Fun, Friends, Food & Further: June 2008

My Very First Baking Class

This is my favorite--pomegranate cheesecake... truly exquisite!

A month ago, I had the opportunity to attend my first ever baking class organized by the Malaysian Women's Weekly. There were 30 participants from all walks of life who came to the class with various expectations, but I went to the class with much excitement since it's my very first experience baking with other experts. So, I thought it was a baking demonstration by the award-winning pastry chef--Chef Raimi Ahamad, and maybe if I was lucky enough, I could sample some of his masterpieces.

The baking gurus--Chef Raimi and his team of pastry chefs

To my very own surprise, there were much more in store for me than I ever expected. We had to do EVERYTHING from scratch using the most basic baking tool--a whisk!

We were teamed up with two other participants to bake three different types of cakes--Chocolate Mud Cake, Pomegranate Cheesecake and Dried Mixed Fruit Fragipane. So, 10 teams of 3 members baked 3 cakes, so you do the math!

Here are the other baking-enthusiasts!

It was a very fun experience because I had the BEST teammates ever--Kak Zurina and Maslina. Kak Zurina is a well-respected physician while Maslina is a very sweet and nice homemaker. So, we formed Team 1 which I secretly called it the "Dream Team".

My Dream Team members--Kak Zurina (left) and Maslina (right)

We learned various techniques of baking and the type of ingredients and consistency of the batter would result in different types of cake. My arm was sore for the entire weekend due to the constant beating of eggs. Imagine we had to beat 10 egg whites into meringue using a whisk. But the end results are impeccable! Our chocolate mud cake turned out to be the best as the cake didn't overflow or dent. Thanks to the help and guidance from the assistant chefs. And then we dressed the mud cake with a rich layer of chocolate ganache and fresh fruit.

I am not kidding, beating eggs is hard work! Did you notice my arm is buffer now?

Since each team baked 3 cakes and there were three of us, we took back 1/3 of each cake to share with our family and loved ones. Personally, my favorite is the cheesecake but dried fruit fragipane has now become Adrian's most favorite cake because he's always a fruit cake mania. And I've made it at home once since the baking class as per requested by him.

I would like to thank the organizer, The Malaysian Women's Weekly, the sponsor, Electrolux and all the pastry chefs @ KL Crowne Plaza for the wonderful afternoon and memorable baking experience.