Posted by womwom on 2007-05-13 22:39:03
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Starting out at a bakery does sound like a good way of getting around having to go to a cooking school - I love to bake too but its just a hobby and will probably stay that way. Best of luck to you - and definitely post some recipes some time.
Posted by craftfetish on 2007-05-14 11:09:12
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Since you specifically said vegan baking, traditional culinary education may be less critical for you. And there may actually be a limit to how much you can learn from a bakery job.
I'm in no way a professional baker - just yoru average home cook, so take my advice with a grain of salt.
But it seems to me like traditional baking techniques have a lot to do with understanding and taking advantage of the properties of butter and eggs.
The chemistry of vegan baking is very different. If there is a vegetarian restaurant with a good dessert menu in your area - that may be a better place to learn.
If you wanted to go to cooking school down the road, a pro may be able to speak to some of the different culinary schools curriculums and which ones would work well for your goals.
Posted by anthrogirl on 2006-10-27 12:38:01
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Glad to hear that! I've been busy the past few days, so I was pleasantly surprised to see al of the responses. while my life is insane right now, I'm planning on decorating some gloves over the next few months (picot crochet stitch applied to inexpensive but warm gloves) for the homeless.
I always hear about knit and crochet also- maybe someone needs to start a jewelry crafting drive? Or storybooks for kids (imagine- handmade pop-up books!)? Or toymaking, since crocheted and knitted toys seem to be popular (do we have any woodworkers out there)?
Here in NYC we have groups like Housing Works that help people set up homes for themselves while they are struggling with various diseases. If a person has a new apartment (I'm brainstorming here- there are people who have just gotten out of prison, or who are battered and starting over, or widows, etc.), simple things like potholders, dishcloths and other items would be a good way of helping out. Even a 'GetCrafty easy to make cookbook' with recipes donated by all of us from around the country and the world would be good- and copies could even be sold on ETSY, with the money going to any group that helps people, especially women and children. That would be a great way of putting feminism in action and reflect the DIY spirit of GetCrafty.
Lately I've been thinking about how each generation has its definitive craft book- the book that shows what really matters. "Our Bodies, Ourselves" could even be seen that way- it showed women how to take care of themselves. Julia Child and the Rombauers did that- they showed America how to eat, and how to dress a table, and how to entertain simply but beautifully. Back in the day there was Fannie Farmer and her Boston Cooking School cookbook, and even earlier we had Edith Wharton (The Decoration of Houses) and Mrs. Beeton (who had recipes for macaroni in the early 1800s). We have had Martha Stewart for a while, but she tends to take the simple and make it fussy and sometimes pretentious. Perhaps we need to go back a bit and do a virtual version of what our grandmothers did- they made cookbooks of recipes donated by members of local women's groups. Perhaps some of us could work on a craft version- it could include recipes and easy and inexpensive crafts? Not too trendy, maybe- some of the classic stuff that modern women ought to know so they can take better care of themselves and their families, while taking pride in their handiwork and moving away from the consumerist mentality that makes people feel small and poor when they aren't buying things they don't want or need.
Wow. That was a lot. All I mean is- how about keeping up the postings of projects while pushing that can-do spirit that is often associated with women and crafts? I'm willing to donate some time to work on such a project, and I have recipes and some easy crafts.
