Our process

Here we will show you how we are developing with the home-made desserts and if we achieve a high level of cooking.

How is going to be our process?

The beginning of the process....

Making creme caramel:

Miren: I have had my first experience related to make home-made desserts. I have decided to make a creme caramel because I think it is not as difficult as other ones, so I prefer to start little by little. In general, I think I have fulfilled with the objectives and the result has been good. It has been easy for me to follow all the process, in spite of I have had some difficulties. For example, I do not know yet the proportion of the ingredients used for that, so in this case, I should have thrown more sugar. The same happened to me with the timekeeping. But in general, I am happy with the result and although the creme caramel has burned out a little, I think I can improve with the help of my friends, family, books... in order to become a good baker. THIS HAS ONLY JUST BEGUN!!

Eli: I have done my first dessert and I can say that I have had different feelings. As Miren, I have also decided to make creme caramel because it is very easy to make. Although this is the first time I make it, I am very proud of the result. I felt very comfortable making the dessert step by step and I think it is very easy to make because it needs few ingredients and that makes easier to do it. However, I felt a little nervous because I know that I have things to improve, as the time required for each step. In this case, I should have whipped more the ingredients. The presentation and originality are aspects that I also have to improve. Taking this into account, I hope the next desserts will be better because I am ready to make them!!

Iraitz: A creme caramel has also been my first home-made dessert. As my group partners say, I have also chosen this dessert with the aim of starting with an easy one. I have felt really nervous before starting with the dessert, but when I started making it I felt secure with myself. As Eli says, after seeing my result I felt proud of my work but even so I know that I have to improve some aspects: quantities, times... When I finished making the creme caramel my mum told me some things I will have to change for the next time. Seeing which have been my first result and sensations, I can say that I feel prepared and motivated to make more and better desserts! PRACTICING IS THE KEY!

Making rice pudding:

Eli: I have continued with my learning process of making home-made desserts and this time, I have made rice pudding, a dessert that I like a lot. In general, I can say that is easy to make it but I know that I have things to improve. The most difficulty to make this dessert is the attention you have to pay when you are making it, because if you do not stir it continuously it can be burned. Moreover, I have to improve and remember the proportions of each ingredient I have used to make the dessert, in this case rice pudding. Namely, when my mother explained me how to make the dessert I took notes of the ingredients and the proportions but when I started making, I realized it was not easy to remember all the steps I had to take. When I finished it, my mother told me that in general she saw that I was making it in a correct way but she gave me the advice of stiring the ingredients with the spoon instead of doing it with my hands. Besides, during the process, I did not break well the cinnamon and when my judges tasted the dessert they told me that I should have extracted those chunks of cinnamon better. Nevertheless, my three judges told me that in general the dessert tasted good. Because of this and having into account that this is the second dessert I have made, I think I did it well and I am very motivated to continue making more desserts.

Miren: making rice pudding is very easy, more than I expected. I have eaten it many times in my grandmother´s house, so I thought she could be a good teacher. I like rice pudding very much and I was very motivated to make it. The process is very simple and the most important thing is to stir the milk and rice to prevent burning. I have seen many times my grandmother doing this dessert so I knew some things about it, but in spite of that she explained me with details. The rice pudding only contains five ingredients: lemon, cinnamon, sugar, milk and rice; the process of making it is very easy because is only putting the five ingredients in a cooking pot and stiring everything continously. It needs time because the rice has to be well cooked but the process is very simple, I think that this dessert is the easiest one I have done.

When I finished making it, my mother, sister and grandmother tasted it and they liked it very much. I think I am improving a lot and my results are being good, taking into account I started from zero.

Iraitz: What an easy dessert to make! I have always seen this dessert in my grandmothers' home but I have never eaten it. I do not like the cinnamon, its simple smell turned my stomach. However, I had to make the dessert and for that I asked my mother for help. According to my mum, my grandmother makes a very good rice pudding and little by little she has the opportunity to learnt with her. From the first moment, my mother told me that rice pudding was not difficult to make, but that will take us a long time. After having all kind of explanations and taking notes in a notebook, I started cooking it and my mum recording. Bit by bit, I realized that the steps I had to follow were really easy, but I would have to spend much time stiring the rice with the milk, till the milk get a bit solid. When I finished with dessert I felt proud of my work, though ... my arm was really tired, I could feel how my arm hurts!

