And just like that, it’s December.

A blog I subscribe to had a post the other day about baking and writing and how similar they are.

I enjoy both, so I started thinking.

In both writing and baking, you mix ingredients in various ways and come out with a product.

I love to bake.

I don’t usually get much fancier than muffins or cookies, an occasional quick loaf cake.

Sometimes, just thinking that I’m going to be doing some baking in the days ahead will make me happy.

Thinking about writing makes me happy, as does actually writing.

I’m never held back by the fact that the outcome of either may not be what I had in mind.

Occasionally, the result of both can be a very pleasant surprise or a big fail.

But my failures never make me want to give up.

“I’m never going to bake again!”

I have never uttered those words.

Nor have I ever said I’m going to give up writing.

The whole process of baking relaxes me.

I feel that way about writing.

Having a hobby or a task that brings me such joy despite not knowing the end result is a blessing.

I don’t often use that word, “blessing,” because it’s so overused these days that I feel it’s lost its charm.

But getting to do things you love to do really is a blessing.

Here’s where it gets tricky, though.

Whereas someone will always eat what I’ve baked (rarely is it too awful for consumption), there isn’t an audience waiting to read my writing.

I can offer it to my writers groups, and they actually are very good about reading my work.

My husband will read my finished work.

But I can’t count on anyone else out there.

I don’t have an audience.

I guess, now that I’m thinking about it, the same number of people will eat what I’ve baked as those who will read what I’ve written.

Actually, more people read my writing than eat my cookies. (I don’t offer cookies to my writer friends because they’re scattered all over the country.)

So, why am I not satisfied with my ratio of readers to eaters?

Why do I think I’m not a “real” writer just because I don’t have a huge audience who will read my work?

I don’t have a huge group of people who will eat my cookies, either.

I certainly don’t have anyone who will pay for what I bake.

And yet I still consider myself a baker.

I bake, therefore I’m a baker.

Huh.

I write, therefore I’m a writer.

There is, of course, a certain amount of imposter syndrome at play.

Is it the size of the audience that determines what I’m allowed to call myself?

What are you holding back classifying yourself as simply because you don’t have the “right size” audience?

If you paint or draw or Zentangle, you’re an artist.

If you volunteer for political events, you’re an activist.

If you work on your house, you’re a handyman.

If you walk or run or do yoga or swim and push the boundaries of what you think you’re capable of, you’re an athlete.

If you’re kind to the people who cross your path, you’re a kind person.

Maybe it’s consistency?

You can only call yourself a whatever (insert term here), if you do the activity regularly?

But then, what’s regularly?

That argument doesn’t hold up.

Maybe it’s as simple as calling yourself a writer or an artist or whatever, if you do the activity.

Period.

End of sentence.

Permission granted.

So back to baking:

Here’s a great cookie recipe I tried recently that makes big, coffee-shop sized cookies.

Bake it for the people who love your holiday baking, including you, the baker.

Best Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies

(from allrecipes.com, submitted by ElizabethBH)

Yield: 18 cookies
Bake Time: 15-17 minutes

Ingredients:

2 c. all-purpose flour
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
1 c. packed brown sugar
½ c. white sugar
¾ c. unsalted butter, melted
1 egg
1 egg yolk
1 Tbsp. vanilla
2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
1 c. chopped walnuts

Directions:

Gather all ingredients.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

Grease cookie sheets or line with parchment paper.

Sift flour, baking soda, and salt together in a bowl; set aside.

Beat sugars with melted butter with an electric mixer in another large bowl until smooth.

Beat in egg, egg yolk, and vanilla until light and creamy.

Add flour mixture to egg mixture and stir until dough is just combined.

Stir in chocolate chips and walnuts.

Drop scoops of dough about three inches apart onto cookie sheets. Note: I always do a test run with one cookie ball to see how it spreads and if I need to increase or decrease size. (I use a two-inch scoop to make two-inch rounded balls of dough.)

Bake until edges are golden and middle is slightly shiny—about 15-17 minutes. (I check on the cookies about midway through. If they’re not spreading as I hoped, I bang the cookie sheet a couple of times on the oven rack)

Cool on cookie sheets about five minutes, then transfer to a wire rack.

Hope you like them as much as we did.

Until next time,

~ Gail

Countdown: 4 weeks left of 2024

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