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November and December Baking

It was the usual busy baking months, not because i am selling breads or cakes like before but due mostly to my 1 on 1 sessions which seemed to converge in these two last months of the year.

I would like to thank them all, from Josephine T who even gave me 2 aloe vera plants and 1 dama de noche (glad to tell you they are all thriving well) down to the last one for the month, Glenda Villespin. I wish you all the luck, from finding the best oven and mixers down to the best bread flour in your area. I wish that the coming year would be an absolute baking bliss for you and your families.



While lunching on my homemade Walnut and Rosemary Focaccia toasts, i can't help but think of the facebook posts i read and view every day, from past students who now have their own bakeries and are selling online goodies. May your numbers increase and keep up the good work. I hope you find the joy of baking inside and out.

Baking is not easy if you don't like it to begin with. I always tell my students, this is not something you shove in someone's mouth and tell them to just chew it, it will go down anyway. Hindi po. Baking is patience, and if you have no patience to get up in the middle of the night so you can make a sponge or starter, no matter how painful that back is, then this is not for you.

Why am i saying this? I just thought about it because, there is nothing in this world that makes me sadder (as a baking instructor), than when a person comes to me and tells me, "ay, ang hirap naman nyan, bibili na lang ako". Yeah. Correct.  A dozen of Pandesal costs you less than 2 bucks maybe, easy to just grab that pack and be done with it, presto, you have bread. But that's not it. Do you absolutely adore that bread you're munching?

If i can say no a thousand times, i will. No. It tastes terrible. That store  bought loaf tastes like a flavored piece of sponge. Slightly sweet and yes, edible but i don't look forward to eating it again.

But not my bread. Oh yeah, i  can brag about my bread, and i dare you not challenge me on that one because it wasn't just me saying it to me, but others say it too. So i guess i pretty much have a track record of people coming up to me, Day 1 of my class, after students have tasted the breads, that yes, these breads tastes amazing.

My reply? oh well, (trying to be as humble as possible), they are freshly made, no preservatives and the ingredients are pure and simple, maybe that's why.

When a student who is about to leave asks you if he can still get another piece of bread to eat while on his drive home, then that's a confirmation of something i already knew. Freshly made breads, with emphasis on correct balance of formula, correct techniques and LOVE for the craft itself, is what makes a good or should i say, a BETTER BREAD.

Come and learn how to bake your own breads. More and more people are now taking classes not to sell,  but just to eat good breads. You should be one of them.

Photos from my classes below.

see my facebook at csherquefranca for student's baking posts..

1 on 1 on Cakes and Cookies


Happy New Year to Eveyrone and Me!!!





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