well hello there

We're Emily and Laura, two sisters who, growing up, never got to eat sugar (at least not as much as we wanted). We each have horrifying stories of what we would eat in vain attempts to get our dessert fix. Bakers chocolate was licked and dipped into the sugar bowl. Jello eaten "raw" from the box. Spoonfuls of sugar (brown and white). Some of our greatest successes were found in the medicine cabinet. Flintstone vitamins, children's aspirin...our third sister even sucked all the sweet coating off a bottle of Advil tablets one time (imagine finding that when you have a headache).

When we did get the sweet treats we were so desperate for, they came in the form of pre-packaged goodies. While we're proud that our mother and grandmother were not slaves to the stove, we've found ourselves wanting to get our oven mitts dirty. We're starting nice and easy. We'll be chronicling our experiences working with published recipes letting you know what went wrong, what went right and what we might change to make it even awesomer. In an extra special twist, you'll get two baking blogs in one! Emily bakes traditional goodies and Laura cooks vegan-style.

A brief bio on the bakers:

Emily lives with her hubs in a coach house by Lake Michigan just north of Chicago. Likes: J.Crew ("J.Crizzy"), red wine, her brat kitty Misha, Mad Men, motown, chocolate, ruffles, polka dots and the color yellow. Dislikes: Miley Cyrus, that she can't just eat whenever and whatever she wants, ankle socks, mayonnaise and roller coasters.

(PS all the pictures from my posts that actually look good are from my talented husband)

Laura lives in veganville, usa (unincorporated) so doesn't cook as often as she should. Likes: food eating (competitive and casual), Pitchfork-y music, terrible television, liberal politics, and boots. Dislikes: bike culture (sorry, portland!), Fox News, and lots of other stuff too numerous to list.