I'm a lifelong learner. If anyone's followed me long enough, or met me in person, knows I'm constantly looking for new things to learn. This winter I took a mushroom growing class (and have mushrooms growing in a toilet paper roll as we speak) and a vegetable gardening planning class. I have been planting vegetables for years, but there is always something new to learn about hobbies or things I've done before.
Recently, I took a baguette, rolls, and focaccia bread making class at a local bakery, Papa Ganache, that is certified gluten-free and vegan. I am unable to consume even the slightest crumb of gluten, and I avoid eggs due to intolerance issues. Their gluten free bakery and food items are always delicious, and I know I won't get sick or have issues with it being vegan (egg-free) as well.
This class was by far worth every penny and hour spent at the bakery! Chef Asha was so helpful and I learned how to modify (like a chef!) a single recipe in so many ways to go from baguettes, to rolls, to focaccia bread and lastly to piping breadsticks that were gluten free, vegan, and absolutely delicious!
I highly recommend, if you're in the area in New Jersey, to take one of their classes. I have already signed up to take another of their classes in the coming weeks. I made so much bread to take home, I froze three quarters of it and have been enjoying it ever since. I will definitely be making all of these breads in the future and realized a few key concepts to gluten free baking that'll help in other recipes I convert.
One of the main concepts in gluten free baking I realized in this class is to use a LOT more baking powder when baking gluten free. I always thought that the yeast in breads or pizzas was what made gluten free breads rise, but it turns out the baking powder is what does most of the work. Regular recipes for gluten-y foods usually call for 1-2 tsp of baking powder, but this recipe used a whole quarter cup!
So, in the future, I am going to double a recipe's baking powder total and see how that affects the outcome. I feel that's a safe way to start experimenting.
The focaccia looks delicious going into the oven, doesn't it? This recipe made so much dough (the focaccia is just one batch of the bread recipe) that I know I'll enjoy this bread a lot in the future. We had a choice for various add-ins and add-ons to really make each item our own. I chose to add to my focaccia before baking a section of vegan cheeses, and then a third with different herbs, and the last third was a rosemary recipe (thirds not pictured above).
You can see some of the different focaccia flavors in the bread above, and then I made three different kinds of breadsticks. One of then was a sour cream and chives, but the flavors didn't really come through. I made another flavor that was red pepper and basil which was delicious.
If you can take a class and learn new skills, do it. For the cost of this class (which felt high at first) I made enough bread to make up the cost if I were to buy it, and now I can make my own specialty breads for the foreseeable future at a much lower cost. Skills win out every time.
