Salty French macarons, frosting covered cakes, ooey-gooey caramels and rich, decadent chocolates. If your mouth is watering, Northwood’s new culinary course, Baking and Pastry, may be just the right ingredient for your fall schedule.
Open to all students, Baking and Pastry will instruct students on all manners of delectable delights, from sweet fruit tarts to savory meat pies. With a mixture of both group and individual projects, the course differs from traditional culinary classes because the edible confections could take several classes to complete.
“This class is going to be a bit more detail oriented,” culinary teacher Maggie Mullen said. “When we make cakes, you’re not gonna eat cake that day. You’ll make the cake, probably the frosting and the following day could be just decorating.”
The course structure reinforces patience and planning, key ingredients to any successful baking venture. Pastry is more temperamental than other forms of cooking, often requiring precise measurements, timing and temperatures. But like any other culinary class, it is also a way to bring something new to the table at home.
“My family knows how to bake really well, and I wanted to show them new goods they’ve never tried before,” junior Sahar Azamy said. “I also want to improve my baking skills, make new friends and learn how to work with other people.”
Originally introduced by a previous culinary teacher, the class was discontinued during the pandemic due to practical concerns with hybrid scheduling. In the future, Mullen hopes to harness the rising interest in baking to create multiple baking sections within the culinary program.
Alongside Intro to Culinary, Baking and Pastry will serve as a pathway to Advanced Culinary. A more detailed course outline, including expectations and potential recipes, will be provided later in the school year. Students will still learn key fundamentals like safety, sanitation and basic knife skills.
“If there’s a place for people who are more savory oriented and people who are more baking oriented to go to,” Mullen said, “I feel like more people will end up happy.”
