Netflix star opens Justice of the Pies bakery in Avalon Park

When Maya-Camille Broussard started her satellite bakery, Justice of the Pies, eight years ago, she knew it was just one step in the right direction toward one day running a whole storefront dedicated to goodness.

Broussard, a pastry chef who was featured on the Netflix series “Bake Squad” and a finalist for the 2022 James Beard Foundation Award for Outstanding Baker, said her dream was realized once she started selling her pies and other delectable treats from her first roughly 4,000-square-foot space in the Avalon Park neighborhood. Broussard held a soft opening the weekend of July 7, and the bakery has been officially open since.

The new Justice of the Pies is a big upgrade from the kitchen in which she started the shop, Broussard said. The space includes a production kitchen, teaching kitchen and dining space. The bakery will also house Broussard’s signature I Knead Love workshop — a program for elementary school children from lower-income households — that teaches nutritional development and basic cooking skills.

In the process of getting the new space in 2021, Broussard said, she learned that the building her bakery is in was once her mother’s childhood dentist’s office. She described it as a “full circle moment” for her.

Her father died in 2009, she said, and she would watch him bake on weekends as a child. She said she knew she would start her bakery in his memory and focus on shining a spotlight on their shared passion for pies and social justice.

“Opening the first Justice of the Pies retail location is a major milestone in my mission to combine my love for both baking and social justice,” Broussard said. “Purchasing this building that has significance to my mother, to house this business inspired by my father, is a meaningful and intentional decision to honor my parents’ legacy of serving their community. It also allows me to continue supporting the South Side neighborhoods that hold space for my culture.”

Broussard wanted to be sure to “share her space” and make room for other successes too, which is why she said the bakery is featuring several Black-owned brands. The bakery’s tea is from husband-and-wife team Brooklyn Tea, and its coffee comes from Chicago-based Monday Coffee.

The bakery also will have a retail corner that will feature Black-owned brands that Broussard said are relevant to the work she does. For example, Butter by Keba, a moisturizer by a small, New York-based business, is perfect for dry hands after spending hours working with flour, she said, or Octavia Morgan, a Los Angeles-based perfumery with fragrances to subdue any kitchen smells.

“I’m really excited because I want to always take an opportunity to share my platform with other creatives as well,” Broussard said. “So it’s not just about me and my great food; it’s also about these other brands.”

“And if I can champion those who look like me,” she added, “I’m going to use every opportunity to do so.”

Everything at the bakery is made from scratch, Broussard said, from the all-butter pie crusts to the delicately flaky biscuits and the variety of fillings made in-house and in small batches. There are plenty of savory options on the menu, like a chicken and biscuits pot pie that uses biscuits as the crust, or a sweet potato and lentil pot pie with sweet potato biscuits — a favorite of Broussard’s — and a shepherd’s pie made with Yukon gold mashed potatoes. Broussard whips up quiches every day for those looking for less traditional pies.

Bakery patrons wanting to walk the sweeter side of the line can choose between Broussard’s salted caramel peach pie, German chocolate bourbon pecan pie and strawberry basil key lime pie.

Broussard realized another one of her dreams when she was able to secure a soft-serve machine, which she said will churn out fresh vanilla ice cream. The frozen treat will be offered with rotating toppings, such as lemon ginger honey.

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“I’ve always wished that I could offer my pies a la mode, so we’re really excited about that,” she said.

Offerings include other delectable desserts, such as apple cider bread pudding, ginger cardamom lemon bars and more. Broussard said she’s going to be baking fudge brownies with both dark and milk chocolate and shokupan cinnamon rolls — among the popular sellers — which are made using a technique similar to making Japanese milk bread that results in a slightly sweet, buttery and milky taste with a feathery texture.

She also said she wants to experiment with “pup pies,” adding that she will focus on the human menu first and then see what she can develop for canine companions.

Many of Broussard’s creations bring customers familiar, nostalgic flavors with a unique twist that she said can’t be experienced elsewhere. She also wants her customers to keep coming back and try her constantly changing recipes.

“As a creative, I am most looking forward to changing out the menu so that every time you come in, there’s at least one new thing on that menu that we’re offering and something exciting for you to try,” she said.

8655 S. Blackstone Ave., justiceofthepies.com

sahmad@chicagotribune.com