cherrybird: Baking Madness

So in the last few months I have been baking my butt off! It's been very rewarding, but it has also been rather tiring. I have learned so much along the way, the two biggest things have been time management and keep stocks up in the pantry.

I no longer take my sweet time in the kitchen but get into a zone and just churn it all out. And although there is still a lot of love and care that goes into my goods, I have learned that dilly-dallying in the kitchen means staying up baking until midnight. With a full time teaching job it is just not sustainable. So I get myself organised and work to a plan. What has helped a great deal is that the order I bake is pretty much the same every couple of days so I now know these recipes very well and know exactly how much time it will take to get it all done. Little things like preparing the four different frosting the day before really lightens the load on the night I need to bake! Baking cupcakes first so that they cool while the cake is baking for an hour and I can frost them while the the cake cools. Using every minute of time efficiently.

The other big lesson learned is stocking the pantry, shopping well so that I don't have those "Oh no I forgot this or that" moments. I have had a fair few of those and the stress is just not worth it. So now as stocks run low I begin a list, on my iPhone so I have the list with me always,and I shop on the days I don't have to bake. I try not to have too much in the pantry as my space is limited so I have become a pretty good at keeping the balance just right. But like everything else this took a while to achieve! My poor pantry shelves were sagging under the weight of so many ingredients at one point!

Although I have been pretty exhausted since I started this regular baking, I have enjoyed every moment of it. I still look forward to my baking days and baking for myself and the family too. I am so pleased about this as I was a little concerned that if baking became a job I would not enjoy it so much. I am very glad that this is no the case (as yet!) I must admit though that my desire to try new things and experiment has some what abated as my baking urges are fulfilled regularly these days!

The biggest encouragement has been my wonderful Husband, who has been so supportive of this little mission I am on. He has been away a lot for work lately but has patiently heard my moans and groans over the phone and encouraged and sympathised with me. When he has been home he has washed PILES of baking dishes and had made me so many meals while I bake away! He works very hard and the travelling really takes it out of him but he is still there, helping where he can and supporting me all the way. The rest of my friends and family have really been amazing, so enthusiastic and positive about my little journey. Their understanding has been really appreciated, especially when they have a grumpy friend/family member (me) to deal with every now and then!

So here are a few snaps of my baking mission from the past few months. Not all of them are 'styled' but I have put them up anyway. Baking is not always glamourous!