World Foodie Guide

This was a first for World Foodie Guide – attending a two hour macaron cookery class at L’atelier des Chefs with 14 other food bloggers whom I’d not met before. This was a Trusted Places event organised by Niamh from eatlikeagirl, and always, very well attended. As I’m still reeling from a heavy macaron overdose, this will be a short and sweet post.

For those who don’t know about L’atelier des Chefs, it offers cookery classes led by professional chefs, ranging from 30 minutes to 2 hours. An example is Cook, Eat & Run, specially designed for a lunch break, involves 30 minutes of learning to cook one dish, after which you can then sit, relax and eat your lunch.

Our Dutch chef Baldwin (Boudewijn) taught us how to make the following four flavours:

The classic: Lightly salted butter caramel
The original: Porto and foie gras mousse
Flower power: Raspberry and rose
Asiatic summer: Lime and fresh ginger

We were divided into four teams, each delegated to making one flavour. Although the others sounded more exciting to me, I was assured by Su-Lin from Tamarind and Thyme that we were on the best team – salted caramel. She couldn’t have been more right! I was fumble fingers as always, which proves I was right to have felt nervous about attending the class. As I’m so rarely in the kitchen, cooking with others was quite an ordeal to say the least, so I’m very glad to have teamed up with three able cooks, the others being Tom from The Food Flunky and Mark from Food By Mark.

Chef guided the entire class through stage by stage of the macaron-making process. We were then left to our own devices after each stage, although of course he was on hand to help, particularly with the fillings. He was patient and thorough, and managed with much aplomb to teach a class of food bloggers with different levels of cooking experience (including professional baker Shuna from eggbeater). During the class, I was thinking that I would never be able to make macarons at home, but after sampling the splendid results, decided that I might give it a go in the near future (although whether I’ll succeed without the rest of the team or Chef…!).

I have to say, I’ve not seen so many cameras in one kitchen before, and between us all, we must have taken thousands of photos (click here for the rest of my photos). My camera was covered in caster sugar and caramel by the end of the class, and needed a good scrub-down afterwards. And the results of the class? Salted caramel came out tops for me of course, but the others were all delicious too – the foie gras was unusual but a little too rich for me, while the raspberry and rose and lime and ginger were both quite light and refreshing.

I left L’atelier feeling slightly more confident in the kitchen. Baldwin and the rest of the staff there were all so friendly and helpful that I’m considering returning to try either the Cook, Eat & Run or 60′ Flat (learning to make two dishes!). It’s also a great place if you want to get together with a group of friends, cook for a couple of hours and then enjoy the results there with a glass of wine.

Here’s the list of the other food bloggers, who will no doubt be writing their own accounts of the class, with countless photos from the event! It was great meeting you all and thanks again Niamh, for organising…

• Niamh from eatlikeagirl and Trusted Places
• Su-Lin from Tamarind and Thyme
• Krista from londonelicious
• Alice from An American in London
  
• Lizzie from Hollow Legs
• Tom from The Food Flunky
• Mark from Food By Mark
• Jonathan from Around Britain With A Paunch
• Abi from foodrambler
• Alex from The Princess And The Recipe
• Mia from Urban Foodie
• Shuna from eggbeater
• Josh from Cooking The Books
• Heather, a Trusted Places reviewer

Helen Yuet Ling Pang @ World Foodie Guide

Tags: cookery, cookery class, cooking, England, food, L'atelier des Chefs, London, macarons, traveleating