, but out of all my siblings, I was the one who snacked the most. So they said I needed to learn to cook for myself because their shifts were over, and they weren’t going to cook anything else.
How did you get into baking? I had, like, three Easy-Bake Ovens. The stuff I made was absolutely disgusting, but I had a cousin who ate anything and everything I made.
What inspired you to open B.A.D.? At Leah & Louise, I took any chance I got to do donuts. When COVID hit, we had to close and redirect the menu. Out of that, we started to offer a pastry box. That really set everything in motion. I talked to Chef (Greg Collier) more about how I really wanted a donut shop. I never saw myself in a restaurant setting; I always wanted to be in a pastry setting.
What do you love about pastries? I like using my hands. I’m very impatient, and baking requires a lot of patience. It helps me because I have no choice but to wait and let something proof. I need that in my personal life, too (laughs).
Tell me about B.A.D.’s menu. I’ll have six staple flavors inspired by someone special to me. I’ll also have four seasonal flavors. I don’t want traditional flavors like Boston cream or jelly … but I might do a pepper jelly mixed with something else.
What inspired B.A.D.’s décor? It’s all about my fondness for animation and comics.
What’s the craziest donut flavor you’ve ever come up with? A Black Garlic Everything Donut. It was like an everything bagel but with black garlic puree and cream cheese icing. I used dried collards, onion powder, and garlic powder on top. Everyone’s been asking for it, so it’ll be a staple flavor on the menu at B.A.D.
Dessert for breakfast: hard no or hell, yes? Hell, yes.
What’s one ingredient you always have on hand? Butter.
What do you think is an underappreciated flavor? Raspberry.
Is there one recipe you’d still like to master? My Old-Fashioned Donut. I’m still working on that one. People say it’s good, but I feel like I don’t quite have it yet.
What shoes do you wear in the kitchen? Crocs.
What’s your favorite thing to bake? Chocolate chip cookies.
What’s your favorite restaurant in Charlotte, other than your own? Futo Buta. I’m there a little too often.
What’s your favorite adult beverage? Anything with Maker’s Mark.
What’s one chain restaurant you’re not ashamed to admit you love? Culver’s. I love to get a scoop of ice cream on a waffle cone.
What do you like to do outside the kitchen? I like to jog, be outside, and explore trails. I’m very slow, but I like to do it anyway.
Any rules to live by in the kitchen? Clean as you go.
THE TOUGH STUFF
Chocolate or vanilla? Chocolate
Coffee or tea? Tea
Beer or wine? Beer
Cake or pie? Cake
Donut or muffin? Donut
Bagel or biscuit? Biscuit
Crunchy topping or sweet drizzle? Crunchy topping
Ice cream or hot chocolate? Hot chocolate
Sugar Rush or The Great British Baking Show? The Great British Baking Show
Street eats or sit-down? Street eats
Twitter or TikTok? Twitter