Fresh From the Oven

Oliver’s Minecraft cake. For his tenth birthday, I made a Creeper cake and matching cupcakes. My favorite experiment: layering colored buttercream in 1-inch square silicone molds to make the sharp-edged green and brown Minecraft blocks. They came out better than I expected. I want to film a step-by-step tutorial, including how to get the cubes out of the molds intact.

Orders and new desserts. Early October brought an order of 30 oversized cookies and 12 brownies, plus another order of 20 individually wrapped brownies. The schedule kept growing with custom cookies, community events and October pickups. Alongside my brown butter malted chocolate chunk, double chocolate fudge and salted peanut butter caramel cookies, the shop now lists two brownie options: a classic fudgy brownie and one made without added sugar or gluten-containing recipe ingredients. My home kitchen handles wheat and other allergens, so cross-contact remains possible.

Coffee-shop possibilities. I’m working with Dapper & Dashing in Milford on a 75-cookie grand-opening order and discussing an ongoing partnership. Sampling ideas include cookies, brownies, bourbon banana bread and pumpkin pound cake. A permanent arrangement hasn’t been agreed.

Teaching what matters. I’ve also been developing a kids’ cooking school. The idea is to teach real knife, heat and kitchen skills alongside confidence, teamwork and recovering from mistakes. Older kids would help younger ones. The venue and start date are still being worked out.

A step toward the Major Richard Star Act. Representative Bernie Willis’s office confirmed an Ohio resolution supporting the federal Major Richard Star Act was filed with the House Clerk on October 1. It still needs formal introduction and a number, but it’s movement after months of outreach. I’ve continued contacting legislators, advocating for access to treatment, and pursuing opportunities to speak with military leaders about military sexual trauma, especially what happens when male survivors go unheard. Culture change matters as much as policy.

The part you don’t see. October also brought weeks of exhaustion, chronic pain and difficult medication tradeoffs. A severe neck spasm made even everyday tasks harder. I struggled with access to affordable treatment while trying to run Post Traumatic Shef Disorder and keep my advocacy moving. I even questioned whether I could keep the bakery open. These challenges aren’t behind me. They’re part of why I fight for better healthcare access.

Every Crumb Counts. Break a cookie apart and watch where the crumbs go. Each piece tells you something about the whole. Systems fail in pieces, too: a treatment that’s hard to access, a survivor who isn’t believed, legislation waiting to move. Follow the crumbs and you start to see where things broke down. One person speaking up can expose a problem. Imagine what thousands of voices could change.

Most of my advocacy comes out of my own pocket. Every order from Post Traumatic Shef Disorder helps me keep doing that work. Every story shared helps, too. One cookie. One voice. One crumb at a time.

On the mic: I joined Paula Kemp on The Campfire Talks this month. Watch our conversation on LinkedIn (captions available). Next up: Lace & Grit.

Life in Food, Lately

Purple Poulet, Newport, Kentucky. I would go back just for the appetizers. The pork belly bruschetta/crostini had a sweet-savory balance I loved. The fried deviled eggs brought bacon, caviar and pickled peppers. Sweet potato beignets with mascarpone were another winner. My shrimp and grits were a different story: the maple-heavy, autumnal sweetness overwhelmed the shrimp instead of complementing it. Outstanding starters, disappointing main course. That’s the kind of detail I want when I read a restaurant review.

Hoggy’s BBQ and Catering, Columbus. Excellent ribs, wings and mac and cheese. The staff were welcoming, and a conversation about the Schoolhouse Restaurant near my home turned into an unexpected connection. Good food is even better when the people serving it clearly care. I’d go back.

From my home kitchen. I made garlic-Dijon-herb roasted pork loin, crispy Yukon Gold potatoes and a Thomas Keller-inspired Confit Byaldi for a birthday dinner. The vegetables sit over a pepper-and-tomato piperade. I’ve published the full Confit Byaldi recipe, method and photos on my new Recipes from The Shef page.

Next stop: Nepal. I’ve been watching Long Way Round ahead of my November motorcycle trip. I’m especially excited about momos, street food and how history, geography and neighboring cultures shaped Nepal’s cooking. Someday I’d love to bring that inspiration into a savory pop-up alongside the bakery.

West Virginia adventure. Oliver and I went zip-lining. Good time together away from the ovens.

The Baker’s Notebook: Trust the Process

The brownie test. One pan read around 205°F after 31 minutes and looked like it had sunk. I thought I’d missed the mark. After resting, the brownies set into the dense, fudgy texture I wanted. An internal reading is useful, but no single temperature fits every brownie recipe.

Try this: Let brownies cool completely before cutting. For clean squares, chill briefly, lift with a parchment sling, cut with a sharp knife and wipe the blade between slices. Cutting too early can turn a good brownie into a mess.

The mental-health connection. I nearly judged my brownies before they’d finished setting. Life changes can be like that. When I change something to improve my mental health, I can’t always see the result right away. Sometimes I need to trust the process and give things time to settle before giving up. If something isn’t helping, I can still reassess and ask for support.

Looking ahead: Holiday dessert preorders are taking shape. For cookies, brownies and event desserts, browse the shop or send a custom-order request.