Breads

I always thought making bread was a daunting task till I attended Christina Fernandes' class at Le15 Patisserie at Lower Parel.This was a special class that macaron queen Pooja Dhingra organised for us at the request of Kalyan Karmakar who turned out to be the only male member in our class.Not some time long ago,the place had hosted a special baking class for men with Pooja as the teacher.I must say she has an immaculate kitchen... and above that a room that is ideal for a cooking class.We were nine of us with enough room for this hands on course.

I have always believed people in Bandra to be lucky coz they get some of the finest breads in town.The purpose of this class was to be able to replicate that without any added preservatives or additives.Christina Fernandes, our teacher was patient and meticulous.She taught us the basics and painstakingly went to every person and helped them make each type of bread...Whole Wheat,Dinner Rolls,Potato Buns and Napolitan Focaccia.

This is Archana...my partner in crime...passionate about food and cooking.She found it easier than some of us coz of rolling dough regularly to make chapattis.She had earlier made bread but was keen to learn the correct techniques.

We learn the art of kneading and proving.Flours such as wholewheat are healthier.They do make the loaf more dense but that's a small price to pay for its benefits.In fact homemade bread is generally denser than commercial bread as it lacks additives.

We rolled out the dough in various shapes and filling them in trays....coating some of them with egg wash.


Sprinkled some with flaxseeds,pumpkin seeds and sesame seeds.

To differentiate the veg ones,olives were used.

Christina even showed one student how to make it without egg and it turned out fine as you can see above.The cooking medium can also be altered.Breads can be made with olive oil or rice bran oil which is far better than the trans fats containing margarine.

It was fun doing things ourselves at the class rather than just observing.We also got to know where in Mumbai we can get the ingredients from.

Christina Fernandes has majored in English Literature and then trained at Sophia College and Australia.She loves what she does and it shows.After all, the most important ingredient in cooking is love!