Pastry Short Courses

Pastry Short Courses at Prue Leith’s

Sweet or savoury? What’s your pleasure? If it’s the former, you love cakes, puddings, pastries, and sweet confections more than anything else; you have the ultimate sweet tooth. Those who prefer savoury foods and snacks may claim to have no difficulty in declining a sweet offering, unless of course, it’s a freshly baked pastry, in which case they’re only too happy to munch along with their sweet-toothed compatriots.

Some home cooks seem to take to baking and pastry making like a duck to water, while others are thoroughly perplexed by these processes, preferring to avoid making either by buying such items from a food store with a deli and cake section or a local home industries outlet. Competent bakers and pastry makers fail to grasp what all the fuss is about. After all, the main ingredients of pastry are two simple components, both easily obtainable from a host of supermarkets and shops – flour and a fat, usually shortening or butter.

The ancient Egyptians are said to have produced the first known pastry, followed by the Greeks and Romans, who adopted so much of what they encountered in Egypt. If the most ancient of these cultures could make pastry without all the mod cons of a 21^st century kitchen, you certainly can be taught to do the same. Even so, there are things that can (and do) go wrong, unless you know what you’re doing and understand the reasons why certain guidelines need to be followed in order to make pastry successfully, as it should be produced and enjoyed.

Banish the Fuss and Learn to Make Pastry

If you’re really terrified by anything involving flour and your oven, you may choose to complete Prue Leith Academy’s short Basic Baking course before undertaking the Art of Tarts pastry course, just to boost your confidence, although this isn’t essential. Both short courses are of equal duration, taking place during the evening from 18:00 to 21:30 in 2017 – perfect timing for busy ladies and gents. (The applicable short course dates for 2017 are to be confirmed and will be posted on our website)

Basic Baking Short Course

This short course takes you from scratch, right through to confidently baking basic cakes successfully, something you’ll find easy to accomplish in future, on your own, and in your own kitchen. Basic Baking teaches you the short version of the science of baking (what occurs inside the oven), while giving you an understanding of ingredients and how they combine and work together to produce the desired results. By the end of the evening, you’ll have the practiced self-assurance to make four different types of cakes.

Pastry Short Course

Our Art of Tarts short course teaches you the theory of making tarts and pastries, as well as how to produce several classic and modern tarts that utilise the following types of pastry:

• Pate Brisee (French pie or tart pastry);
• Pate Sucree (French sweet short crust pastry);
• Cheese Pastry.

You’ll also learn to make five types of fillings, comprising both sweet and savoury ingredients and their optimal flavour combinations – with the élan and flair of a real French pastry chef. Prue Leith’s professional pastry short course specialists look forward to sharing their expertise with you.