As much as I love them, I never actually need chocolate chip cookies to survive (although it can certainly feel that way). One thing I love about baking is that it always feels a little bit indulgent, a little bit unnecessary. I don’t have to bake anything, but when I do, it’s because I want to devote my time to making myself or someone else happy. Simply making that decision feels like a gift to myself.

Baking is also a communal experience. Usually we don’t make a whole cake or batch of cookies just for ourselves. (OK, fine. Sometimes I bake cookies just for myself. Go ahead and judge me.) Instead, we tend to embark on baking with the intention to share what we're making. We share with coworkers, with friends, or with someone who's simply having a bad day...pretty much anyone who will indulge our compulsion need to make treats and give them to people. Knowing that what you’re making will make other people happy is one of the warmest, fuzziest feelings there is. The fact that you get to eat some, too, is simply icing on the cake. (Yes, I went there. For me, saying “no” to a pun is like say “no” to salted caramel brownies: impossible.)

And Baking is Cheap! Cooking with really good meat, fish, cheese, and wine can get really, really expensive. You know what’s not expensive? Flour. Sugar. Eggs. Shortening. You can, of course, find baking recipes that use pricey, exotic ingredients, but, for the most part, baking is an inexpensive hobby. The best thing is that you can make things that taste expensive—soufflés, beautiful tarts, gorgeous cakes—on the cheap.

So Bake Away readers!!

Source: bustle.com