My Story
My love for baking began back when I was about ten years old. My Noni lived with us and I grew up watching both my Noni and my mother cooking and baking. Being an Italian family, food is an enormous part of our lives and heritage. Many hours were spent sitting at our kitchen table where we had wonderful conversations as delicious dishes and pastries were created. I learned so much from being part of this and loved it when I was asked to help. As I grew up, baking and cooking became my passion; a passion I later shared with my husband Paul and our four wonderful children, Kara, Casey, Sam and Sophia.
Although my Noni passed away, I continue to treasure the memories of sitting in our kitchen talking and baking together. I became determined to carry on all of the traditions that I had learned from her and my mother. Passing on these traditions to my children and the generations to come was extremely important to me.
Looking back, one of the moments that remain most vivid to me after all these years is the day I spent with my Noni learning how to make her amazing Easter Pies. Thrilled to be the one to carry on our family tradition, I wanted to be sure that I could do this exactly like she had done.
So you can imagine my surprise that all of these recipes were written only in Italian and on tiny scraps of paper. On top of that, there was very little information about the amounts of ingredients needed. She said, “I just do it by eye and I have some tricks.” Well, after a long afternoon of watching, measuring, and taking notes I was able to translate and preserve the recipes. Now after years of practice, I believe I have accomplished what Noni knew I could. I know if she were still alive that she would be proud! Over the past 36 years I have baked for all of our family occasions and enjoyed every minute of it.
Over the years, family and friends have encouraged me to pursue my culinary passion and share my baked goods with others. So that’s what got me started on this new and exciting venture.
Louise Gavigan