Baking with Maria – The Baking Lab

Words and Photography by Howing Lai

“Did you watch the final of The Great British Bake Off Final?”…”Yes!!! It was so good!!!” were the first words I heard as I arrived at London’s newest bakery school The Baking Lab. There is no doubt that baking is probably one of the coolest things to be doing right now and what better way to boost cool points than learning how to bake. I was invited to a preview evening and having been trained at Le Cordon Bleu London in Pastry, this was right up my street.

The Baking Lab located in St. Johns Wood, North London offer baking classes aimed at novices to keen home bakers in a wide range of classes including:- artisan bread, traditional French pastry (croissants, pain au chocolat, éclairs, millefeuilles, etc), macaroons, and cake baking. 

The school has come on as the next step for owner and keen home baker Maria Mayerhofer who spent three years teaching baking courses at home. She is so passionate about baking that not even being massively pregnant could stop her! Her success hasn’t gone unnoticed either where companies including KitchenAid, Shipton Mill, Kvadrat and Rice.dk have backed her.  

The preview of the focaccia class was excellent, the large turnout of guests were keen to learn how to make focaccia and Emmanuel Hadjiandreou (Artisan baker with over 25 years experience) who is a teaching staff of the bread classes did not disappoint. Emmanuel prepared the foccacia the previous night and left it in the fridge to allow flavours to develop within the dough, a step often neglected by many home bakers. As it was only a preview of the class, the guests shaped the dough by massaging it with olive oil and adding toppings of caramelised onions, cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and rosemary (All rather yummy!). At the same time Emmanuel explained to the guests how the dough was made, shaped and also educated on the history of foccacia bread whilst giving plenty of attention to each person. After what felt like an eternity (actually it was only about 30min) waiting for the bread to prove, it was finally ready and in it went into a hot oven, 15/20mins later... voila - super tasty foccacia bread! I had a quick taste of one made by the chef, and I must say it was really delicious.

Classes are excellent valued ranging from £65 to £110 for 3 to 5 hours of teaching and for those who are really enthusiastic, Maria offers a 4 day cooking holiday in the beautiful Villa Boccella, Tuscany. The classes are run in small groups to allow plenty of interaction with the teaching chef. Students also get a copy of the recipe and also to take home the goods so they can brag to their friends and loved ones of their now baking expertises. Honestly if I hadn’t already been to culinary school I would seriously be tempted to take a class here as they are good value for money and really enjoyable, Go on! Give it a try!

The Baking Lab,
2nd floor,
81 Loudoun Road, 
St Johns Wood,
London, 
NW8 0DQ

Telephone: - 077 2595 2724

For further information on courses visit the website: - http://www.bakewithmaria.com/courses/

Words and Photography by Howing Lai

British-born Chinese, Howing Lai comes from a family of gourmands from the Midlands, where his father is a renowned dim sum and pastry chef. Graduated in Biochemistry with a Masters in Bioinformatics, Howing decided to leave science to pursue his true passion in life - cooking. Recently graduated from Le Cordon Bleu's Grande Diplome, Howing is now working as a commis-pastry chef at a 5-star London hotel, with an ultimate goal to bring his creative and contemporary interpretation of Chinese cuisine to us one day.

London's Best Cookery Schools - Virtuous Bread

Demystifying Sourdough Bread-Making with Jane Mason

My first encounter with Jane Mason, the founder of Virtuous Bread, was a few years ago at a mutual friend's dinner party. A strategy consultant, Jane was heading a stressful project at a top-tier investment bank when, plagued by sleepless nights, she decided to start baking. With the current financial crisis, Jane decided to take the plunge and start Virtuous Bread.

I only recently bumped into Jane again at a tea-meditation morning organised by Pei of  Teanamu (reviewed here) looking much more fulfilled and about 10 years younger than I remembered- I hardly recognised her.

Intrigued, on a rainy Sunday day in London, I found myself at her magnificent flat in Hammersmith, accompanied by three other bread-making enthusiasts for a full day's sourdough bread making class (maximum class size is 4 people).

Kneading our first loaves

This 8-hour course gives you plenty of time to get to grips with the making of the rye and wheat starters (live cultures), how to use them to make sourdough bread, and how it differs from other types of bread by being a healthier and easier option to digest. Just as fascinating was to learn how easy it is to incorporate daily bread making into a busy working life.

Seeds soaking for bread-making

I arrived at 9.30 to a delicious breakfast of home-made bread, various jams and preserves, and a delicious spreadable German lard, which was perfect with Jane's rye bread.  Over a few pots of tea and coffee, I had the opportunity to get to know and chat with the other students before Jane gave us the low-down on the day ahead.

Breakfast at Virtuous Bread

It wasn't long before we got cracking, making our first loaves.  Jane taught us how to mix and knead the dough, using two varieties of sourdough starter - wheat and rye.  We left the dough to rise, while back in the living room Jane explained the terminology and processes of sourdough bread-making, demystifying the snobbery surrounding this style of bread. Her passion for her subject is contagious. I liked Jane's straightforward explanations, her natural ease of communication and confidence.

We made two loaves of bread each, and while these were still rising, we had a lovely lunch of smoked fish, pickled cabbage salad, freshly baked focaccia di Recco and various other delicacies.

Prior to baking, we  were shown how to shape the loaves which is an art in itself.  We also learnt how to make some delicious sourdough cracker bread which we sprinkled with celery sea salt and sesame and other spice seeds.

At the end of the class, we were given a lovely goodie bag with lots of bread to take home, as well as our own starter for future bread-making.

Of the other interesting classes on offer at Virtuous Bread, Bread Angels is one that will teach you to set up and run your own home baking business. Over a period of three weeks or a weekend, Jane will show you how to bake different kinds of bread, how to do sales and marketing both online and in the real world, and how to manage a small business. Throughout the summer, Jane is also hosting classes on Italian foccacia and ciabatta. For more information on Virtuous Bread classes click here.

In addition to Bread Angels, baking classes and organising bread events, Virtuous Bread also uses bread making to bring about social change. This is done through volunteering to build skills, relationships and individual self-esteem by baking and teaching in prisons, primary schools and elderly care homes.

Virtuous Bread's Sourdough Bread Class was one of the most enjoyable and life-affirming experiences I have had for a long time, and I got to learn how to make some fantastic bread too! I cannot wait to attend one of Jane's other fabulous classes.  Very highly recommended.

The London Foodie was a guest of Virtuous Bread