Two days. Any longer and you might as well throw a baguette out. Is it made with anything other than flour, water, yeast and salt? It is? Looks like the Sûreté (police) will be paying you a visit for breaching Le Décret Pain— a French law that protects the integrity and time-tested tradition of bread making in France. Thankfully, all who attended the French Baking Seminar on Thursday, April 3, were informed of the legislation before police needed to get involved.

Organized by NMU’s French program, the hour-long seminar hosted in Whitman Hall featured detailed tips and tricks to help students, staff and community members hone their French baking abilities. Attendees listened attentively as NMU alumna and professional pastry chef, Lisette LaFave, detailed a variety of techniques that would elevate anyone’s culinary skills.

“French culture is often known as the center of fine dining … which makes it seem a little intimidating,” LaFave said. “It’s important to me that people know that it’s not inaccessible to make your own food.”

Growing up in a house that was 20 miles from the nearest grocery store, LaFave is no stranger to inaccessibility. Unwilling to let this obstacle deter her gastronomic aptitude, the budding chef experimented with what little ingredients she had available, shaping the adaptable mindset that has contributed to her success.

Charlie Trippel, a current student in the French program, introduced LaFave to the packed Whitman Commons and later spoke on the importance of community involvement in events similar to the baking seminar. Trippel began his linguistic journey as a freshman in high school while taking French as a foreign language elective.

Recognizing the many opportunities foreign languages have to offer, Trippel continued his pursuit of mastery at NMU with Tara Foster and Nelly Kupper, French professors in the Department of Language, Literatures and International Studies.

“They are just amazing people to talk to and very skilled at what they do … Dr. Kupper knows multiple languages … that’s the level I want to be at,” Trippel said. “At the bottom line, I think it’s important to learn about other cultures and try new things.”

Kupper, the event’s primary organizer, has been assisting in the coordination of similar activities since she arrived at NMU in 2000, including the French Baking Seminar, which was first held in 2008. After a hiatus in the event’s annual procession due to COVID, Kupper was thrilled to have LaFave’s expertise present after sampling one of her macarons at BabyCakes Muffin Company, located on West Washington Street in Marquette.

“I would like to invite people to try and take a foreign language if they haven’t thought about it,” Kupper said. “It is so undeniably important to their future and on the job market … French is complementary to any other field, whether people are in chemistry, in law, in business, in art and so forth.”

The Department of Language, Literatures and International Studies will continue its mission of spreading linguistic diversity to the community next week when the French program hosts a French camp at Sandy Knoll Elementary.

“[NMU] students go and teach elementary kids some French vocabulary … we also use it in context with French cuisine,” Kupper said. “We’ll be making crepes with them and teaching ingredients and the different words for that.”

For those who were unable to attend, the program hopes to continue hosting the event annually with the help of community members like Lisette LaFave.