In France, home bakers have relied on a folksy little baking book – the country’s answer to Kook en Geniet, sort of – called Je Sais Faire la Pâtisserie, for the past 70-odd years. First published in 1938, this bestseller, has now been translated into English as The Art of French Baking.

The author, Ginette Mathiot (1907–1998), taught three generations of the French how to cook and is the ultimate authority on French home cooking. She wrote more than 30 best-selling cookbooks, covering all subjects in French cuisine. Je sais cuisiner (I Know How To Cook) was her definitive, most comprehensive work, which brings together recipes for every classic French dish.

In The Art of French Baking, Ginette covers the fundamentals of the French pastry kitchen, from éclairs and fruit tartlets to macaroons and madeleines, when it comes to sweet things, no-one does it better than the French. Beautiful, elegant and delicious, French desserts are easy to create at home as only a few basic recipes are needed to make some of the world’s most renowned cakes and tarts – try the section on soufflés or Tarte Tatin. The book  contains more than 350 simple recipes that anyone can follow at home.

The book also includes details of basic equipment, techniques and information on how to troubleshoot common baking problems. Along with beautiful photographs and illustrations throughout, The Art of French Baking is an inspiring collection to celebrate the sweet tastes of France. A book that will definitely become a feature in the Wickedfood Cooking School library as a reference for our baking classes.

Interested in buying this book? Visit - Red Pepper Books – The South African online bookshop, is able to offer you great prices on any book you are looking for, and they deliver to your door. Pay only R316 for this book (Recommended Retail Price = R395)!  Red Pepper Books is offering Wickedfood Cooking School subscribers an EXTRA 10% off this book. Simply type in the promotional code WICKEDFOOD on the shipping page of the checkout process and your purchase will be reduced by a further 10%, a total saving of R79.

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference. Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Hot cross buns have certainly been in the news this year, what with the various religious April fools’ jokes. And to make them even more interesting, some supermarkets are now even making them in loaf forms. The recipe for these traditional spiced, sticky glazed fruit buns with pastry crosses, come from BBC Food. Served as a classic Easter treat, the buns can be enjoyed at any time of year. Once you have mastered the recipe, try making them in a loaf tin, great for toasting.

For the buns

625g strong white flour, plus extra for dusting

1t  salt

2t  ground mixed spice

45g butter, cut into cubes, plus extra for greasing

85g/3oz sugar

1 lemon, zest only

1½t  fast-action yeast

1 free-range egg

275ml tepid milk

125g mixed dried fruit

For the topping

2T plain flour

Vegetable oil, for greasing

1T golden syrup, gently heated, for glazing

For the buns

• Sieve the flour, salt and ground mixed spice into a large mixing bowl, then rub in the butter using your fingertips. Make a well in the centre of the mixture, then add the sugar and lemon zest and yeast.
• Beat the egg and add to the flour with the tepid milk. Mix together to form a soft, pliable dough.
• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Carefully work the mixed dried fruit into the dough until well combined. Knead lightly for 5 minutes, or until smooth and elastic.
• Grease a large, warm mixing bowl with butter. Shape the dough into a ball and place it into the prepared bowl, then cover with a clean tea towel and set aside in a warm place for one hour to prove.
• Turn out the proved dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knock back the dough. Shape it into a ball again and return it to the bowl, then cover again with the tea towel and set aside for a further 30 minutes to rise.
• Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and divide it into 12 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a ball, then flatten slightly into a bun shape using the palms of your hands. Cover the buns again with the tea towel and set aside to rest for 5-10 minutes.
• Grease a baking tray with butter and transfer the buns to the tray. Wrap the tray with the buns on it loosely in greaseproof paper, then place inside a large polythene bag. Tie the end of the bag tightly so that no air can get in and set aside in a warm place for a further 40 minutes to rise.
• Preheat the oven to 240°C.

For the topping

• Mix the plain flour to a smooth paste with 2T  of cold water.
• When the buns have risen, remove the polythene bag and the greaseproof paper. Spoon the flour mixture into a piping bag and pipe a cross on each bun.
• Transfer the buns to the oven and bake for 8-12 minutes, or until pale golden-brown. As soon as you remove the buns from the oven, brush them with the hot golden syrup, then set aside to cool on a wire rack.

Makes 12

For more Easter inspired recipes see BBC Food

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference. Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Reuben Riffel is one of South Africa’s top chefs. He is a shining light of a local boy made good, from humble beginnings to the pinnacle of the South African food industry.  Today he is  owner of Reuben’s Restuarant in Franschhoek, and concept chef at Reuben’s One & Only Cape Town as well as the Robertson Small Hotel.

