Our Instructors

Chef Maria Rossi is a classically trained Neapolitan pizzaiola who learned the craft in the back streets of Naples, Italy, under the mentorship of third-generation pizza makers at Pizzeria Starita — one of the oldest and most revered pizzerias in the birthplace of pizza. Over two decades, Maria has refined her understanding of traditional dough making, high-temperature baking, and the delicate balance of simplicity and precision that defines genuine Neapolitan pizza.

After completing her formal culinary training at the Università della Pizza in Naples, Maria spent eight years working in award-winning pizzerias across southern Italy, where she earned her Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN) certification — a credential held by only a small number of pizzaiolos worldwide. She then relocated to Toronto, Canada, in 2014, where she served as head pizzaiola at two of the city's top Italian restaurants before co-founding Artisan Dough Academy in 2021.

Maria's teaching style is patient, detail-oriented, and rooted in the belief that anyone can make extraordinary pizza at home if they understand the fundamentals of dough hydration, fermentation timing, and heat management. She leads two of the Academy's most popular courses: "Neapolitan Crust Basics" and "Wood-Fired Pizza Mastery."

James Chen is a sourdough specialist and artisan baker whose fascination with natural fermentation began during a gap year spent working on organic farms across France and Italy. After returning to Canada, he completed a professional baking program at George Brown College in Toronto and immediately immersed himself in the world of wild yeast and long-fermented doughs.

Over the past fifteen years, James has become one of Canada's most respected authorities on sourdough bread and pizza. He maintains a sourdough starter that has been continuously fed since 2011 and has developed proprietary fermentation schedules that produce dough with extraordinary depth of flavour, a beautifully open crumb, and the kind of complex, slightly tangy taste that commercial yeast cannot replicate. His approach blends scientific rigour — he obsessively tracks ambient temperature, starter activity, and pH levels — with an intuitive, hands-on feel for dough that can only come from years of daily practice.

James brings warmth and clarity to his teaching, breaking down the intimidating science of fermentation into accessible, practical steps. He believes that understanding why a technique works is just as important as knowing how to do it. He teaches the "Sourdough Pizza Dough" and "Gourmet Toppings Workshop" courses at the Academy.

Chef Angela Moretti brings a unique perspective to Artisan Dough Academy as a classically trained Italian-Canadian chef who spent a formative decade working in Chicago — the undisputed home of deep-dish pizza. Born in Montreal to an Italian immigrant family, Angela grew up surrounded by homemade pasta and bread baking. She pursued formal culinary training at the Institut de tourisme et d'hôtellerie du Québec (ITHQ) before relocating to Chicago to study the distinct American regional pizza styles that differ so dramatically from their Italian ancestors.

During her ten years in Chicago, Angela worked at Pizzeria Uno (credited with inventing deep dish in 1943), Lou Malnati's, and Pequod's, mastering the techniques behind buttery laminated dough, inverted layering, and the slow-cooked chunky tomato sauce that defines the style. She also explored Detroit-style pan pizza, New Haven-style apizza, and St. Louis-style cracker-thin crust, building an encyclopaedic knowledge of North American pizza traditions.

Angela returned to Canada in 2018 and joined the Academy as the resident expert in deep dish and regional pizza styles. Her teaching is energetic, detailed, and filled with insider knowledge gained from working in some of the most iconic pizzerias in North America. She teaches the "Advanced Deep Dish Techniques" course.

Sophie Tremblay is a professional pastry chef and nutrition-conscious baker who specializes in creating delicious food for people with dietary restrictions. After being diagnosed with celiac disease at age 22, Sophie — already midway through her pastry arts program at Le Cordon Bleu Ottawa — had to completely reinvent her relationship with flour, gluten, and traditional baking. Rather than see it as a setback, she channelled her frustration into becoming one of Canada's leading experts in gluten-free, vegan, and allergen-friendly baking.

Over the past twelve years, Sophie has worked in allergen-free bakeries, consulted for food manufacturers developing gluten-free product lines, and developed over 300 original recipes for dietary-restricted diets that genuinely taste great — not just "good for gluten-free." Her pizza dough recipes, in particular, have earned a devoted following among home bakers who refuse to accept that dietary restrictions should mean flavourless, cardboard-textured crusts.

Sophie's approach is grounded in food science: she understands how different starches, binding agents, and alternative flours interact during baking, and she teaches her students to apply these principles so they can adapt any pizza recipe to their own needs. Her "Pizza for Dietary Needs" course is the Academy's highest-rated course by student satisfaction. She brings compassion, expertise, and genuine excitement to every lesson.