Making cheese cake:

Eli: The third dessert I have decided to make is the cheese cake. After speaking with my mother and learning how to make it, I made it on my own. She told me to add walnuts, her special touch and as she is my teacher, I made it with all the ingredients she had told me to add. I can say that making this dessert has been more difficult than making the other two because it is composed by more ingredients and you have to follow lots of steps to obtain a good result. While I was making the cheese cake I was very nervous because I was not very sure of which were the proportions of each ingredient. My mum also told me that I have to cook with less pressure and with more energy. However, I enjoyed making the dessert because my sister was recording me and she was laughing a lot about how I was making it. In addition, I had two big problems. On the one hand, the butter got too hot and I believed that it would not mix well with the biscuits. On the other hand, it was difficult for me to mix correctly the cheese with the other ingredients because I had to remove it with lot of strength. Referring to what my judges told me, in general, the dessert tasted good but it would taste better with a bit more of sugar. They also told me that I had to be more original with the presentation. So, I still have several aspects to improve if I want to be a good cook.

Miren: making cheese cake is very easy, I have always hear that the process is very simple and now I have proved on my own. I like very much this dessert and when I go to a restaurant I usually eat it and I wanted to know how to make this cake. So, as it has been my first time, I looked for an easy recipe because there are many ways to make cheese cake. My mum has some books where this recipe appears, but as I though they were a little difficult I prefered to take the one from the "joy of baking" webpage. The process of doing cheese cake has been easy but long, because I had some difficulties such as the tools need for this desser or the the quantities. But finally, I coped with those little problems and I achieved a good result. My mum liked it very much!!

Iraitz: What a delicious dessert! I really like it, so when I started baking it with my mum I felt really excited. I have to say that this is my favourite dessert, so I was really motivated when my mum told me that we were doing a cheesecake. First of all, my mum explained me how to make it and then she offered to me the chance to see her making it. While my mum was baking the dessert I was next to her taking notes about; quantities, ingredients, steps... After seeing how my mums baked a cheesecake I had the opportunity of making my own cheesecake and I can say that the experience was better than I expected. Talking about this new experience, I have to say that I felt really nervous during the process of making the cheesecake; but.... what was the reason? I hate cameras, I cannot be as I am: my hands start trembling with nerves and I start feeling shivers. I really feel as lost in front of a camera, I feel scared. Despite this, I have been able to control the situation and the dessert was a delicacy.

Making torrijas:

Eli: This is my fourth dessert, called torrijas. When I was making this dessert I was very nervous because apart from making the dessert I decided to explain all the steps I had to follow in English. When I started making it, I felt comfortable, because it was not a difficult dessert to make but I felt a bit scared while I was making the last step: the oil started to splash and I was afraid of getting burnt. However, the process in general finished correctly because I made it as my mum told me to do it. Referring to the language, I felt very nervous because although I am trying to improve my English I know that I still have to work harder on it. In order to solve the problems I am having with the VideoPad, I have decided to play the music while I was recording the video. By this way I achieved to add the music on the video. Referring to what my judges told me, in general the dessert tasted good but it would taste better with less cinnamon. However, they have given me encouragement to continue cooking and thanks to that I am energetic to continue learning and taking place in the kitchen.

Miren: making torrijas has been easy for me, the process is very simple and I had not much difficulties during it. I have uploaded a video and some pictures because my camera had not got much battery and when I was finishing doing the dessert, it suddendly stopped. My mum likes very much this dessert and she knows how to do it, so she had helped me. The result has been very tasty and my mum valued it very positevely.

Iraitz: I have never eaten torrijas before and that may be the reason for me to felt so motivated at the time of making them. I knew that different members of my family make two types of torrijas, but when I asked my groupmates they told me that we were going to do the ones whose main ingredient is the bread. So, I asked my aunt for help and she told me she could help me; in fact, torrijas are a very easy dessert to make. When I get her home at first I felt lost, but when I saw my aunt baking the torrijas I realized they had nothing to shout about. Therefore I gave her the camera and we started recording how I made this new dessert. Everything was great, although when I put the torrijas into the pan I felt scared, it was horribe... I am afraid of the hot oil poping. Half an hour later, I realized that unintentionally I had already learnt to make another dessert more. That was an amazing feeling for me!

