Pasadena’s Little Flower Candy Company mourns founder Christine Moore
Christine Moore, founder and owner of Little Flower Candy Company in Pasadena, has died. Her children announced her death on Monday in a post on the cafe’s Instagram describing her as “the heart and guiding force of Little Flower and our community.” LAist’s Gab Chabran explains how she went from making candies in her home kitchen to building a neighborhood institution.
Christine Moore, founder and owner of Little Flower Candy Company in Pasadena, has died. Her children announced her death on Monday in a post on the cafe’s Instagram describing her as “the heart and guiding force of Little Flower and our community.”
Moore founded the beloved candy company nearly two decades ago from her home kitchen in Highland Park, where she pioneered what would become her signature sea salt caramels and handmade marshmallows.
In 2007, she opened Little Flower at 1422 W. Colorado Blvd. The cafe transformed her candy business into a neighborhood gathering place known for its French-influenced pastries and seasonal fare.
Moore built her reputation on what Pulitzer Prize-winning food critic Jonathan Gold described in her acclaimed cookbook “Little Flower Baking” as food that makes you “feel happy and well served by life.” Moore also published her cookbook “Little Flower: Recipes from the Cafe”.
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She trained in Paris under award-winning chef and baker Nancy Silverton, at the former Campanile restaurant in Mid-City.
Along with the cafe, Moore opened Lincoln restaurant in 2016 inside a restored 1920s machine shop in northern Pasadena. It closed permanently during the pandemic in 2020.
Moore’s family made headlines when her 17-year-old son, Colin, fought to save their home from the Eaton Fire as it swept Altadena last year.
Despite being displaced herself, she immediately opened Little Flower to feed evacuees and first responders with her staff of 27. The service embodied what Moore had long championed: “We have 200 chances every day to make someone happy.”
A culinary powerhouse remembered
Tributes poured in from across the community on Instagram following Moore’s passing.
Christine Moore was described by her children as “the heart and guiding force of Little Flower and our community.”
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Courtesy Little Flower Candy Company
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“She was a beacon of light and hope for me and our Braeburn pod after the fires, like she was for so many others in our community. That’s just who she was,” wrote Olivia Gutierrez.
“Christine was warmth itself. She welcomed people, remembered them, celebrated families, and built a true community at Little Flower,” wrote Rachel Bitan.
Artist Anna Chotiner recalled a recent conversation with Moore: “We talked about how special [Little Flower] is. We were both in tears in the middle of the store as she radiated love and pride for the legacy she built. She talked about how all she wanted was for LF to be a place where anyone can come in and feel loved and cared for and feel just a little better about the world.”
Pastry chef Nicole Rucker wrote, “They better have their sh*t together in heaven cause if not Christine is gonna bust em up! The best of the best.”
Moore is survived by her three children: Maddie, Avery and Colin. The family requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Camp Conrad Chinnock, a nonprofit diabetes camp for children, in her memory.
Little Flower is temporarily closed until Tuesday, but service is scheduled to resume on Wednesday, according to the family.