Temple Pastries continues a sacred devotion to pastry — and now pizza — in the Central District

The annual James Beard Awards have grown into a process with rounds of nominations and finalists that rival the Oscars or Major League Baseball’s MVP announcements for added layers of pomp. In many years, the lists of Seattle honorees have also been full of the kinds of places you have already heard a lot about or part of the city’s growing contingent of restaurant groups. This year’s list Beard semifinalists for the Pacific Northwest is a little different with a few stories left to tell. We’re lucky to have a couple of those nearby across Capitol Hill and the Central District. Over the next weeks, CHS will be talking with the honorees at Cafe Suliman, Temple Pastries, Ramie, and Surrell to add to their stories.

When Christina Wood discovered pastry-making in her twenties, she found salvation.

“I found pastries, and I was like, Wow, this just clicked for me. This is exactly what I needed to kind of steer me in a direction,” Wood said. “It kind of just became my new religion.”

That spiritual devotion is evident in her S Jackson bakery’s name.

“This is where I go to perform all my daily rituals. It’s what gives my life meaning,” she says. “I have such a reverence for the craft that it just kind of fell into place.”

What sets Temple Pastries apart is Wood’s obsession with lamination, the meticulous folding of butter into dough.

“Lamination is the culmination of both skills,” Wood says. “It requires very intense attention to detail, in that you’re working very scientifically, but you’re also having to use your intuition, because it is a dough that is alive, so it’s always different every day.”

She uses imported French butter, pre-sheeted and high in fat content. “It’s really flexible, even when it’s cold, which makes lamination so much easier,” Wood notes. “Butter is life,” she adds.

Before opening Temple Pastries, Wood worked in two different bakeries but wanted to do better. “I thought I could create a better environment, not only for customers, but for workers,” she says.

Rather than accept the grueling 4:30 AM start times common in professional kitchens, Wood invested in proofer retarders, equipment that automatically proofs pastries overnight. “It proofs it automatically overnight, so that when we get in in the morning, it’s already proofed and ready to go,” she explains. “Not only does it save labor, but it makes it a better schedule for everyone.”

Recently recognized as a James Beard semifinalist, Wood prioritizes skill above all else. “I don’t really care how good, how weird your flavors are. If the technique is not there, I wouldn’t come back,” she says frankly. “I want the fundamentals to shine through, and anything you do on top of that to be like an extra added bonus.”

For first-time visitors, Wood recommends the chocolate rye croissant. “I don’t think there is another one out there,” she says with evident pride. The croissant uses rye flour, melted chocolate, and cocoa powder in the dough itself. “It looks very chocolatey, but it is not very sweet. The only sugar is in the actual chocolate baton in the center, but there’s a deep cocoa flavor in every bite without the sweetness.”

Temple Pastries has grown to occupy almost an entire building, now including Sacro Bosco, a Roman-style pizza restaurant operating Tuesday through Saturday evenings. Wood spent a month perfecting the pizza crust alone, using imported Italian flour. “I just had to get the crust good enough to eat on its own,” she explains.

Later this year, she’ll expand into the old Broadcast office space for a classroom and content creation studio, all within her current building. “I want to keep everything within these four walls, because I’m a control freak,” Wood says. “I like to just be really involved in what’s going on and hold my finger on the pulse.”

For Wood, Temple Pastries remains an act of devotion to the craft that transformed her life.

Temple Pastries is located at 2524 S Jackson. Learn more at templepastries.com.

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