You are 100% correct. I completely forgot about that.
Unfortunately it isn’t a class. It is an after-school baking club. They asked me to take it over because I am always cooking/baking and I usually leave all of the baked goods in the faculty room. I do it because I’m bored and am always trying to improve my skills but I don’t have a particularly sweet tooth. Things are always well-received though.
They got rid of the home ec, wood shop, auto shop, etc. classes 20+ years ago. when there was a big (stupid) push for every student to go to college. A couple of years ago they started a kind of combo shop class. A history teacher does it. I was like “hey! If a history teacher can teach shop then a science teacher should be able to teach cooking.” I asked him about it and he said he had to go through classes and get some special certification for it. So I am stuck doing DNA and genetics during the day and will do the baking club after school.
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Lulu took a special class that was divided into 4 groups. They each picked a country, researched it, and put together a menu of typical dishes, and then shopped and cooked it as their final exam. But this sounds more like a fun thing than that (but it did teach them about their countries, habits, budgeting - both $ and time, so I think it was well worth it).
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You could come up with a short list of easy bakes, both sweet and savory, and send a google survey for them to rank what would be fun, as well as add their own ideas, then plan from there.
I’d focus on things that don’t require much specialty equipment or specialty ingredients, so that they can be easily replicated by them at home if they want.
A few things I’ve baked with kids and teens, or have on my “easy” list:
Sweet:
— Wacky / amazon / depression cake (or cupcakes) with chocolate ganache – here is one
— Hot milk sponge cake (a recent favorite, and super easy) – as a cake, as cupcakes, or as a swiss roll
— Orange or lemon pound cake or olive oil cake
— Variations on brownies, blondies, other bars – lots of things from Yossi Arefi’s’s books are very easy and crowd-pleasing (see BCOTM here) and Jessie Sheehan’s books are based on the same idea (eg here)
— Upside down cakes with various fruits
— Easy tarts with assorted fillings and press-in flour or cookie crumb crusts – chocolate, lemon, etc
Savory:
— Easy high-yeast, no-knead loaves from Alexandra’s kitchen (ditto focaccia) – lots of variations on the site
— Cheesy quick breads from Dorie or Chetna Makan or the BCOTM Gateaux – several mentioned here
— Gougeres and Pao de Queijo
— Quiches or mini quiches (can use ready storebought crusts or an easy press-in crust)
— Quick biscuits (these cold milk and melted butter ones are lovely and fast)
— Pan pizza with a quick crust
There are several things that cross over between sweet and savory – choux pastry (gougeres vs profiteroles), bread and egg bakes (french toast casserole, savory bread pudding, regular bread pudding), quick breads (cheese bread, banana bread, pumpkin loaf), and so on – could be fun to divide the group and make a sweet and savory version at the same time, or do one in one week and one the following week.
Might help to assess what baking equipment will be needed across the items you are thinking about, and then streamline the choices to reuse the same equipment instead of needing to buy lots of different pans.
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That sounds very cool. I would LOVE to do something like that if it was an actual class.
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Yeah we will have to make do with what I and the students can bring from home because the school sure as hell isn’t going to pay for baking equipment. I will see what (if anything) the life skills classroom has when I get back to work. I think the stipend is just $500 so I’m not going to go nuts buying supplies for it.
I do plan to do a survey with the students to see what they are interested in learning about or making. Like I said up top as far as I can tell it has mostly just been a cupcake decorating contest thing in the past but the assistant principal said I could make it anything I want. I could probably turn it into a “cooking and baking club”.
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i really like the suggestions that hit on basic skills. i once did a demo for a local community college. my approach was to bring in: pancake mix, brownie mix, bouillon cubes, gravy mix and Italian dressing. i proceeded to sweep them into the conspicuous garbage can next to my counter as i launched into my spiel about how all these things are unnecessary (and a waste of money) when you know how to do it yourself.
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For now it is the “baking club” but I will see if there is interest in learning about cooking too.
What about a Ham Pasta Bake??
The ham was pre-cooked, so they could cut that up into small pieces. The cheese can be shredded on a box grater or use pre-shredded cheese. The pasta would need to be boiled for a little bit prior baking. Open a jar of Alfredo Sauce, mixed it in, throw it all into a baking dish and into the oven.
