Madison Ortega

(She/They)
The co-owner and chef behind Mood Bake.

Baking is my love language, it overjoys me to share that love with my community. I grew up in Taos, New Mexico. I've studied pastry and worked in bakeries/restaurants since I was 17. From Chicago, Portland, New Orleans, Cape Cod, and New York; I've lived and worked in many amazing places. Mood Bake took off while I was living in New York, much of that due to the super supportive and creative food pop-up community I found there. Mood has allowed me the opportunity to find my creative voice in an industry that creates barriers for women/POC/queers. I realized how important it is to create creative food spaces that feel safe and welcoming to anyone.

So I came home to Taos because the community I want to create those spaces for is at my home, where my roots are.  For now, we are open two days a week (Saturday & Sunday) and doing lots of custom cakes and catering. We are focusing on small-scale, really quality products and making them as easy and accessible as we can. I'm so excited to see what the future brings! 

Avery Burstein

(They/He)
The co-owner and farmer behind Mood Bake.

Maddy and I met in New York, and became best friends with a common passion. We decided on a cross-country road trip to go on another epic journey of starting a business together. Growing up in Northern California, I was surrounded by agricultural land and started farming in my late teens. I love spending time with plants and being a positive voice for regenerative agriculture in the world of destructive conventional farming. Being a part of Mood Bake has fueled my passion for getting good food into everyone's bodies, regardless of who you are. As the gluten-free/vegan on the team, I love bringing those creations to the Taos community in an accessible and tasty way. I fell in love with Taos fairly quickly after arriving for a "visit" and seeing how deeply thoughtful, accepting, and supportive this town is has only deepened my love. I'm looking forward to offering a farming and food educational element to Mood Bake soon.