Today we’d like to introduce you to Jasmine Clark.
Jasmine, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I am a St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital cancer survivor of 22 years. Seeing all the kids & teenagers like me struggling but also smile because they get to see another day is inspiring to a person. It makes you want to help them in ways no one else can.
My mom used to be a cake decorator and not with fondant, I’m talking thick buttercream icing that will stick to you if you eat too much of it. She decorated all types of different cakes; from characters like Scooby-Doo, Spongebob Squarepants, & many others, to putting the final roses made of buttercream icing on a 2 tier wedding cake. It’s safe to say she is my inspiration and my best friend.
So, after watching & studying her every move in the kitchen throughout my youth; I decided I wanted to learn how to bake & decorate cakes. The only problem with that was I used to be extremely allergic to eggs, I couldn’t touch the eggshell without breaking out in bumps nor can I eat anything with egg in them without getting a stomachache. But that did not discourage me it just made me even more determined.
To learn the basics of cooking as a whole, I started helping my mom with some of her baking projects and took multiple cooking classes in middle school, high school and college I wanted to get over my egg allergy and the only way I knew how was to dive straight into the kitchen. The good news of the whole situation was that I am now able to crack 50 eggs without breaking a sweat.
The major problem I have now is tasting what I make, a key part of being a chef/baker is tasting your product especially when trying something new. To this day, if I make a cake or some cookies with egg, I can’t taste them, my body will reject it. To help me out my friends & family all offered themselves as guinea pigs to give me feedback. It was going well up until college; I got a little discouraged and distracted and dropped out, started working at different retail stores. That lasted about three years then I got my head back in the game.
Now, I’ve taken baking to a whole other, now there are tons of ingredients and resources to make pastries a bit healthier and allergy-friendly. I moved to Houston about a year ago determined to do something with my skill set and knowledge of baking. I’m currently a student at Houston Community College studying Culinary Arts in Baking & Pastry. I am learning about different allergies and how to bake products to adhere to those allergies; baking without eggs, dairy, unnatural fat and using healthier, tastier substitutions.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
No, it wasn’t a smooth road, I was knocked by so many objects and so many people that at some point in my previous years I gave up my dream and surrendered to society’s standard for me. Being a puppet to CEOs pulling the string, people saying my physical appearance won’t get me anywhere, trying to make me into something that I am not. People who I called my friends using me and putting me down to make themselves feel better.
To the young women starting your journey, believe in yourself even when no one else will. Be the person to make a change, find people who want to help you make that change. Know that it won’t be easy and that is ok; knowledge is power so fight for what you want. Don’t listen to people an enjoy your life to the fullest.
Please tell us about your business.
I am specialing in baking pastries with no egg or dairy and I want to evolve to making pastries for diabetic and others like them. I’m just now starting this whole entrepreneurship and stepping out into the business scene step by step.
Were there people and/or experiences you had in your childhood that you feel laid the foundation for your success?
Yes, these experiences have to lead me to become the woman I am now; strong-willed, determined and knocking down anybody or anything that comes in my way.
Contact Info:
- Phone: 13185649512
- Email: cooktop2013@gmail.com
- Instagram: @tinybig_baker
- Facebook: tinybig_baker
- Twitter: @HiddenInTime
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