Throughout my childhood, I was always really into baking. I had a passion for baking desserts and consuming content about baking whether it was on Food Network or in a magazine. Today as a 21 year old who actively has to cook for herself, I gained a love for popular youtuber baker, Claire Saffitz.
Originally gaining a following from the youtube channel, Bon Appetit, Saffitz became well known for the show Gourmet Bakes which showcased her ability to taste a candy or snack and reverse engineer it to create her own from scratch. This show required non-stop problem and innovative methods to expertly recreate these candies/snacks, which demonstrates her affinity for openness. Having since left from Bon Appetit due to the company's unfair treatment of BIPOC employees, Saffitz created her own youtube channel and has even gone on to write her very own cook book about her favorite desserts—Dessert Person.
While brainstorming the book, Saffitz wanted to emulate the idea that everyone can be a baker despite the common belief that one is either a cook or a baker. She writes on her website that, "I wrote “Dessert Person”, my first cookbook, to celebrate and defend my love of desserts. The recipes represent my attempt to demonstrate just how versatile and flexible baking can be (which is why you’ll find an entire chapter on savory baking as well)." She believes that baking is a celebration and that anyone can bake—lessons that she hopes readers gain from reading her cook book.
Hey Elisabeth! I was so excited to see a blog post about Claire Saffitz, as she’s a creator whose content I’ve adored for years. I have a copy of Dessert Person, and every single recipe I’ve tried has been an absolute banger, learning curves notwithstanding. In the book’s intro she discusses her philosophy for writing baking instructions: she is clear, direct, and specific because she wants home bakers to be as successful as possible; but she has also built in various off-ramps for readers so they know when they can alter or personalize a recipe without accidentally ruining the results. These opportunities for innovation resulted in what I can only describe as the best focaccia I’ve ever had in my life. 11/10, everyone should give her recipes a try.
ReplyDeleteI believe I've heard of Claire Saffitz before, though only now am I getting a better idea of what her character is like. There was a time I was really into cooking/baking, but I haven't had that same spark for quite some time. So, I particularly respect and appreciate her belief that anyone can bake. When it comes to art of any kind it always felt like something only those born with talent for it could do. In other words, something that I could only dream of doing. Of course, it's still fun to try, but it's people like Claire that really make me feel like I can do it properly.
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