Barkada baking

CEBU, Philippines - I’m a cooking show junkie, a true-blue foodie who thinks that getting a degree in Culinary Arts is somehow far-fetched. I cringe at the thought of just merely counting the cost in pursuing perhaps a 12-month certification, and even more for a two-year diploma!

The Philippine School for Culinary Arts (PSCA) has whipped up tasteful short courses that are easy on the budget but are sure ways to make your culinary dreams come true. One of which that I find exciting and worthwhile than bottles of gin is the Barkada-bonding Cooking Classes specially designed for groups –friends, families, couples, professionals, etc. – of at least six. 

And so, I recently got a shot at culinary arts via the Barkada-bonding cooking sessions. I was with my brother, three colleagues and a friend, all itching to turn the counters around and heat off some frying pans. PSCA cooked up 10 modules for the program, each corresponds to a session that lasts for five hours during Fridays and Saturdays, namely: Pizza and Fresh Pasta 1, Colored Fresh Pasta and Variants, Salads and Sandwiches, Bars and Cookies, A Lunch Menu, Fast Food Premiums, Vegetable Victory, Casseroles, Chicken Lickin, Cakes and Simple Cake Decorating. We did the latter with Resident Pastry Chef Anecto “Nick” Garcia who has an impressive international culinary experience and years of expertise.

Chef Garcia, along with two of his students, walked us, clad in our aprons, through our recipe, the mouthwatering dessert we labored for four hours in the spacious and tidy baking room, the Chocolate Chiffon Cake with Soft Chocolate Ganache topped with Vanilla Ice Cream. Here’s the recipe:

INGREDIENTS

For the Chocolate Chiffon Cake:

50 grams Cocoa powder

250 grams Cake flour

200 grams Granulated sugar

6 grams Salt

12 grams Baking powder

125 grams Vegetable oil

125 grams Egg yolks

180 grams Water

6 grams Vanilla extract

250 grams Egg whites

125 grams Granulated sugar

1 gram Cream of Tartar

For the Vanilla Ice Cream:

250 mL Milk

3 Egg yolks

60 grams Granulated sugar

1 tsp Vanilla extract

250 mL whipping cream

For the Soft Ganache:

200 grams Dark chocolate

250 grams heavy cream

PROCEDURE

Mix all the dry ingredients (sifted).

Mix and combine with the rest of the mixtures. Pour it in a pan and bake it an oven at 325 degrees.

Pour milk into a saucepan over low heat until bubbles form around the pan. Add sugar, vanilla extract and whipping cream. Refrigerate for six hours. Pour mixture into the ice cream maker. Freeze.

In a bowl, dunk the chocolates. Place it on top of a boiling saucepan to let chocolates melt. Let it cool. In a separate saucepan, bring the cream into a boil. Fold the mixtures.

For plating: Ganache mixture

Mango puree

Chef Garcia preferred to have cupcakes instead of pouring the mixture into a cake pan. By the time the chiffon cake was done, we cut off a piece of the cupcake by the center using a pair of scissors and added a scoop-full of ganache. After which, we covered the hole with its lid, topped it with a scoop of Vanilla ice cream, and voila!

So instead of splurging on booze or other activities that aren’t worthwhile, bring your friends to PSCA and put your culinary skills to a test. PSCA is located at The Maxwell Annex Bldg., N. Escario St., Camputhaw with Tel. No. 4163265.