Kareem Queeman distinctly remembers the first time he baked a cake. The Maryland bakery owner and James Beard Award semifinalist was eight years old, living in Harlem's historic Sugar Hill district. His close-knit extended family would gather monthly to check in, lend financial and other support when needed, and, most importantly, to eat.
"The food was on point," Queeman recalls, taking care to note his family's Southern roots. Queeman, however, was mostly interested in the dessert table, heaped with a mix of homemade and store-bought delights, from coconut pineapple cake and pound cake to his aunt's famous sweet potato pie. One time, Queeman's favorite cake at the time — vanilla boxed cake with chocolate frosting — was noticeably absent.
