Laura Strasswimmer can be having a quiet night in, watching TV with her husband, when the need hits. 

“I’m always baking,” she confessed. “My husband is just, like, ‘You were just sitting on the couch and now you’re in the kitchen. Why are you making cookies?’”

So when she saw SUNY Adirondack’s Seasoned had a culinary assistant job posted a few years ago, she happily applied and took the job. Today, she is an adjunct professor who teaches Introduction to Baking and Advanced Baking.

“That’s what I love to do,” she said. “I’m very knowledgeable about baking.”

Some of that knowledge came from baking at home and some from when she was a student in SUNY Adirondack’s Culinary program. She graduated with a double major in Culinary and Creative Writing. 

The intro class she teaches starts with the very basics of baking: ingredients and why to use them, and how to measure. Then, she leads the students into baking bread, which once the process is perfected, turns into making rolls for Seasoned. The students then learn how to make basic pies and cookies.

The Advanced Baking course builds off what was learned in the earlier class. “It’s pretty open, too, so if any of the students want to learn something specific, I can work it into the curriculum,” she said.

As much as Strasswimmer loves baking, she also loves teaching. 

“The students are all so great, so driven and interested in learning,” she said. “They’re so excited to be there, which makes my job easier. And, if anyone is ever having a bad day, we can bake some cookies and they’ll feel better.”