Mission Number 4324: Bake

Crack two eggs. Check. The eggs had split open perfectly, the yoke gliding down the sides of the bowl towards the bottom of the bowl.
Add 1/2 cup water & 1/4 cup oil. I had meticulously measured the substances. Done.
Add the brownie mixture. Done. 


After tossing in a couple of Mom's secret ingredients, I mixed the mixture until a homogeneous form took place. I poured the chocolate richness into the tray, put it into the oven, and insipidly looked at my brother, who happened to be breathing down my neck, and gave him the spoon to lick off the brownie mix. 
As I waited for thirty minutes, I began to feel nervous, like I always do before I put something in the oven. Baking isn't hard. Nah. I can do it with ease, but my infirmity lies in my insecurity. I always have this fear that my "masterpiece" will turn out bad: the smell of eggs will be pungent, the oil ooze out when the brownie is cut, etc. (*note to self* - maybe sometime in the future, write a list of "50 Things That Can Go Wrong In A Kitchen") 
I took my brownies out of the oven (right on time :) ), and then went upstairs to resume watching Julie & Julia (ironic isn't it that I'm watching a movie about cooking). Well, the movie ventures into the lives of two women, Julia (played by the notorious, Meryl Streep, who also was nominated for an Oscar for her role) and Julie (played by the vivacious Amy Adams), who have a great passion for cooking. As the women go through a labyrinth of trials and hardships, they learn that in cooking, it's important to expect and embrace and unexpected. 
After the movie, I went to check up on my brownies. Fortunately, everything went fine and they turned out to be the most rich, moist, and mouth savoring treat I'd ever made. Mission accomplished.
Cooking & baking are risks. You never know what to expect, but you always hope for the best. But how do people do it? Just look at my mom. She's a regular woman, never taken a cooking class in her life, yet every day she has the time to cook up an extravagant dinner. And every single time, the food is different and delicious. How do they do it? With the number one cooking secret: Confidence. 
Although I am far from a cook -- heck, my range of cooking is limited to brownies, red velvet cake, baklava, & tea, I like to do it. To cook and bake, that is. Despite the countless times I've messed up (especially when making tea, which my parents have refused to drink when made by me), I've learned something new from every mistake. Like Rihanna's says, "Never a failure. Always a lessen".


-AA