Stephanie Tran’s day job is keeping her white teeth sparkling clean, but her side hustle is for those with a sweet tooth.
The New Jersey dentist started baking macarons at the beginning of the pandemic and turned her hobby into a business.
She launched her company, Steph’s Macaroniin July 2020, and sells her creative creations for $3 for classic rounds and $4.50 for her signature character cookies.
Patients “are surprised, impressed or think it’s funny,” said Tran, 27, whose creations will be in pop-up shops across the Garden State next month.
“No one thinks it’s unethical; They think it’s cool. “I think people want to see their dentist as a human being who has interests, who is not just in a white coat with a needle in his hand.”
The Fort Worth, Texas, native uses the slogan “I can only solve the problems they cause” and said that when it comes to cavities, it’s all about time, not portion control.
“You can get cavities from cookies, but it’s really more about how often you eat sugary foods, not how much,” said Tran, who spoke with her boss at Oakland Premier Dental in Oakland, New Jersey, about adding your macarons to cookies. patient gift bags.
“You’re more likely to get cavities if you eat a macaroni every 30 minutes instead of eating a whole dozen in one sitting. So it’s okay to binge… Just make sure you brush and floss before you go to bed.”
Tran always had a “baking wish list,” so when her dental school closed during the pandemic, she tried her hand at macarons.
She made her first batch in March 2020, while quarantined at her parents’ house, and things took off after a friend praised her sweets.
Tran, whose first customers were her dental school classmates, highlighted her macarons with flavors like crème brûlée, s’mores and birthday cake.
“The boxes of macaroons sold at the supermarket have strange flavors that no one wants, like apricot and cherry,” he told The Post.
When he moved to Hackensack, New Jersey for residency, his business grew thanks to a “more sophisticated” clientele.
“I thought I did well, but I realized, ‘It’s a lot better in New Jersey because people here know what a macaron is,’” he explained. “They wouldn’t ask why they were so expensive.”
Tran, who spends an average of four hours a night in the kitchen and hopes to open a store, speculated on the recipe for his success.
“Usually all macarons taste the same; you have to read the flavor to know what it is,” he said.
“My goal with mine is that you can close your eyes, bite into it, and know.”
