By J1 Reporter Chloe Quinn

Junior Annie Stessman has impressed Marian once again with her famous “Stessman baked goods.” Each class has a bake sale on a Friday during the month of Walk-A-Thon where students bring in desserts, crafts and snacks for sale to donate for tuition assistance. The most notable baker and contributor to the junior bake sale was Stessman. 

Over the course of seven days, Stessman baked pumpkin bars, brownies, scotcheroos, monster cookies, cake pops, gluten free brownies- and gluten free pumpkin muffins that all displayed Taylor Swift stickers on the packaging. In order to spread out the workload, she made one or two items a day. Her brownies were sold out first, yet her personal favorite was the cake pops. The cookies and pumpkin bars are family recipes, as well. Her parents helped her to get all the ingredients, but most things she already had “in the house from our constant baking.”

It is important to Stessman to participate because “the competition is the reason I bake.” She wants her class to win, and this is her part in helping achieve that goal. She and her older sister, Maggie ’23, are both competitive, especially regarding school spirit. Maggie was also a baking guru for her class. Stessman said, “Maggie loves to make cutout cookies and homemade Crumbl recipes. I like to make cupcakes, cake pops, and brownies.” Regardless of the contest, the sisters are both invested in fundraising to support their class and Marian.

Stessman said, “the last two years, Maggie and I had to share the kitchen because we would take turns using the oven and mixer. This year, I could work full time and never have to stop!” However, because of the rule change that eliminated the placings between classes for the final totals, Stessman does not plan on making as many baked items next year. She finds the process of making all of her baked goods time consuming and said it’s “not as fun if there’s not a sense of extreme pressure and tension” to win.

Stessman has been baking her entire life and credits her mom for her love to do so. “My mom truly got us into baking because she has always had us help in the kitchen, and she instilled that as our way of thanking people or giving them gifts.”

Keep an eye out for Stessman’s famous baked goods during next year’s Walk-A-Thon bake sales.