The holiday season separates a culinary all-stars from the amateur, and one woman who will help

you raise your cooking game is Chef Valerie Lomas.

When I was starting out my career, I was kind of warned by other women, don't bring baked

goods into the office because it's very important for you to be seen and respected, like outside

of like, you know, these traditional gender roles of like being the black woman that's bringing

cookies for everyone every week.

Valerie Lomas on holiday cooking and her new book Life is What You Bake It, coming up on a word

with me, Jason Johnson. Stay with us.

Welcome to a word, a podcast about race impolitics and everything else. I'm your host, Jason Johnson.

It's the holiday season, a time for all the amateur cooks in your family and friend circles to

show off. Maybe you are the person who clocks out of your nine to five at a bank or a hospital

or a law firm to throw down the kitchen. Valerie Lomas was that person years ago, practicing law

in New York City, until she parlied her love of food and skill in social media into reality show

Stardom as a chef. Lomas won the third season of the Great American Baking Show, and she has just

released her debut cookbook Life is What You Bake It, and she joins us now.

Hi Jason, thanks so much for having me.

I am really excited because I'm not like a great cook.

So I want to start with this. I imagine it's kind of hard to choose.

What's your favorite recipe from this book that just debuted?

So I would say my favorite dessert from the book is one of those very special family heirloom

kind of recipes. It's called My Granny Willie Maze Million Dollar Cake, and it's a three-layer cake.

It has this very like luscious pineapple filling and it's got a cream cheese frosting on the outside

...