March 16th, 2012 marked the official day and beginning of Ketmala’s Kitchen. It’s amazing to know that an entire year has gone by since then because it seems just like yesterday that I taught my first group cooking class to four lovely ladies who were eager to learn the art of French artisan breadmaking! I was super prepared and oh so excited to share my expertise with the attendees who were interested right from the start till the end of class, and followed the many steps of making bread, like the old days with a “levain” (starter). I will always remember the look on their faces when the freshly baked crusty loaves came out of the oven, their eyes were twinkling with contentment and it was worth a thousand words to me – the ultimate instant gratification! The bread apprentices of the day were satisfied and I felt good knowing that not only will they be able to make homemade bread, but they will bring their newly acquired skills and experience back to their homes to share with their own families and friends for many years to come.
Following the success of the first class, I offered additional sessions and the positive word of mouth has been wonderful in spreading the news about Ketmala’s Kitchen. 365 days later into this fantastic cooking adventure and I am beyond-of-this-world astonished still by the enthusiastic response from everyone, I could have not dreamed for a more fantastic year filled with lots of cooking and baking what I love and being able to sprinkle around my passion for food with others. The journey continues to unfold with endless possibilities awaiting ahead!
While going through all my recipe booklets, students comments and tons of photos, I realized that I had the privilege to teach 29 classes so far, thus a total of 65 students (for both group and/or private sessions) actually walked through the door and joined me in “ma petite cuisine” (ma little kitchen), isn’t this amazing?!! It sure is making me happy and smiling from ear to ear to know that somehow, somewhere, someone might be making right this minute one of Ketmala’s Kitchen multigrain bread, savory buckwheat crêpes, homemade almond milk or hazelnut spread, vegetarian dumplings, flourless chocolate cake, Thai soup, French macarons, etc. and sharing their cookery with all.
Here’s a collection of photos from some students (thanks again for your special permission) who came cooking with me at Ketmala’s Kitchen from March 16th 2012 to 2013:
A warm thank you to ALL my special students, grown-ups and young ones, who came to prep, chop, cook, mix, whip and bake with me this year in my humble kitchen. I feel honored to have been chosen by you and in knowing that together we certainly have learned a lot, laughed out loud, swapped great stories, shared many tips and enjoyed the food tremendously! Everyone, including myself, always like the food tasting part at the end of the class.
A big thanks to all my website/blog readers, foodie Pinterest followers, facebook fans who are finding the time to write comments, send me requests, and let’s not forget the local journalists who helped spread the latest news, events and class offerings. Check out the latest write-up by Angela Corrado from West Chester Dish.
A special thank you to my wonderful husband, who keeps me grounded in our everyday craziness and is always willing to taste any of my new culinary creations, to my bright handsome artist son who just turned 7 year old a few days ago (I still cannot believe it, how did my baby-boy grow up so fast!!?) and keeps surprising us with its many talents, to my spirited beautiful sweet daughter who makes me smile from morning till sunset and wants to cuddle with me always and talks our ears off until bedtime, to my beloved family in France who planted the “food seed” many moons ago in our little kitchen in the French countryside, to my extended family in the West Coast and Connecticut who make family gatherings a joy, to my amazing friends who keep believing in me and cheering along here in America, but also afar, and finally to our almost 10 year old Weimaraner dog who is our gentle 4-legged family member and likes to greet students before and during each cooking class in between her many naps on the sofa!
I am blessed by each one of you with the true gift of love, family, friendship and our growing cooking community! Your continuing support keeps me inspired in trying my best to create new recipes and come up with interesting classes to teach.
After an intense week of creating a Lego chocolate cake for my son’s 7th birthday without artificial dye and using real Lego pieces (see pics below) as well as cooking for my daughter’s preschool fundraising event this past weekend, I decided to treat myself to something special but without any major cooking time involved. So, Ketmala’s Kitchen first year anniversary cake was a very delicious and easy to make dessert and you could find the recipe by getting the Green Kitchen Stories Healthy Desserts App. It is so worth it because they offer many healthy and delicious desserts recipes with tantalizing photography! I only used my food processor and freezer and substituted the pomegranate, which is no longer in season, with organic strawberries + raspberries and I found these beautiful edible flowers at my local Wegmans. My husband who is usually a big chocolate lover did actually enjoy this nutty, lemony and creamy cake, which is the best compliment you could ever get!
Here’s Ethan’s Lego cake:
Here’s the little beauty:
Sending you big hugs & kisses on both cheeks like the French do. 🙂
Happy Happy Moi!
Ketmala's Kitchen 