Hey!  I’m Yael.  Welcome, and thanks for checking out my website.  

Anyone who knows me will tell you, baking is my love language!

I have always loved baking, for as long as I can remember.  There’s something so therapeutic to me about creating something from nothing, and I’ll never stop being fascinated with the alchemy of taking a few ingredients, flour, butter, eggs, sugar and salt — not all that impressive in their own right — and creating something magical.  

My mom, Miriam, who everyone called, “Mickie”, was an effortless baker.  At 4:00pm every day, our kitchen table became a hub for all the neighborhood ladies to congregate, cackle, have some coffee, and enjoy some fresh baked pastry or cake my mom pulled out of the oven.

I remember the laughter and the joy being shared around the table, and my mom loved nothing more than to feed her friends.  She would make some dough, and share a bit with me to bake in my turquoise, plastic Easy Bake Oven.  I would stare intently through its small window, willing it to hurry up and bake.  Do you have any idea how maddening it is to watch a cookie try to bake by the heat of a lightbulb?  Any girl who grew up in the 70s probably can relate.

Unfortunately, I lost my mom when she was only 46, and I was only 7, when she lost her three year battle with breast cancer.  But baking alongside her in my unsophisticated Easy Bake Oven is one of the greatest memories I carry with me every day.

Baking makes me feel connected to my mom, and to all the generations before her.   A lot of things have changed in the world, but one thing that has remained almost unchanged is the way we cook, and the way it allows us to show our love for the people we cook for.

I’m always amazed at how many people tell me they can’t cook, and they definitely don’t bake because they think they’re terrible cooks.  What I love about baking, specifically, is that if you follow the directions, and approach it with patience and curiosity, it should turn out fairly well!

If I can manage to make you lose any intimidation about baking, and turn you into someone who enjoys cooking, my job is done.  

Create something from nothing, and share it with people you love.