Makin' Bakin'

Despite what I revealed yesterday about being lazy in the kitchen, I maintain that it really only applies to my motivation toward pleasing myself. I would bend over backward to astound and amaze someone else with my culinary acumen.

On that note, I confess my secret dream to be a baker.*

Bread, cakes, cookies, I would be happy to do it all if it meant I could be creating something. And the working conditions!

• For years I have touted that I am much more productive in the morning. It doesn’t matter what time I get started, I always hit a slump around 2 pm. As a baker, I could start in the wee-est hours of the morning and wrap up by noon… long before the 2 pm coma overtakes me.
• Although I am quite good at whatever I put my mind to, I prefer working independently without much contact with customers. Because as a baker I would be at work long before the rest of the waking world rises, I could have several hours of productiveness, uninterrupted by the public. If I were lucky, I could avoid the public altogether.
• Let’s not forget the best part – the baking! I truly believe that there’s something magical about baking, not the least of which is putting a piece of yourself into what you create. I am always amazed that the reality television chefs are so angry – don’t their guests taste the anger in their food? When you hear someone say “the secret ingredient is love,” you should believe it.

I am addicted to books, fiction or non-, that use baking as a metaphor for life: By Bread Alone by Sarah-Kate Lynch, Recipes for a Perfect Marriage by Morag Prunty, Cherries in Winter by Suzan Colon, and of course, Confections of a Closet Master Baker by Gesine Bullock-Prado. It doesn’t matter how trite or predictable or cheesy the storyline may be, I find those books to be full of truth. But maybe that’s because my personal experience with food, both as a cook and as an consumer, has proven that it nourishes body and soul.

I recognize that the reality of being a baker would probably be less romantic than I imagine. Still, it is an alluring notion that I suspect I could be cut out for if I just gave myself permission. Were it not for the fact that I presume there’s not a lot of money in the bakery business (and I can’t say for sure because although I’ve tried to do some research on open bakery positions in Massachusetts, it seems that companies no longer post salary ranges), I’d give it a go. For the time being, I’m resigned to being satisfied by planning the cupcakes for my friends’ birthday parties.

Chocolate-filled Strawberry Cupcakes with Chocolate Butter Cream
for Tzi Tzi's 30th Birthday

*A few other dream occupations include master brewer, archivist, musician, forensic scientist and cemetery caretaker. Jobs from Hell would include any job in which I would have to work in a mill, clean, plan and execute events, or manage people.