Any Home Bakers Here?

[SnapdragonQ]

Hello fellow bakers. Once again it's been about a week since I've been ob this thread. Lots to read, lol. My new baking venture I plan on doing this week is a strawberry cheese cake with an almond crust.

CHEESECAKE!!!

 

[Blooie]

@BigBlueHen53 I think it’s wonderful that you’re going to help someone learn to cook. It’s such an essential skill, and it‘s a great way to visit and enjoy the company of someone else in the comfort of your kitchen! What is there about teaching someone to cook that just feels so satisfying?

Grandson Evan prepares every meal for him and Tammy now…he cooks and she does after-dinner cleanup because she’s always hated cooking. He even makes his own Sushi. He used to call me and say, “Can you teach me to make _______?” I’d go pick him up and we’d shop for what he needed if I didn’t have it, and spend the day making whatever it was. It’s not so much teaching the recipes…it’s teaching the techniques that they can then apply or modify based on what they’re doing. And it’s always fun just spending time with the grandkids (or anyone else for that matter) and seeing their kitchen confidence blossom!

I’ll be glad when granddaughter Katie is done with Speech and Debate competitions. State is this coming weekend and then she’s done. I miss our cooking sessions…..we both love them. We haven’t done any cooking together since we moved into our new house, and I have the perfect kitchen for cooking lessons now! Once she’s all done with Speech, then she can come over on Saturdays and spend the night with us. That girl loves to cook and loves learning. By 12 both grandkids knew what mise en place was, were perfectly comfortable using a scale for ingredients, and could use every cooking appliance I have, from the air fryer to the InstaPot, food processors and blenders to stovetop and oven. Katie’s 16 now and although she does make dinners for her family from time-to-time, it’s hard with the kitchen layout in her house and Kendra sometimes ends up dangerously underfoot. The other thing that makes it so challenging to teach her is her Autism. Granted, she’s high on the spectrum but she still has to do everything in precise order. Evan is kind of a sloppy cook - Katie puts everything away as she finishes with it and cleans up as she goes. That’s fine with me!!

 

[Sally PB]

Isn't it a wonderful feeling to teach someone you love about something you love to do? Passing on what you know.

These posts warm my heart.

 

[SnapdragonQ]

Oh my gosh, I can attest to kitchen designs making things harder or easier!
Good luck to Katie this weekend!!

Where I am now is a little easier, but it's an odd kitchen with a long island in the middle. Kind of an ally kitchen on both sides of the island. However the house overall is half again bigger than my last place, and I have lots of cupboards and counterspace, so that helps.
A decent oven helps too. Too bad my awesome French door fridge conked out last year. Had to go back to the typical single door type with the freezer on top and it's harder to dig for ingredients.
Most people probably would not care, but when a family has allergies plus dietary restrictions and all meals have to be home made, the little things can make a big difference.

 

[Marie2020]

The sourdough bread turned out nice today!

View attachment 3016345

That looks like a lovely loaf

 

[BullChick]

@BigBlueHen53 I think it’s wonderful that you’re going to help someone learn to cook. It’s such an essential skill, and it‘s a great way to visit and enjoy the company of someone else in the comfort of your kitchen! What is there about teaching someone to cook that just feels so satisfying?

Grandson Evan prepares every meal for him and Tammy now…he cooks and she does after-dinner cleanup because she’s always hated cooking. He even makes his own Sushi. He used to call me and say, “Can you teach me to make _______?” I’d go pick him up and we’d shop for what he needed if I didn’t have it, and spend the day making whatever it was. It’s not so much teaching the recipes…it’s teaching the techniques that they can then apply or modify based on what they’re doing. And it’s always fun just spending time with the grandkids (or anyone else for that matter) and seeing their kitchen confidence blossom!

I’ll be glad when granddaughter Katie is done with Speech and Debate competitions. State is this coming weekend and then she’s done. I miss our cooking sessions…..we both love them. We haven’t done any cooking together since we moved into our new house, and I have the perfect kitchen for cooking lessons now! Once she’s all done with Speech, then she can come over on Saturdays and spend the night with us. That girl loves to cook and loves learning. By 12 both grandkids knew what mise en place was, were perfectly comfortable using a scale for ingredients, and could use every cooking appliance I have, from the air fryer to the InstaPot, food processors and blenders to stovetop and oven. Katie’s 16 now and although she does make dinners for her family from time-to-time, it’s hard with the kitchen layout in her house and Kendra sometimes ends up dangerously underfoot. The other thing that makes it so challenging to teach her is her Autism. Granted, she’s high on the spectrum but she still has to do everything in precise order. Evan is kind of a sloppy cook - Katie puts everything away as she finishes with it and cleans up as she goes. That’s fine with me!!

I loved teaching a child to cook and bake. I think having chickens makes teaching one step easier. Sourdough was another help. Duckling was making sd pancakes at one. Since eggs were not scarce, I let her crack away (knowing which eggs came from the hens with thinner shells), and sd pancakes don’t require flour, so her baby mixing skills were enough. Her mother can’t boil water. Duckling (6) can make her own eggs over medium.
After pizza, her favorite meal to make is manicotti and garlic knots.

 

[rjohns39]

Isn't it a wonderful feeling to teach someone you love about something you love to do? Passing on what you know.

These posts warm my heart.

I loved teaching my kids, grand kids, Mom's friends and others. I think the most fun I had was teaching a German Chef how to cook Italian and Chinese. The restaurant was closed on Wednesday at the hotel I was staying at and I got to cook for the staff on those days and work with the Chef on technique for those meals. During the week he would teach me how to cook the meals he made.

 

[BigBlueHen53]

So glad to hear all y'all's memories and experiences of sharing cooking & baking techniques to those you love! Sadly, my plans of teaching a new friend to prepare lasagne did not "pan out." (Sorry, could not resist!) Apparently she had visitors instead. Oh well, hopefully we will have another opportunity.

 

[Sequel]

I’ve been enjoying the posts about teaching people to cook/bake too! My granddaughter is 12 and I’ve been baking with her for years now. This is petty of me I know but I get so frustrated because she refuses to read the recipe before throwing ingredients in bowls! She doesn’t read well so she avoids it if possible. I feel like I’m constantly wanting to criticize so lately I’ve just decided to shut up and let her do things her way. After all I’m the grandma, I’m not totally responsible for turning out a competent adult, just one who got loved on and spoiled a little I suppose.

 

[BullChick]

I’ve been enjoying the posts about teaching people to cook/bake too! My granddaughter is 12 and I’ve been baking with her for years now. This is petty of me I know but I get so frustrated because she refuses to read the recipe before throwing ingredients in bowls! She doesn’t read well so she avoids it if possible. I feel like I’m constantly wanting to criticize so lately I’ve just decided to shut up and let her do things her way. After all I’m the grandma, I’m not totally responsible for turning out a competent adult, just one who got loved on and spoiled a little I suppose.