Entrepreneur Endeavor

With so many friends from all over the world asking if I would sell my treats and baked goods, I knew it was time to finally become an entrepreneur and own a business. My products were indeed a success!

However, it turns out there's a big difference between baking for myself and making a business out of it. Hearing my customer’s compliments was indeed amusing; I had some who would buy big quantities and freeze them to make sure they didn't run out. It was a fascinating venture for sure.

Although I was making money out of something I really enjoyed doing, baking started to become a hassle when added to household chores and all the other responsibilities that come with being a parent. At one point, I came to the realization that I wasn't spending quality time with my daughter and family; I was spending most of my weekends working—not focusing on the people that were the most important to me.

Although they were extremely supportive, I gradually started to become less satisfied. The positive compliments of my customers would cheer me up, but every time I gave up spending time with my family to work, I would question myself. What were my priorities? How badly did I wanted to succeed? What would be the price to pay? When was my daughter going to be a child ever again?

It wasn't worth it for me. I was going against everything I believed in since the day I got pregnant. My boss at the time really didn't want me to quit once I delivered my baby, but it was a done deal. I wanted to be a stay-at-home mom. I've learned so much working with children. If I was blessed enough to afford taking care of my child full-time, I wouldn't think twice. To take a maternity leave of six weeks was completely out of question, even considering the fact that my former bosses told me they would allow me to bring my daughter to work.

My husband and I were both raised by stay-at-home moms. To us, that was a very valuable thing. We decided we would take different roles as parents, and that works pretty well. My mistake was to believe that once my little one started school, I would have all the time in the world to work on my business and focus on my career. Instead, I started to feel bad about neglecting simple tasks at home, and worse than that, feeling neglectful as a mother.

I was overwhelmed, and over time, I lost my joy. So, I decided to focus on my family again. I don't regret that decision. It's bittersweet, but now I have more joy than when I owned my business.

I am proud of myself for having taking that step and for having the courage to focus on what is most valuable to me instead of worrying that others might think of me as a failure. Life is about choices. I refuse to make them based on valuing third-party judgment instead of my own believes and happiness.

“Nanda, would you share your coconut cake recipe with me?"

"Sure!"

"Oh, great! I am so glad you don't have your business anymore, so now you can share it with me!" she said with a big grin on her face.

All right, my friend, I know you are not the only one in love with this recipe. So here it is as promised. I hope you enjoy it. Just be careful to not try the batter; you might eat it all and will end up with no cake! (To be quite honest, I find the batter way tastier than the cake itself. But what can I do? )

You can also find a list of the exact brands and where to get them in my post: List of Ingredients under the Cooking Basics.

Nanda's Coconut Cake

Ingredients

Batter

2 cups sugar

1 cup butter

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 cups flour

1 tbsp baking powder

3/4 cup coconut milk

Topping

1–2 cans condensed milk

1 package unsweetened organic coconut flakes

Directions

Preheat oven to 355°F. Grease a 13 x 9 baking pan with butter and dust with a bit of flour, then place in the refrigerator. In a stand mixer, mix the sugar, butter, and eggs until well incorporated. Add flour and milk slowly, allowing to mix well. Add baking powder and then slowly add coconut milk. Pour batter into the chilled pan and bake for about 35 minutes. Insert a toothpick in the center of the cake; if it comes out clean, it is cooked thoroughly.

Topping Use a fork to poke holes all over the cake while still warm. Spread condensed milk (use 1½ to 2 cans for an extra-moist cake) all over the cake with a spoon. Top the cake with coconut flakes. You can also add coconut milk on the top of the coconut flakes.

Note: I don't recommend removing the cake from the pan. But if you want to, grease the baking sheet with butter and cover it with parchment paper. Be careful while removing from the pan since this is a very soft cake and might break. Do not spread condensed milk before placing it on a sheet cake pad.

You can also find a list of the exact brands and where to get them in my post: List of Ingredients under the Cooking Basics.

Bom Apetite!