And to crown of all, he has also produced two books.  In his latest, Reuben Cooks Local he has taken South African ingredients from snoek to skilpadjies and given them his own unique twist – skilpadjies, usually a snack cooked over the coals, is here elegantly presented on a green pea mash with a muscadel jus, or seared miso scallops on creamy mielie puree, elevating the ingredients to a totally new level.

The book is divided into chapters from the sea, field, earth, orchard, wild and vine. Although I’m not totally in favour of the way the book has been divided up, the recipes are nonetheless inspirational.  This is not another traditional South African cookbook, but rather a book taking traditional South African ingredients and cooking styles, and reinterpreting them for the modern kitchen.

And apart from the recipes, the book has also been beautifully designed by Quivertree, and photographed by their in-house photographer, Craig Fraser, who is also a true master of his craft. The book will inspire you in the kitchen, and also make a superb corporate gift for international clients.

Interested in buying this book? Visit - Red Pepper Books – The South African online bookshop, is able to offer you great prices on any book you are looking for, and they deliver to your door. Pay only R312 for this book (Recommended Retail Price = R390)!  Red Pepper Books is offering Wickedfood Cooking School subscribers an EXTRA 10% off this book. Simply type in the promotional code WICKEDFOOD on the shipping page of the checkout process and your purchase will be reduced by a further 10%, a total saving of R78.

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference. Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

This delicious salad is taken from our book of the week, Reuben Cooks Local.  Not only is sweet potato a much-loved South African ingredient, but the moskonfyt and brandy add exceptional local flavour to this dish. The blue cheese sauce is incredibly versatile and is also excellent served with steak or sautéed chicken livers. And with both sweet potatoes and pears coming into seasons, this is a perfect for autumn recipe. Experiment with different types of sweet potato, the orange and yellow flesh potatoes have a much earthier flavour than the purple skin variety.

1 pear, preferably Bosc
2 medium sweet potatoes, one orange and 1 yellow if you can
3T  olive oil
1t  salt
1t  black pepper
±2T pecan nuts
60g frisée lettuce, baby spinach leaves or rocket
1t extra virgin olive oil
½t Cabernet Sauvignon vinegar (or red wine vinegar)

Brandy and Blue Cheese Dressing

1/4 cup ceam
1t brandy
75g creamy blue cheese
1t moskonfyt or quince jelly

• Preheat the oven to 180°C. Peel the pear and the sweet potatoes. Slice into rounds about 1½cm thick. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Roast the sweet potato in the oven for about 10 minutes, then put in the pear slices on the same tray. Roast until it has turned a dark caramel colour and is cooked.
• Dress the nuts and the frisée with extra virgin olive oil and vinegar.
• To serve, divide the sweet potato and pear between two plates. Squeeze blobs of brandy and blue cheese dressing on and in between them. Arrange the nuts and frisée on the plates and serve immediately.

Brandy and Blue Cheese Dressing:

• Place the cream, brandy, blue cheese and moskonfyt in a blender and process until very smooth. Pour into a squeeze bottle.

(Serves 2)

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference. Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.

Wickedfood Cooking School, SUNNINGHILL

Information & bookings (076) 236-2345  sunninghill@wickedfood.co.za

Hi all,

Hope you all had a splendid Human Rights day, and spent five minutes just thinking about what the holiday is actually all about.  We’re very fortunate to live in this beautiful country, despite some of the problems that at times seem insurmountable. Think about the positives and let’s work together to right the wrongs.

What did you all think of the first episode of Master Chef South Africa?? Do we have what it takes?

For the next few weeks we’ll take your palate on a culinary adventure through cookery classes on offer from classic Lebanese dishes and Italian all-time favourites, to the art of making pasta, Thai and Mexican cuisines, and how to braai the perfect chicken.   Book early to avoid disappointment as classes tend to fill up very fast.

Find us on Facebook and Twitter – just search for Wickedfood and you will find us. We update the blog on a daily basis and publish it through Facebook and Twitter.

Looking for info on food?

If you have any food-related questions, or a dish that you just can’t get right or even a certain recipe that you are looking for, but just can’t seem to find, then contact us and we will do our best to answer it as soon as possible. Click Here for more information. Hope to hear from you soon.

Wickedfood Cooking School news

The Cooking class programmes for March and April are up on the internet. Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes with a minimum of 8 participants and a maximum of 12 giving everyone hands-on experience and keeping the cooking class small enough for maximum learning. These cooking classes are conducted by our senior instructors who have extensive experience in the food industry and share a variety of additional cooking tips throughout the cooking class.

