[title subtitle=”WORDS Liesel Schmidt
IMAGES courtesy Joyful Baking Co.”][/title]
With the soft, chewy texture of their shells offset by the luscious flavor of their fillings, it’s little wonder that macarons are so revered in the world of pastry. Cheery color pallets aside, these delicate little confections are deceptively tricky and can be quite problematic…Too little air in the meringue mixture for the shells, and you may end up with a flat cookie. Not enough time drying out, and the signature foot may not form in the oven. Even amongst seasoned pastry chefs, the macaron is something that must often be mastered through years of training; so, when Kaytlin Robinson wandered into her kitchen one day in 2016 and began making them on a whim, she certainly wasn’t expecting to meet with success.
A self-proclaimed wreck in the kitchen—“I can’t even make a good chocolate chip cookie!”—Kaytlin usually left such tasks to her husband, a well-known local chef. But after receiving the devastating news that their shared dream of having children was going to be challenging—if not impossible—the thirty-something felt the need to do something that would take her mind off of her grief and help her find joy. And the answer to that was found in the last place she would have ever imagined—her very own kitchen.
“I was craving a French macaron and just decided to play around in the kitchen,” Kaytlin says. “I had no expectation that they would even turn out, but to my surprise, when I took my first batch out of the oven, they had actually worked! Naturally, I did what any millennial does and made a quick post on Instagram and tagged it #IActuallyBakedSomething and went to bed—after eating a couple of them, of course! I woke up the next day to a flood of messages from friends and family, placing orders.”
Those first orders were just the beginning, and what came after that was exactly what Kaytlin had been craving: joy. Begun almost as a hobby, the macarons soon became a full-fledged business, with orders for thousands of macarons per week and a demand that at times can be difficult to keep up with. And that joy she’d found? It inspired the name for her newly established business, a venture successful enough to allow her to give back. “I was having a hard time finding JOY in the journey but making these macarons for others and being able to donate a portion of our proceeds back to kids in need really started to bring me true joy and a purpose,” Kaytlin recalls. “So, I decided to name the business Joyful Baking Company, because that’s exactly how it made me feel!”
Joy. That’s exactly how her product looks, with their springy, pastel pops of color. Add to that the delicious fillings that she pairs with her perfectly-baked macaron shells, and you know without a doubt that this—THIS—is what joy tastes like. “A lot of people who don’t usually like macarons tell me that they love ours,” Kaytlin says with just the right amount of pride. “I’ve studied the art of making them because I’m OCD and a perfectionist, so the texture of our macarons is a big part of what makes first-time customers turn into repeat customers. They aren’t too hard with the initial first bite, and then by the time your teeth have sunk all the way into the cookie, it starts to dissolve. We use a very special technique to achieve the ultimate Joyful macaron experience, and pairing that perfect texture with our over-the-top, rich flavors are what turn our customers into macaron addicts.” Among the top sellers are JOY, the signature flavor that Kaytlin bills as “blueberry cheesecake in the form of a macaron;” Birthday Cake; and Strawberry Cream, though Kaytlin’s personal favorite is JOY.
Busy though she might be with baking, Kaytlin’s aren’t the only hands at work creating the macarons. Over the past three years, she has taken the business to new heights and even gone mobile, purchasing a food truck and painting it pink, calling it the “Joyride” and creating a team of very special people to help her meet demand. “The whole Joyful team is my family: Momma Joyful, my mom, quit her job in 2017 and came on full time and is the lead filling maker. My nana, Nana Joyful, came out of retirement and sifts hundreds of pounds of almond flour and powdered sugar for us each week. My grandfather, Papaw Joyful, also came out of retirement and is our lead dishwasher in the Joyful kitchen. Daddy Joyful, my dad, still has a ‘real job,’ as we call it, but he always helps at big events and is our lead cashier.”
Not to be left out of the gathering of joyful souls is one very important person who has been by her side through the entire journey and has been an incredible source of support and love, her husband, Ben, who was recently able to leave his job and join the team full-time. For Kaytlin, reaching such a place has been a point of pride, a source of hope, and, of course, a wellspring of joy. Not to mention a reminder that God is holding her future in His hands. “I love how God has used me to build this company from the ground up,” she says. “It started with just me in my kitchen, depressed and needing some joy in my life, praying that God would take some of the pain away. And now, three years later, my husband has been able to quit his job and come on with me full time, and now we get to do something with love together, all because we listened to God and His plan for our lives. It’s sometimes scary to listen to that voice, but when you do and realize that it is all a part of His perfect plan…” she trails off. “It makes me so proud and thankful to just be chosen for this journey.”
As for the future, Kaytlin would love to see more Joyrides in various areas of the country, with Seaside, Florida, and Disney Springs among them. More immediate, however, she dreams of taking the truck all over the state. “I’d love to not limit myself just to one town,” she says.
Listening to Kaytlin, it’s clear that she’s found her joy, rediscovering a happiness in herself and her life that she might once have thought lost forever. “Ben and I are still waiting and praying for our bundle of joy, but we know that God is faithful and has a plan for our life. When the time is right, He will bless us with our baby”. Until then, she takes great in giving her customers a taste of joy, one bite at a time.
Follow Joyful Baking Co. at joyfulbakingco.com.
Find them on Facebook (@joyfulmacrons) and Instagram (joyfulbakingco).
