“Find Something you are passionate about and keep tremendously interested in it.”

  --Julia Child

I was very small when I discovered the love I had for food--making food, decorating food, plating food, eating food.

At around four years old, I remember watching reruns of Baking With Julia when I went to take a nap.

“Come on Andie, it's time for our nap,” my mom said, like regular clockwork at 10:30 that morning.
   

 “But I don’t want to sleep,” I said, trying to make my sobs sound just a little bit more legitimate.
     

I crawl dejectedly to the top of my parents king sized waterbed, sneaking my feet underneath the comforter; secretly I was really happy to lay down for my “resting time.” I knew exactly what was coming, and the second the TV turned on, I was silent.
     

This particular time, the first thing to come up was an episode with Martha Stewart as the guest. To this day, I remember vividly what she did - everything from the little marzipan raspberries and cherries to the beaded icing along the side of the cake.  Little did I know, that her three-tiered wedding cake would come to symbolize everything I wanted out of a career, out of the rest of my life.
     

I watched as she, seemingly haphazardly, poured stuff into bowls; she always knew what she was doing. I admired her carefree attitude, I admired her sense of duty, I admired her love, her passion, her drive. 
     

I watched the artfulness of the bakers with a childish, yet mature sparkle in my eye.
   

 “Mommy, when I grow up, I want to do that.”
     

In that single moment, I saw the happiness I would feel when I finally got to do what I loved. Like a small childs greatest dreams, I was riding on the back of a unicorn, in a bakery atop a clouded city. That was the moment I realized I loved food. That was the moment I realized that I couldn’t live without it, both as sustenance, and as my joy.

 If nothing else, my childhood “naptime” gave me the idea of the passion I have kept my whole life. After the first time she did it, my mom knew it wouldn’t put me to sleep, but it was still the biggest influence on the life I lead today.
   

 “When I grow up, I want to do that.” And I have.
     

When I was little, no matter how hard I tried, I could not mimic those motions. I could never flick my wrist as fast as she could, I could never see just the right amount of salt in my hands, but most of all I could never get egg whites to even foam up. 
   

 And as I continued on with my practice at home, my education at school, I came upon an internship opportunity. The summer between my junior and senior year of high school was by far the most riveting and truthful time of exploration of my dream job. I began to work in a bakery just a few blocks from my school, learning some of the tips and tricks that I had never been able to do before, both from a professional standpoint and a culinary one.
     

Many times, getting to do the things you love as a job hinders your passion for it; however, there was no killing my love for the industry. That first episode of Baking with Julia kept me going, kept me in love with the idea of baking. Having the opportunity to do it made my fire burn hotter.

My passion is a culinary one. My sweet tooth is impossible to cure. My joy is making people smile. My aspiration is to create something beautiful. My credit goes to my heroes.