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Is there any better smell to come home to than that of a fresh-baked strudel? Or perhaps the slow waft of a warm batch of scones in the morning? I think you’d be hard-pushed to find one, but perhaps I’m just overly-grateful that I no longer have to endure the stomach-churning ritual of walking past ‘Fantoosh Fish’ hangover-ridden on the way to the Union all throughout Freshers’ Week (on the plus side I’ve heard they do a great sea bass). After all the shenanigans that went on during that notorious week, most of which were extremely unladylike, I decided that October would finally be the month I embraced my inner-woman. And what better way to do so than to adhere to every female stereotype in the book and get myself back in the kitchen?

As a girl whose smoke alarm goes off more regularly than my wake-up alarm, some may laugh in my face at this prospect, but it may come as a surprise to know that I actually got the hang of this baking lark. I can only assume that this miraculous ability stems from having just as much enthusiasm for eating cake as baking it. After all, why put effort into making a great salad when you know it’s only there to make the plate look pretty? Plus, it would be selfish not to give in to the baking bug, especially since I have one flatmate in particular with a love for licking the bowl before I’ve even put it in the oven.

With that in mind, I present to you my Top 5 reasons why every woman (or man, let’s not discriminate here) should regularly get their spatula out for the lads.

1. Everyone’s doing it.

Peer pressure is a tried-and-tested formula for getting people to do things they really don’t want to do, and you only have to flip over onto BBC 2 to realise that you’re in a non-baking minority. When I’ve not been in the kitchen myself I’ve spent most of my time watching other people be in the kitchen, and The Great British Bake Off was a prime example of baking diversity at its finest. Uni students, rugby players, single mums, a man who looked a lot like my Grandad. They had it all.

2. Do it for the dolla.

It seems that every time I walk along University Gardens, there’s a new group of baking enthusiasts on the street corner whoring out their flapjacks for cash.I can only assume that these people have finally found their fortune in cookies; why else would they keep coming back? It’s become apparent that baking = money, and we all know that money = bitches. Win-win.

3. People will like you more.

Baking is a great way to show a loved one that you care, while spending hardly any money. It will make your friends think that you’ve gone to loads of effort when really you just emptied a Betty Crocker cake mix into a bowl and added water. I once baked a pair of tits for a friend’s birthday and we’ve been inseparable ever since.

4. It makes a great air-freshner.

Let’s face it: we’re students, and hygeine isn’t exactly our forte. To be quite frank, most of us are probably worthy of a visit from Kim & Aggie. But I’m not one to talk, as due to an abundance of overflowing bin-bags and mouldy supernoodles, our flat has recently acquired a new member in Geoffrey the mouse. I guarantee that baking a really good cake will make every corner of your flat small amazing, masking every odour like no Glade Sense n’ Spray can.

5. It makes you look fit.

This one’s pretty self-explanatory. Almost every celebrity baker in existance serves as proof that ‘Baking Makes You Beautiful’ (the next One Direction hit?) Mary Berry, the Mother Theresa of kitchens everywhere, is the sheer definition of a GILF. And to tell you the truth, if baking every day will make me look like Nigella then I’m in!

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