Growing up, I learned all the best family stories and wisdom while making and eating cookies. My elders supported me in perfecting their favorite recipes and experimenting with my own, so baking became my sacred time with them and my sacred alone time on stressful days. When my body decided it was done eating gluten, dairy, and eggs in 2018, I was sad for a while and then got busy experimenting again. My housemates and friends graciously suffered through failed recipes, and as I stubbornly ate those failed batches to avoid wasting precious ingredients, I also started working on the stubborn fat-phobia and body shame that I encountered while also finding compassion for the ways my body wasn’t functioning like it used to.
While I never imagined selling these baked goods (which are much tastier now!), the encouragement of friends and potluck go-ers has turned my desire to work in a bakery to a desire to be the bakery! A lot of the recipes are experimental versions of family favorites passed down from grandmas, aunties, and my mom’s old church cookbooks. It’s been a joyful adventure to try incorporating as many local ingredients as possible, especially from incredible MCFM vendors! And I’m excited to share a couple recipes that represent the only connection my family still has to any of our root cultures – Swedish ginger cookies and Lucia Bread.
All of my baked goods are free of gluten*, dairy, and eggs. I keep telling people they come with no judgement either because (1) they use honey and maple syrup instead of sugar whenever possible and (2) no baked good should ever induce shame or judgement, no matter how sugary. Life is hard sometimes, and humans get to enjoy baked goods even on the easy days.
*Got allergies? Please note that all baked goods currently share equipment with wheat, nuts, and soy. Ingredient lists will be available at each market, and please ask about any concerns, even if things are busy! Self-advocacy takes practice – let’s practice together.
MCFM has been my home market since I moved to Minneapolis in 2014. I’ve gotten to see how MCFM lives its values and tries to use its resources and people to strengthen the entire local food ecosystem, and I can’t imagine baking in any way that doesn’t do the same. It’s kind of a scary thing to start a small food business, and especially one that caters to gluten free and vegan folks, so starting at MCFM means I’ll at least be around vendors and staff who support each other and customers who are excited to try new things!
