I love baking and cooking. It’s one of my passions. Definitely the reason I went back to school, culinary school, in 2005 to get a diploma at a culinary institute here in Ontario. I was very proud of myself for accomplishing something I had wanted to do for decades, and dove into the restaurant business. Alas, working in restaurants was definitely not my forte but it did not damper my passion for cooking and baking.

Fast forward to 2013, and I was living in Calgary Alberta when the worst natural disaster in Canada happened. The floods of 2013 were disastrous for Calgary and I wanted to do something to help out. I racked my brain for something different that I could do, I wanted to raise money for the relief fund and finally I came up with an idea – a cookbook! I was running my own catering business out there, and I thought what a better way to raise money then to create a cookbook of my favourite baking recipes and sell it for charity. It turned out to be a big success and I was so happy I was able to contribute to my adopted home city during a crisis.

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So now the pandemic is wreaking havoc with everyone’s lives, and once again, I thought about volunteering somewhere or helping in some way, and then I realized, I have accumulated many recipes and have many great friends and family members who I was sure would want to help by providing me with recipes. This time, I decided that Food Banks Canada would be the charity I would donate the proceeds to. So far, I have made over $300 for this charity, and I have just begun. It is so rewarding to do something good and I am so incredibly grateful that I have the means to do this. I am very fortunate to be where I am, and I am so thankful for the many great friends and family who helped me and encouraged me throughout this project.

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So why not try some new skills in the kitchen and keep safe at the same time!