I’ve never been very successful with baking. Cooking’s not a problem. But me and flour, and sifting and whisking? Somehow, somewhere, something always gets lost in translation. With the exception of cheesecake, everything else I’ve ever tried baking either got burnt or became some kind of inedible. So when the work mates decided to sign up for a Swiss Roll & Macarons class at Sugar Inc, I jumped at the opportunity, hoping – with all fingers crossed – that I won’t fail under proper instruction.
We learnt how to make Swiss Rolls first. The very personable Chef Anna starts off with a table demonstration, before sending us to our stations.

We paired up and followed her directions to a T.


We were all happy with how it turned out. :)

Macarons were next, and boy, were we eager about it. Here, Chef Anna tells us about how we can’t compromise on the amount of icing sugar added, because it apparently makes all the difference.

The process seemed overwhelming, but we did our best and the shells came out looking really decent.


Then came the ganache and the buttercream. Alas, they were all premade. But it was understandably so, because there wasn’t quite enough time.

Then we started piping. Piping is fun (read: easy). ;)


Look at all the pretty colours!


I’m so proud to announce that I have officially made my first batch of macarons! :)
Unfortunately, I really don’t know if I can find it in me to make my own macarons again. There’s a lot of work involved and because it requires a lot more precision than cooking, I’m not confident that I’ll be able to replicate this. The Swiss Rolls were a lot simpler and I can see myself giving it another go. But oh macarons… Now I know why you’re that pricey.
Regardless, it was a very lovely way to spend a Saturday afternoon and I really enjoyed myself. We all did. ;)

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