Baking and Pastry Passion

I have a serious passion for baking and pastry arts.  I have had this since childhood and the awe of baking in my mini magic bake oven.  I have always loved watching cooking shows/segments and seeing the artistry of marrying ingredients to produce a delectable dish that looks amazing too.  I love the smells of baking cake, breads, muffins, cookies.  That warm comforting aroma of toasted butter, flour, eggs, chocolate, sugar, and vanilla magically turning into something so much more than the parts themselves.  I love the interplay of flavors in a layer cake, filled breads, or pies and tarts.  I love the silky creaminess of real buttercream, the soft crumb of a homemade butter cake,  and smooth, decadent, rich texture of chocolate ganache all layered together in a cake.  Cinnamon wafts from the oven as I bake cinnamon rolls or cinnamon swirl bread.  Yeasty pillowy croissants and sandwich loaves call to me from the oven after all the patience and waiting for the bread doughs to rise, proof, and bake.  It is truly a gratifying experience to bake and make pastries.  I love EVERY aspect of it.

I so enjoy watching someone eat the things I create and see their joy as they savor the flavors and textures.  It mirrors my own joy when I eat a delicious dessert myself.  I enjoy giving baked goods away, because I have yet to meet too many people who don't enjoy them.  Baking and pastry arts allows me to give gifts of happiness to others, one of my other passions.

If I wax a little poetic about this it is because I have been missing serious baking for awhile now.  I gave up baking as a part time job after my children were born and as we have homeschooled during elementary school and middle school, but I am so wanting to get back into it.  I am seriously searching for purpose and a way to use the gifts that God has given me to serve others.  I need something constructive to do beside spinning my wheels each day.  I must admit that what mainly holds me back from stepping into the baking business is fear.  Fear of this not being the right time or right choice.  I don't want to have something keep me from my relationship from God, my husband, or my children.  I am someone who doesn't like to be interrupted when I get started on a project, and baking isn't done very well with interruptions.  My sons still need assistance with school, and I am worried if I get into this again, I will neglect my duties as their teacher.  I am afraid of disappointing customers.  I am afraid to charge what I know I should for my cakes and baked goods for fear that someone will say, "That is too expensive."   Lots of fear going on.  But I do feel strongly that I need to use these skills.  I really do feel great when I bake and make something delicious.  I love perusing my myriad of recipes and trying something new.

I am praying really hard about this, researching, testing recipes, costing out recipes, and hopefully by the new year will have a clear direction and calling from God as to whether to go forward and offer baked goods to my friends and family as a "business".