• Sunday 25 March at 4pm – Classic Lebanese dishes (R380pp). The Lebanese gastronomy is a rich mixture of various products and ingredients coming from the diverse Lebanese regions. It is with food that the Lebanese express their generosity and hospitality. The secret to mastering Lebanese cuisine lies in the preparation and organization of the menu and in the fact that Lebanese dishes store and reheat well. The Lebanese cook always prepares several dishes in advance and stores the basic mixtures so that they can be combined with other food items to  make a full meal quickly. Every household has a constant stock of pickles, olives, cheese, yoghurt, nuts, grain, herbs and spices. This Lebanese cooking class showcases a selection of the most popular Lebanese party food including hummous with ground lamb, Kibbi Naye and deep-fried kibbi balls, Lebanese salad, bread pies and a delicious Middle Eastern dessert.
• Monday 26 March at 6pm  – Our Italian Cookbook (R380pp). Note that there is no such thing as ‘Italian cuisine’ with a unique nation-wide tradition of preparing food. Our Italian cooking class showcases the Classic Italian dishes that every Italian food-lover must have in his/her cook book. 6 hearty dishes include chicken liver crostinis, zucchini frittata, pasta with a clam sauce, Osso Buca, polenta and pannacotta.
• Monday 02 April at 6pm  - Relaxed alfresco entertaining (R370pp). Easy buffet dishes to prepare in advance for entertaining. Learn the skills of cooking for a group of friends, with confidence, in this easy entertaining cooking class. Dishes include fried halloumi, grilled poussins, roast peppers, couscous salad, and fruit and almond tart.
• Sunday 08 April at 4pm  – Making flavoured pasta, shapes and sauces (R370pp). Making pasta is really easy, and fresh pasta tastes better too. Learn the secrets to making pasta from scratch in this pasta cooking class. We also include fillings and sauces for these unique pasta shapes and flavours. Dishes include pepper fettuccini with an Alfredo sauce, chilli tagliatelle with a seafood cream, beef filled spinach ravioli and fried sweet pasta with grappa.
• Monday 09 April at 6pm –Thai Class (R380pp). Thai food is often referred to as having an explosion of flavours in your mouth all at once. This Thai cooking class teaches you how to balance these five important flavours. Dishes in this class include Luang Prabang salad, fried eggplant with pork, fried rice noodles, sticky rice and steamed banana pudding.
• Monday 16 April at 6pm – Classic Mexican dishes for entertaining (R370pp). An exotic blend of new world flavours, perfect for entertaining with a difference in this Mexican cooking class – guacamole, salsa Mexicana, burritas, tortilla soup, chicken chocolate, chilli sauce and white flan
• Sunday 22 April at 4pm – Outdoor Cooking – poultry (R390 per class). Learn the secrets of outdoor cooking on Cadac kettlebraais and gas barbecues. Dishes covered in this cooking class include whole roast juicy chicken, how to smoke a chicken in a kettlebraai, tangy tomato marinade, chicken kebabs, quick and easy bread pockets, grilled vegetables and bananas with a chocolate sauce

Cookbook of the week

Reuben Cooks Local

Reuben Riffel is one of South Africa’s top chefs. He is a shining light of a local boy made good.  In his latest, Reuben Cooks Local he has taken South African ingredients from snoek to skilpadjies and given them his own unique twist. The book will inspire you in the kitchen, and also make a superb corporate gift for international clients. … Click here to read more.

Click Here for reviews of all our cookbook reviews.

Did you know

The humble eggplant

Late in the 1500s British traders introduced London’s greengrocers to a strange new vegetable they’d picked up along the coast of West Africa. By 1587 this so-called “Guinea squash” was on English dinner tables. Although eaten as a vegetable, it was actually a small fruit about the size of a hen’s egg. It was also the same colour as a hen’s egg. This pure white ellipsoid made an eye-catching edible, which for obvious reasons the public soon dubbed “egg-plant.” … Click here to read more.

Food quote of the week

“Old people shouldn’t eat health foods. They need all the preservatives they can get.” – Robert Orben

Recipes of the week:

Warm sweet potato and pear salad

This delicious salad is taken from our book of the week, Reuben Cooks Local.  Not only is sweet potato a much-loved South African ingredient, but the moskonfyt and brandy add exceptional local flavour to this dish. And with both sweet potatoes and pears coming into seasons, this is a perfect for autumn recipe. ….Click Here for all our recipes.

Wickedfood Cooking School runs cooking classes throughout the year at its purpose-built Johannesburg cooking studio. Cookery classes are run in the mornings and evenings 7 days a week (subject to a minimum of 12 people). The venue is also popular for corporate events and private functions – teambuilding cooking classes, birthdays, kitchen teas, and dinner parties with a difference. Our cooking lessons are hands-on, where every person gets to participate in the preparation of the dishes. They are also a lot of fun where you not only learn new skills, but get to meet people with similar interests. For corporate groups and team building cooking classes these events are a novel way of creating staff interaction or entertaining clients.