64 CalmMoment.comAlthough Kim-Joy says that she’s much better
than she used to be, she still feels anxious when
meeting new people. “I still have a feeling of: ‘Are
people going to hate me?’ And it’s so annoying,
because it doesn’t make any sense. When I meet
somebody new I’m okay, but when I meet them
a second time I’m more nervous, because I feel like
now they’re going to really get to know me and find
out that they don’t like me.”
When she started university, she began to bake
for her friends and realised she had a talent for it:
“I didn’t think: I’m going to bake and make myself
feel better. There wasn’t like a purposeful thing
there, but I think it just gradually evolved and
I realised I’m good at this. I make this loaf of bread
and I give it to people and they’re happy, and that’s
quite rewarding. So, I baked more and more.”
As Kim-Joy began to bake more, she found it
became almost like a ritual. She particularly
enjoyed baking bread as it gave her day some
structure: making the dough, leaving it to rise, and
waiting before finally putting it in the oven. “You
can chill out for an hour, because you’re doing
stuff,” she says. “You’re baking.”
Kim-Joy thinks of baking as a mindful activity:
“Baking bread really touches all the senses, doesn’t
it? The smell of it as it’s rising and it’s baking
comes out of the oven. It’s also the feel of it when
you’re kneading it, shaping it – it’s just nice.
“I lose myself for a few hours, so it’s definitely
a very mindful thing to do. And then suddenly,I’ll realise: ‘Oh, my God, the kitchen’s a complete
mess!’” she laughs.
Kim-Joy believes that baking – or finding any
hobby that we feel passionate about – can help us
to feel calmer and less stressed. “I think a lot of the
problem is that people don’t feel productive in what
they do. They do a job that they don’t feel makes an
impact. And then they go home, and they feel that
they don’t make an impact. And I think as humans,
we want to be able to feel needed and necessary,”
she explains. “I think we lose that a little bit now.”
Baking allows you to achieve something with your
day, she says, even if it’s just in a small way.
Baking also gives Kim-Joy the chance to express
her creativity. She likes to look for interesting
illustrators on Instagram (@emmablockillustration
is a particular favourite). Her partner owns comic
book shops, so these also help to inspire her quirky
recipes. These days, she carries around a notebook
so she can jot down her ideas on the go. These
colourful influences all come together in her new
book, Baking with Kim-Joy (Hardie Grant, £ 18 ),
which is packed full of fun things to make, from
mermaid kitten biscuits to cute ‘pigfiteroles’.
Working on the book and doing interviews has
helped Kim-Joy to grow in confidence. Although
she still has social anxiety, she’s able to look back
and see how far she’s come. “It just stays with you
a little bit and I think over time I can look back and
realise that I think less that way than before. I’ve
got past it to a certain point, but you still have that
voice in your head. You just squash it.”Baking is a great way
to express your
creativity and feel a
sense of achievement.
Tune in, then get
creative in the kitchen
Listen to our podcast with Kim-Joy at
calmmoment.com/podcast (available on all
major podcast apps). Kim-Joy has also
shared three fun recipes from her new book
on our website, visit bit.ly/kimjoybakes.Baking with Kim-Joy:
Cute and creative
bakes to make you
smile (Hardie Grant,
£ 1 8) is out now. Follow
Kim-Joy on Instagram
@kimjoyskitchen