Inspiration

Six months ago I began working at a book distributing company. This is a dream job and a curse all in one. I love books! More than books, I love baking! The bad part is my company distributes cookbooks, which is now where all my kitchen space and money is going.

For the past year, I have become more and more serious with my baking. I've created several recipes, sold quite a few cookies, and entered the Pillsbury Bake Off contest. There are a few dedicated individuals who sacrifice their time and their waistlines in order to be a taste tester for all my recipes. These people work tirelessly tasting cookies, both good and bad, in the hopes of getting more of the goodies as a reward.

In the past several months I have acquired several new cookbooks, mostly referencing baking. Most recently, I purchased All Cakes Considered. For those of you unfamiliar with this book, it's written by Melissa Gray, a producer at the radio show All Things Considered. She has spent a year baking cakes and bringing them in to her co-workers and followed this experience with a cookbook/humor book. After reading the book, I was inspired. Essentially, I do the same thing, but with cookies. She mostly focuses on recipes found in books and collected from friends, while I have a few trusty cookbooks and really enjoy making up my own recipes.

As a person who planned on becoming a Chemical Engineer, the chemistry of baking is fascinating to me. There are so few ingredients in a cookie, usually in a small quantity, so that each ingredient and portion plays a large roll in the outcome.

So, that's the story. For the past year I have been making and testing cookies on friends, family, and coworkers. Now, after being inspired by All Cakes Considered, I have decided to get serious - For the next year, I will bake a new cookie each week. Some that I've concocted and some from cookbooks. I will share them, collect feedback, and share the results with you through my blog.

Together we will learn what goes right and what goes wrong in a recipe. And perhaps, if you love baking, you'll be inspired to do something similar.