Nurse gives up the ER for baking business

In an unusual career change, a former emergency room nurse is now successfully baking up sweet treats with her new venture, Maddy’s Fatty’s Gourmet Bakery.

Madeline Baucom, a Mooresville mother of four, said she started baking as a hobby and for her children’s birthdays, but didn’t seriously consider opening a bakery until recently.

“I did desserts for the holidays, my sister’s wedding cake and baked for the kids a lot, but nothing big,” she said. “Recently, I started thinking more and more that I could really do this full-time. I debated on going back to school to further my nursing career, but then I thought, I can always go back to school, but if I want to make my dream of opening a bakery to come true, I had to do it now – it’s now or never.”

Baucom asked her sister-in-law, Enza Friedman, to join her, and at first, Enza thought it was a joke.

“She’s mentioned a bakery a few times in the past, but this time, she already had the website and the LLC and said ‘Are you in or not?’ ” Friedman recalled. “Of course, I was in.”

The two decided to use Baucom’s home kitchen to start off with, and after it was inspected, they were good to go.

Baucom named her business “Maddy’s Fatty’s,” a name that has been with her all her life.

“When I was younger, I was overweight and every day, I hated going to the bus stop because there was a little girl who would pick on me and call me Maddy Fatty,” she said. “I really hated it when I was late, because I would have to run and she would pick on me even more. Now that I’m an adult, I wanted to turn the negative into something positive and the name is cute and catchy. It’s my way of letting go of the past.”

Because of those struggles with weight, Baucome said she makes her treats as healthy as possible, using good quality ingredients, no shortening, going organic whenever possible and buying local.

“Our eggs come from Rooster Hill Market in China Grove, which my kids love to visit,” she said. “They think it’s a blast to go and get the fresh eggs.”

The two produce cupcakes, cakes, cheesecakes and cake balls for their Maddy’s Fatty’s line, and created a Maddy’s Not-So-Fatty line that has items like muffins and protein cookies, the latter of which has been especially popular with Lowe’s Corporate employees in their cafeteria.

Friedman had a different goal, and wanted to make sure that the women could make gluten-free products, as she and her daughter have celiac disease.

“My family is accustomed to making everything at home and not going out to eat like everyone else, but it’s frustrating when your child can’t go to a birthday party and enjoy a piece of cake like every other kid, or go to restaurant and eat whatever they like,” she said.

“I asked Maddy to make a gluten-free cake and it was the best I had ever had. When I signed on to this, I knew there were other mothers out there like me, and I was happy to be able to offer them something their child could eat and enjoy. We can even hand carve 3-D character cakes, so no one else at the party has any idea that the Dora the Explorer or Lightning McQueen cake they’re eating is gluten-free.”

“So far, all of our customers have been from the internet or word-of-mouth, but the word is spreading quickly,” said Baucom. “We get really slammed and it’s getting so our kitchen isn’t big enough for all of our orders.”

Currently, the partners are looking for a store-front where they can make and sell their goodies. They also want to make their store mom- and kid-friendly, as between the two of them, they have seven children.

“A lot of cafés are just not great environments for kids,” said Friedman. “We want a location that’s perfect for stay-at-home moms to visit in the mornings, a place we can host book clubs in the afternoon and on the weekends, we want to have musicians and a laid-back feel.”

Baucom was so confident about her new venture that she applied to be on the Food Network program, “Cupcake Wars.” She’s received a call from the show, but “right now we’re waiting to hear the final word.”

No matter what happens, the woman said they are committed to seeing where Maddy’s Fatty’s takes them.

“We have no Plan B,” said Friedman. “We’re on this road, wherever it takes us.”

For more information about Maddy’s Fatty’s, visit http://www.maddysfattys.com.