Baking Class!
Today after lunch we're going to another Familia Tica's house (coincidentally our next door neighbor) to do some traditional baking. We did a little cooking early in the semester, but there was no baking involved. This portion was a little different in that instead of sitting at a long table and watching, we were given pieces of masa (dough) to work with either in pairs or groups of four.
This class was really enjoyable! I like baking more than I like cooking (even though I like them both), and I know that I will be baking at least one of these recipes when I get home. One of them was a sweet bread that we could cover in cinnamon, sugar, cloves, or any combination of the three. Another was made with cheese in it, and it was a favorite of the group.
After rolling the dough out and forming it into the shapes that we wanted, it was put on huge leaves and then on a pan to be baked. We chatted and drank coffee or tea while we waited, and it wasn't long before the boys found an electric bug zapper. That entertained us until the breads were ready to be eaten. I don't think I should have eaten lunch beforehand, because I was really stuffed. I took several little rolls home with me to have later in a ziplock bag, and many other SOLmates were excited to take home the little recipe book that we got. This was definitely a good afternoon.