Pamela Kramer | GCBS Baker Bio
Pamela Kramer, 34 (she/her)
Hometown: Stayner, ON
Occupation: Cooperative Education Teacher
Instagram: @bloom.and.batter
Pamela is a high school co-op teacher who helps her students try out potential careers by getting them placements in actual workplaces. She is known at school as the teacher who bakes, and her students and fellow faculty rave over her treats.
Pamela is very close with her parents, who moved to Canada from Uruguay. She and her dad enjoy learning new things together, recently learning to cure meats for the ultimate charcuterie spread.
Pamela is also an avid crafter, making seasonal wreaths and sewing bandanas for her dog, Kimchi, who she brings to work as a therapy dog for the students. She and her partner, Tim, first connected over the love of their pups, but Kimchi and Tim's dog Kubo are still working through some relationship kinks.
When did you start baking? I became a baker as an adult. As a kid, no matter how hard I tried, I never found a "thing" I was good at. Everything changed when I finished graduate school and decided to give baking a try. After all those years, I finally had my lightbulb moment the first time I made and decorated a cake. I finally found my "thing"!
What's your signature bake? The people I bake for the most often are my colleagues. I teach in a rural farming community, so my colleagues often bring me beautiful things from their gardens and ask me to turn them into something delicious. Most recently, I had a few colleagues gift me some fresh rhubarb from their gardens, which I turned into a few deliciously vibrant rhubarb pies.
What is your fondest memory in the kitchen? Watching my parents make birthday cakes for us and for each other every year. My family is from Uruguay and making Torta Chaja is an absolute must for every birthday. The only thing that is up for debate is which fruit the birthday person wants to enjoy in their cake. Peach, strawberry, and pineapple are the only three contenders.
Why do you think you can be Canada's Best Amateur Baker? While I'm certainly not a master at any one particular thing, I can fare pretty well in most baking categories because of my broad knowledge and interest in learning about all things baking. Having taught high school through a pandemic has also helped me learn to adapt quickly when things go wrong, a skill I hope will transfer to the tent!
Watch The Great Canadian Baking Show on CBC Gem.
