A friend of a friend posted this link on FB the other day. Just had to share. Bigup all bakers! Reminds me of my days baking for Panera Bread. Not the best experience, but I learned a lot still. Watch for the part in this vid where the baker man squeezes his chocolate croissant and the chocolate comes oozing out. If a baker doesn't wrap the pastry tight enough, the chocolate can ooze out even without squeezing it :\ A definite no-no.
One of the perks of being a volunteer at The Stop is the opportunity to participate in free cooking classes. Part of the Healthy Cooking Workshop Series, today's class we learned aout low sugar baking. Instead of using refined white sugar in baking, why not consider healthier alternatives, such as agave, applesauce, puréed fruits or maple syrup?
Here's what was on the menu: Applesauce Oat Bran Muffins, Fruit & Nut Bars and Cherry Crisp. Freshly picked from Hillcrest Park Community Garden, the cherries were of a variety I had never tried before — they were tart, semi-sour and yellow-ish pink in colour. Don't mistake them for grapes! In the video above, I've captured the ladies putting our Cherry Crisp together, just prior to throwing 'em in the oven. By the way, that rolled oat topping tasted just as fantabulous raw as it did in its crispy, cooked state. Much love to the ladies who coordinated the highly anticipated, community cooking workshop. I j'adored it.
Let's Colour Project's documentary of India explores the "deep relationship the people of India have with colour." Filmed in a country where no one is afraid of colour, this docu captures the same vibrant vibe I felt when I was in India. By comparison, us Westerners are such wusses when it comes to colour. Indian men wouldn't think twice about rockin' hot pink golf shirts or bright orange pants. A Canadian man, on the other hand, would likely sweat and fret over the decision to wear a t-shirt with even a hint of pink in it. No doubt, the most colourful city we visited in India had to be Varanasi. [pics/vids will be posted soontime...]
"Between March 1942 and November 1946, more than 200 Ministry of Food short ‘Food Flash’ films were shown in British cinemas, each one with an estimated audience of 20 million." —Ministry of Food blog
This one particular Food Flash, 'Save on Bread, Eat Potatoes Instead' [above] intrigued me the most of all the Food Flashes I viewed at the Ministry of Food exhibit in London's Imperial War Museum. Call me spoiled, but I can't even imagine having to cut down on my bread intake, even for a day. To reduce my intake of roti, ciabattas, whole wheat toast and pandesal is to live in a temporary state of mourning... even though potatoes are kool and all, I guess.
London's current Ministry of Food exhibit reveals how the British adapted to a lifestyle of food shortages and food rationing during WWII. Through paintings, artwork, film, posters, taped recordings and all forms of paraphernalia, the exhibit is a window into history, allowing its visitors to peek right in. As such, I thoroughly enjoyed this exhibit, almost as much as I enjoyed Warhol Live back in '08 at the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. Food plays such an all-encompassing role in everyday life, and the Ministry of Food exhibit re-injected that insight into me. I left the museum that day in a dumbfounded state of fascination, pondering the present-day issues of international food security.
