This is my favorite time of the year, and it is not just because school is out and the days are long and lazy. Soon it will be the start of my Baking Program for kids. It is really a camp for those who are serious enough to be knee high in dough for a week. I have been teaching this program for about 16 years now.
I love meeting the new group of kids that come every week eager to learn to bake incredible baked goods like Danish pastry, yeast breads, pies, puff pastry and so much more. These kids are amazing and are VERY serious about the kitchen. They remind me of ME as a kid. I was the kid pouring over cookbooks as my friends were outside playing and riding their bikes. I did all of those activities too, but I baked and baked, experimenting with all sorts of recipes until my mother would yell at me to get out of the kitchen– as long as I cleaned up first.
The kitchen is a wonderful place to talk to kids and find out what they are really thinking. Cooking and baking are also a great way to explore measuring and food science which I teach on the college level during the year. There is real incidental learning going on and these kids are like sponges absorbing lots of great information that will serve them well in life. Even if they never grow up to become chefs, It is important to know how to prepare the food that we eat!
Happy Baking!
Chef Gail