A Lesson in Creativity: Baking Boot Camp
by Gisela M. Townsend

Ever since I can remember, I've been cooking and baking for friends and family. When I was a kid, I would come home from school and watch The Galloping Gourmet on TV. I was a repressed chef; now cooking has become a passionate hobby.

It's also been a creative outlet. I've been teaching in New York City for 18 years, the last five of which have been in a South Bronx high school as a special education and biology teacher. It is rewarding, but it can also be really stressful and demanding. When I moved to the Hudson Valley, I became fascinated with all the CIA has to offer and felt fortunate that it was a short drive away. When I told my husband I wanted to try Baking Boot Camp during my spring break, he was so supportive and encouraging. I was very excited about this new adventure, but I was also nervous. I have always received compliments on my meals and I enjoy baking in my kitchen at home. Would I know enough to take a class at the CIA?

I soon learned that all of us in the class had all different levels of experience. Matt runs a restaurant. Shannon is launching a pie business in Hong Kong. Bob is a doctor who enjoys cooking. Kristen planned to open a restaurant with her husband. Regina, like me, was a teacher who also enjoyed cooking. The one thing we all had in common was that we were passionate about good food. We immediately bonded.

One of the highlights of Baking Boot Camp for me as a coffee lover was the coffee lecture at the Apple Pie Bakery Café. I participated in a tasting and learned about coffee growing, too. I enjoyed the challah and the challah French toast we made. I used to dread making pie, but now I can make a most delicious pie crust.

Every night, we dined in one of the CIA's great restaurants. Dinner would turn into three or four hours at the table as we all chatted the evening away. We talked about what we had baked that day and what we expected to make the following day. The experience was great and I'm hoping to take advantage of some of the other offerings at the CIA.

Since returning home, I've been putting my own twist on some things and am experimenting with different bread and cookie recipes. I have been trying to recreate all of the recipes we made that week. And I've become very popular with my fellow teachers, since every week I bring in a new baked good!