Meet Sharon Glascoe of Certified Pastry Aficionado

Today we’d like to introduce you to Sharon Glascoe.

Sharon, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve been baking since I can remember. I actually still have the first cookbook I ever received when I was about 10 years old. Ever since then, I’ve been the happiest in the kitchen. I’d use any opportunity to make things for friends and family – Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, birthdays, and even to impress my coworkers at a new job.

When I first starting working at a public accounting firm after college, I would bring in treats for all my coworkers to munch on. Being a single girl in the city, it gave me a reason to bake tons of stuff without gaining thousands of pounds, plus baking was the best stress-reliever. A coworker suggested that I blog about the things I make and give tips to bakers just like me. And, alas, the blog was born!

Life got in the way and I let the blog slip away for a few years. But, I felt the passion for blogging again in 2016 so, I decided to start up the blog again. I’ve been working hard at it ever since! Managing the blog and working full-time is no easy feat but I love both parts of my life so I make it work.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
Working full-time and managing the blog is tough sometimes. I definitely have to make sacrifices to find the time to do both. I work for a couple hours on the blog before work and after work and use my weekends to get recipe testing and photo shoots done. It definitely makes traveling and personal time with my husband, friends, and family tough to balance but after doing it for so long now, I’ve got a good routine together.

One of the biggest obstacles I struggled with at the beginning, was not feeling good enough. I would compare my blog to other bloggers and feel like my photos weren’t pretty or sharp enough or my writing wasn’t witty enough. It brought me down sometimes. But after sulking for a little, I let it fuel me to get better and push harder. I started reading up on photography tips and slowly began to feel more confident in my work.

A struggle that I’ve been feeling lately is blogger burnout. I’m pregnant right now so, all I want to do in my free time is prepare for baby or rest so sometimes getting up and cooking for hours is a struggle. I’ve learned that it’s okay to take a break every once in a while and listen to my body. If I’m too weak or tired to work that day, that’s okay. I’ll focus on other blog work that I can do on the computer instead of on my feet.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with Certified Pastry Aficionado – tell our readers more, for example what you’re most proud of as a company and what sets you apart from others.
On the blog, you can find anything and everything that I love to eat. I never post a recipe that I am not whole-heartedly obsessed with. Therefore, most of the recipes you’ll find are indulgent and rich and even sinful. This includes: yummy pasta dishes, comforting soups, all things sweet, boozy drinks, and, most of all, carbs. This doesn’t mean I don’t post healthy food, but flavor comes first. If it ain’t yummy, I ain’t sharing it.

I make a mixture of easy and challenging recipes. But, I pride myself on the helpful tips I give at the end of every post to encourage cooks and bakers of all strengths to give these recipes a try. No one should ever feel that they’re not experienced enough to make the food they crave. So, my goal with each post is to empower people to give the recipe a try.

So, what’s next? Any big plans?
So, like I said, I’m pregnant. I am so nervous about letting this blog slip to the side once the baby comes. I know a lot of other food bloggers that had their first baby and were able to make it work into their blogging schedule. So, I plan to talk to them and get some tips for making sure I still keep this blog a priority once baby girl arrives.

Contact Info:

• Address: 5005 Colchester CT SE
• Website: www.certifiedpastryaficionado.com
• Phone: 4074437346
• Email: [email protected]
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/certifiedpastryaficionado/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/certifiedpastryaficionado/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/certifiedpastry
• Other: https://www.pinterest.com/certifiedpastry/

Image Credit:
All of these photos were taken by me, Sharon Glascoe

Getting in touch: VoyageATL is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.