Baking as a hobby is one of the best ways to de-stress. I have been baking since the tender age of 10. I developed a love for baking from my uncle, who according to me is one of the best bakers I know!
Normally, when people start to learn cooking they start with easy recipes such as scrambled eggs. However, the first thing I ever made was cheesecake. It was not perfect as I did it without the guidance of an adult. However, that’s when my hobby started to develop.
Eventually, I learnt to bake Cakes, Lasagna, Cupcakes, Babka, Cookies and much more. What I love about baking is making something out of raw materials, watching it slowly rise in the oven, and tasting the freshly baked goodies.
How To Develop Baking As A Hobby
If you have an interest in baking but are confused about where to start and what to do, you have come to the right place.
The first thing you need to think about is what you want to eat. Sounds strange doesn’t it? However, it will help you think about what you want to bake. Some of the easy things to bake are:
- Cookies
- Cakes, and
- Muffins
Suggested reads: 18 Easiest Baking Recipes That Even Beginners Can Make
I started by baking a cheesecake because a few days ago my uncle made a delicious cheesecake that would melt in my mouth and the flavour of the blueberries would suddenly surprise me. I fell so much in love with it, that I got the zeal to learn how to make it.
Next, is practise, practise, and practise. No one gets anything right the first time, so don’t get disheartened if you make mistakes, it’s natural to do so. Try to understand what went wrong, ask questions, and find answers to them. This will help you improve your baking skills a lot. To do so, you can join baking communities and share your questions.
When I started to bake, I did make mistakes, but believe me, making mistakes is a part of learning. When I make mistakes, it drives me to try again and make it even better. So find what drives you to bake.
Eventually, I started baking under the guidance of my uncle and my mom and started to learn. If you don’t have anyone to rely on for guidance, I suggest getting help from the internet.
Lastly, when you feel confident with your baking skills, you can experiment with your skills.
7 Benefits Of Baking As A Hobby
There are several benefits of baking as a hobby. Some of them are:
1) Relieves Stress
When I bake, I am fully present in the moment, I focus on gathering the materials, and this practice helps me de-stress. I enjoy the process of baking because for me it’s very relaxing, and I believe, every baker will tell you the same.
2) Provides a Sense Of Achievement
Baking provides you with a sense of accomplishment. This is because when you are done, you have an end product of a delicious goodie that you can relish with your family.
Whenever I bake something, I click at least 10 pictures no matter how good or bad my goodies turn out. It is because I know I have put in hard work and dedication.
3) Enhances Creativity
While baking, we have the freedom to creatively experiment with different toppings, designs, flavours, etc. For example, On a cake we can practise various designs, there are no limitations to how we decorate it.
A personal example I can provide you with is, I followed a recipe of Baka. Once, I finished baking it, I realised the chocolate flavour was not dominant, and the bread became a bit hard. I thought of a creative solution and I coated the Baka with sugar syrup mixed with a little bit of cinnamon. This helped enhance the flavour and soften some parts of the bread.
4) Cost-Effective Freshly Bakes Goodies
When you go out to eat something, it is often costly because of various charges. However, when you learn to make it at home, it becomes cost-effective. Sometimes, you may be required to buy certain ingredients, nonetheless, it is still cheaper compared to purchasing something from the store.
Many people believe that baking is quite time-consuming, and sometimes it can be. However, we forget that after we put in time and effort we can enjoy the things we made, and there is no comparison between the store-bought goodies and the food made at home.
5) Develop Skills
When you learn to bake, you develop culinary skills, and as they say “Nothing goes to waste if you learn something.”
Many people believe that culinary skills are often for women. However, that is not true. Learning culinary skills is a life skill that is beneficial for everyone.
6) Bonding Opportunities
Baking together with loved ones helps create a strong bond. As a child what brought me the closest to my uncle was sharing the experience of baking. He would explain to me the significance of each ingredient and let me have the leftover cake batter. These little experiences are some of the best memories I carry.
Once we were done baking, we would taste the goodies and think of how we could improve them next time. Moreover, we would share the goodies with everyone in the family and relish the goodies together.
7) Healthy Alternatives
Store-bought goodies such as cookies, and cakes are extremely delicious. Nevertheless, they contain a lot of calories, sugar, oil, unhealthy fats, etc. However, when you bake these goodies at home, you can adjust the quantity and can also use healthy alternatives such as brown sugar instead of white sugar.
Also read: Building Your Terrarium Jar: A Green and Stylish Hobby
Anshuman