Kinnera Mulam

“Initially, you’re given a guide on how to bake, and it’s very foolproof. Then once you start doing it more and you become more comfortable, you learn the formula of baking a certain dish. But you’re always able to build on it yourself and that gives you a sense of confidence because you feel like you’ve accomplished something, and you’re able to pave your own way and make your own recipes,” Eira Saraff (12) said.

Eira Saraff (12) remembers scouring the internet and flipping through pages of the many cookbooks that litter her kitchen to assemble a list of the top cookie recipes. Analyzing recipes and techniques from Sarah Kieffer’s “100 Cookies,” she selects items ranging from Marshmallow Peanut Butter Brownies to Toasted Sesame cookies. Including both trivial and significant details, she meticulously created a digital spreadsheet featuring recipes’ cookie flavor down to the precise temperature required for baking. 

At the age of six, Eira began baking desserts, particularly banana bread, with her mother. As she grew older, she tried her hand at baking to surprise her friends and family with treats ranging from macarons to tiered cakes. Her passion for baking especially flourished during the pandemic when she gained more time to try her hand at new recipes and perfect her personal techniques while simultaneously building up her confidence in baking.

“Initially, you’re given a guide on how to bake, and it’s very foolproof,” Eira said. “Then once you start doing it more and you become more comfortable, you learn the formula of baking a certain dish. But you’re always able to build on it yourself and that gives you a sense of confidence because you feel like you’ve accomplished something, and you’re able to pave your own way and make your own recipes.”

From knowing which type of sugar suits a recipe best to what speed to beat a mixture with, Eira frequently uses her baking expertise to share dishes with her friends and family. Close friend Shanaya Dhawan (12), who met Eira in early elementary school and often bakes alongside her, appreciates the time and effort Eira puts into creating each and every treat.

“Whenever it’s someone’s birthday or a special day, me and my friends always know that Eira without a doubt will be bringing something that she baked,” Shanaya said. “Even when it’s not a special occasion, she’ll sometimes bake things for us to enjoy at lunch because that’s the kind of person she is — very giving and caring.”

Eira further explored her love for baking by volunteering at the non-profit organization “Cake4Kids.” Every week, she baked custom cakes for children who did not have access to baked goods from shops.

“I also really needed an outlet for my baking, so I’m glad I was able to find a place where I could make for people who actually [needed] my baked goods,” Eira said. “I was able to share my baking with more of my community.”

During the earlier weeks of her volunteer job, Eira found her work challenging because she did not have access to the customers and their preferences. However, she discovered that the experience made her more determined to improve her skills and impress her customers since giving up was not an option. 

“It has allowed me to become more responsive,” Eira said. “Especially when making a cake, at least one thing goes wrong every time, and I can’t just discard the whole cake and start all over because it’s a lot of money, ingredients and a lot of my time, so I have to really make things work in the moment and fix everything quickly especially because this cake is going to someone.”

The tenacity that Eira learned from baking helped her develop her skills in other aspects of her life such as research and academics. Upper school math teacher Chris Davies taught Eira in her junior year and commends Eira for her growth in confidence throughout high school due to her determination to improve.

“I could see that, at first, Eira was unsure of herself,” Davies said. “But after more practice and hard work, I could really see her confidence grow and see her feeling better about herself.”

Close friend Sania Gupta (12), who grew close to Eira during Harker summer camp in middle school, shares similar thoughts. She admires Eira’s tenacity and ability to face challenges with an open mind instead of giving up.

“I feel like when she runs into obstacles, she’s never super shaken up about it,” Sania said. “She pretty much always bounces right back and really makes an effort to hone her skills and improve herself. Over the years that I’ve known her, I have very rarely seen her give up and not try something again just because she found it difficult or challenging.” 

As Eira moves forward into the future, she hopes to continue sharing her love for baking with her community, family and friends. By discovering new recipes and testing her baking limits, she carries her skill of pushing forward despite mistakes and setbacks with her into the future.

“I think a lot of time, with baking as well as other things, you can constantly feel like you’ve never accomplished anything because there’s always more you could have done or a more impressive dessert you could have made,” Eira said. “So to me, it’s really important to be content with where you are and feeling like you’ve accomplished something no matter how small.”