A Polar Bear in the Kitchen
Ingredients - My Early Years
Growing up in North Pole, Alaska, was a unique experience: Tiny town, lots of kitschy Christmas-themed stuff everywhere, and a large piece of land with a giant garden that grew most of what my family ate. My fondest memories were made on my tippy toes in the kitchen watching my mom and grandma craft beautiful and delicious food. These memories were my only connection to my family after it broke and scattered through my adolescence, which culminated in the death of my mother just three weeks before I turned 18.
Method - The Winding Road
Following the loss of my mother was a decade spent on my own working dead-end jobs and moving between California and Alaska several times. My kitchen was my refuge, the only place I felt rooted. The sights and smells of baking especially brought me home again and kept my mother’s memory alive. I held her close when I baked for new friends, celebrated a birthday, or transformed a cold new kitchen into a place of life through the smells of home.
After finally settling down with my husband and creating a family and home of our own, another challenge presented itself in December 2021 when smoke from the Marshall Fire rendered our home unlivable and our possessions toxic. Our almost 2-year long journey towards rebuilding reinforced my early lessons in resiliency, connection, and community: stuff doesn’t last, memories do. It became apparent to me that no matter how much I grieved the loss of these physical tokens of my family, the important things remained: the memories they evoked and the connections I shared with the people remembered. Through this traumatic experience, a beautiful community came together around us, friends and strangers who became friends, to support, commiserate, and advise. Tragedy was turned into inspiration by these wonderful people: Inspiration to contribute, which took the form of birthday cakes for kids who lost their homes and paint-your-own cookies for neighborhood cleanup events.
Another piece of my story revolves around health. In 2017, after struggling with obesity my entire life, I underwent gastric bypass and lost over 160 pounds. A year after my surgery is when I decided to go to pastry school. I had learned a very important lesson as a result of my bariatric journey: if you are going to indulge, do it properly. My altered digestive system only allows for limited sugar consumption, but my obsession is still going strong, so every gram of sugar that goes into my mouth has to be truly enjoyable.
Finishing Touches - Bringing it all Together
I rejoice in the fact that my art-form is consumable: It is not the cookie that is important, it’s the experience of indulging and sharing that experience with others. I don’t bake treats, I bake thought, love, celebration, and connection into every ounce of product that comes out of my oven and it is all meant to be shared. It is my pleasure and privilege to be part of our local community; let’s spread some sweetness together!
Thank you for taking the time to learn a bit about me. I am excited to get in the kitchen and craft a worthy indulgence to enrich your tomorrow with the memories you make today.
-Katie