Food for Thought

The preheated oven warms the living room. The eighteen-year-old tape deck plays the Mughal-e-Azam soundtrack in the background. Caramel bubbles over the stovetop as I scramble through the pantry to find pecans for the pecan buns. This is a typical Saturday morning in my household.

I began baking in the fourth grade, when I realized two truths: my parents were too busy working to make me breakfast, and I loved Cosmic Brownies. When I brought leftover homemade fudge-brownies to school, my schoolmates swarmed around me, each pleading for a piece. (Thanks, Allrecipes.) Soon, I abandoned ready-made recipes and shortcuts, including brownie mixes. After much trial and error—burnt black bean brownies, undercooked cranberry cakes, and mile-high piles of dishes to clean, I eventually devised my own foolproof recipes from scratch and sold homemade treats to my peers every week. Hoping to help pay the rent, I would then proudly hand my hard-earned $25 to my parents. But they would simply smile, advising me to save my earnings for myself. (So I did, in an empty biscuit tin under my bed.)

During my junior year, I baked chocolate chip cookies with families at the Long Beach Ronald McDonald House after providing the organization funds through countless bake sales. At first, the residents I met at the House were total strangers to me. But after guiding them to cream a pound of butter and sugar into a cloud-like concoction and sharing my culinary secrets, such as folding chopped dark chocolate bars--instead of milk chocolate chips--into the cookie dough (for a richer texture and taste), I bonded with my momentary sous-chefs and became a part of their family. The comfort and sense of community that distressed parents and grandparents experienced over a basic treat were heartwarming. Food is truly a universal language.

Mouthwatering baked goods are indeed a rewarding result of hard work. But the process of handmaking a treat is far more worth savoring. A baker must experiment with ingredients and techniques to produce unique masterpieces--even black bean brownies. Baking is art.

By baking, I realized that ingredients, like individuals, constantly change. Sometimes permanently. Once brioche has been baked, it cannot revert to being dough. But a baker must realize that baking is far from linear. They must embrace the process, be curious enough to experience adventure, and be comfortable enough to take risks when deciding which essence will best pair with nutmeg. Above all, baker must learn from their mistakes and continue to improve their craft. Baking is chemistry.

From separate ingredients to a homogeneous batter to a fluffy cake, baking reflects the key principles of life. Ingredients, like individuals, must evolve to reach their full potential. Baking is biology.

I myself have evolved from a fourth-grade entrepreneur to a philanthropist, using her culinary superpower for the betterment of her community. The mere aroma of warm cinnamon reminds me of my story. Even lighting a vanilla-bean-scented candle from Bath & Body Works makes me fondly reminisce upon the time I baked vanilla cupcakes with my cousin and late uncle and made a floury mess out of their newly remodeled kitchen. Baking is psychology.

Even after the pecan buns are devoured and only the sticky residue of caramel remains, creativity increasingly runs through my blood and the joyful memories associated with the innovative culinary process are ever-lasting leftovers.

-Sana Asifriyaz

Sana Asifriyaz was born and raised in Los Angeles, California, as a first-generation Muslim-Indian immigrant. Throughout her life, Asifriyaz lived in her small hometown Lomita. While encountering personal adversities in her early life, Asifriyaz passed time by reading and self-teaching, which transformed into her lifelong passion, purpose, and empowerment. As she amplified her voice through her visual and literary art, she became keen on exploring the various perspectives and aspects of the world, advocating for universal education and equality, and evolving as both a scholar and an individual. Asifriyaz is an award-winning, high-achieving high school senior at Rolling Hills Preparatory School. For each year she has spent in high school, her writing and artwork have been published in her school’s literary magazine. Two of her written works are featured in The Pear Shaped Press’ upcoming anthology A Teenager’s Guide to Feminism. Asifriyaz passionately studies various subjects, ranging from the humanities to the sciences. She also contributes to her community both on- and off-campus as she actively leads several school clubs, including Cakes 4 Causes, through which she raises funds through bake sales to donate to local nonprofit organizations, and Math Club, through which she avidly encourages her fellow female students to partake in the STEM fields. Asifriyaz aspires to study biology and psychology as she pursues an interdisciplinary higher education and a career in both research and teaching. She lives in Los Angeles, California, with her parents, older sister, and grandmother. Her leisure activities (besides writing) include critically analyzing books and films, baking, walking, traveling, watching plays, visiting museums, and playing cards with her family.