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Cookies and More

Yocheved Perlman-Magier loves to bake with her bubbie.

DOVID NISSAN ROETTER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

Shelly and Yocheved

Baking with one’s bubbie is a fun and memorable activity, and something that Yocheved Perlman-Magier “wouldn’t change for the world. It’s priceless.”

Yocheved, of “Cookies and More by Shelly and Yocheved,” loves blending her passion for baking with spending weekly quality time together with her bubbie and zaydie. Together, they bake everything from challah to cookies, cornbread, chocolate cinnamon babka, donut holes, all the way to custom cakes for every occasion.

However, baking wasn’t always the plan for Yocheved. When she was in 12th grade, she planned to open a restaurant. Other plans were to do nutrition or physical therapy. Plans changed in 2015 when her bubbie, Shelly Perlman, asked her if she would like to help her bake.

After a while, Yocheved attended Schoolcraft College for a Baking and Pastry Arts certificate. Going to a non-kosher baking program was “absolutely weird” for her, as she was unable to taste anything she was working on nor any finished products — something she left for her partner to do.

Her final was to create a wedding cake, to which she said, “I’m going the nerd route hardcore”, as she made a gorgeously detailed Harry Potter-themed wedding cake; to this day it’s one of her favorite creations. Unfortunately, for kashrut reasons, she was unable to have a slice.

While in school, baking with her bubbie slowly grew. They began with cookies and stuff for the holidays. In the summer of 2017, they began to do things for Shabbat. When Yocheved graduated from her program in 2018, they began to make custom cakes, which quickly became their bread and butter. Thanks to Facebook and Instagram, as well as word of mouth, they got many orders.

Their original goal was to make a bakery in the community; however, Yocheved is unsure if they would continue to do everything they currently offer, or simply focus on cakes. In the meantime, they cook out of each other’s homes, varying each week with a menu posted

on their social media accounts.

When asked what her favorite thing to bake is, Yocheved replied, “I have to pick just one?” and said that their peanut butter and chocolate cookies “are so much fun to make because they look so beautiful when they come out.” She likes decorating custom cakes because she’s about to try new techniques, and she loves the feel of the dough when braiding challah.

Although turning a hobby into a business can be daunting, she said it’s fun for her because she gets to spread the delicious results of her bubbie’s recipes within the neighborhood, as well as create new delicacies and flavors together. Their menu has received both in-town and outof-town orders. “Cookies and More” originally was named by Yocheved’s bubbie back when she was selling cookies to her friends and also selling at a local farmer’s market. Once Yocheved joined in they added their names to the title.

When Yocheved was getting married earlier this summer, she wanted to create and bake her own wedding cake. When she learned that was not possible because of kashrut reasons with the caterer, she made one for her Sheva Brachot (week of celebration) instead.

Newly married, she balances her work and her baking time and leaves her evenings to spend with her husband. When needed, her husband will join in the fun.

Cookies and More by Shelly and Yocheved has experience baking gluten-free and vegan products; and do their best to cater to the needs of their clients. Their menu rotates weekly, with some items like the challahs and certain cookies being a staple. They then pick the items they are in the mood to bake that week and add it to the menu.

Yocheved’s bubbie and zaydie find it all to be fun, and they benefit by spending time with their granddaughter while helping her passion grow into a business.

Yocheved PerlmanMagier

You can view their weekly menu, usually posted on Mondays, and contact Yocheved to place orders at facebook.com/cookiesandmore2016 or via Instagram at @shellyandyochevedcookiesam. AUGUST 12 • 2021 | 11