Making three chocolate cake:

Eli: Making this dessert has been very easy. As my mum and me do not know how to make the three chocolates cake, I saw on the internet how to make it and I followed the steps the video showed. You have to follow the same steps by three times, with the three chocolates, but the biggest problem that this dessert gave me has been the time. You need much time to make it because it is a slow process and as I wanted a good result, I did it like appeared on the video. Although it was the first time that my mum and I were making this dessert, I felt comfortable making it. Besides, this time I did not record myself making the dessert. Instead of that, I took photos of all the process but in the same way looking for the blog anyone could learn how to make this dessert. When my judges tasted the dessert there were different results. For everybody the dessert tasted very well but someone told me that it would be better if I left it in the fridge for more time; other judge told me that it was not the texture they thought. In conclusion, although I did it in a different way because of the photos, I think that the result has been quite good and I have noticed that each time I like cooking more and more.

Miren: making three chocolates cake has been a long process because you have to make the chocolates one by one and it needs much time. It is not very difficult because the steps are cleary specified, but the patience is needed for this dessert. In my case, I decided to ask to a friend who is studyng cookery if she could help me with this dessert. After explaining me how to make this cake, she left me alone and I think I made it quite good. When I finished doing it, I put it into the fridge in order to be curdled for the next day. When the process finally ended, I tasted it and it was delicious and very soft, maybe too much. Then, my family members wanted to taste it and the liked it very much. I think this dessert is one of the best I have done!!

Iraitz: The result I have achieved when making this dessert was delicious! I have had some problems at the time of learning how to make this dessert, but finally I fulfilled my work. I asked my aunt for help, but because of some problems at the last moment she could not help me and my mum had to do it. My mum as me, does not know how to make this dessert so we called my aunt and with the help of some instructions she told us we were able to make a three chocolate pie as a group. Then I took all the notes my aunt gave us in a notebook and with its help I achieved my goal, I was able to make a new dessert with the help of four simple notes in a notebook. My feelings were amazing, I felt motivated for the next dessert. I felt happy, proud of myself. When I carried the dessert out to my aunt`s home she told me I was a great baker, I obtained a great result with few clues.

Making truffles:

Eli: Making truffles has been a big challenge for me. On the one hand, my mum did not know how to make this dessert so I looked on the Internet how to make it and it appeared many different receipes. After looking for all the desserts, I spoke with my mum about the options I had and I decided to make it by the way that appeared on the video. On the other hand, since the beginning I was afraid of the way I had to make the dessert because I am not too good at shaping things, in this case, the dough of the truffles. However, I got motivated making the dessert and because of my motivation, everything went well. 

On the videos I saw that you have to leave the dough in the fridge for six hours. But in my case I could not do it by that way and I left it for a whole day in the fridge and after that the problem began. The chocolate was too cold and my mum told me to get it a bit warm before starting to make balls. I did it as she told me but, I got it too hot and when I started making the balls I had lot of difficulties to make them round. Furthermore, as the chocolate was too hot the shavings could not be added to the chocolate. I got very angry and frustated with the result, because I knew that I did it wrong when I heat the dough but I did it the best I could. However, when my judges tasted the dessert they told me that they tasted very good, so my motivation came back. Moreover, some of my judges advised me that it would taste better with a bit more of condensed milk. In general, I had lot of problems making this dessert but at the end I was calmed with the valoration of my judges and  I realized that I am able to look for different strategies to lead my problems.

Miren: making truffles is very easy, the process is short and the steps you have to follow are very simple. I like very much this dessert so I was looking forward to make it. As I did not know how to make it, I asked my to mother, grandmother and friends if someone could help me but finally after looking on the Internet, I decided to take a book of my mother and follow the recipe that appeared there. So I followed the steps that appeared in that book and I obtained a very good result; they were very tasty and my family liked a lot. The only thing I have to improve for the next time is the topping of chocolate because the truffles were too much soft. But in general I am very happy with my results and as I have a sweet tooth I am enjoying a lot! Umm..

Iraitz: This has been the easiest dessert to make for me. My aunt told me she could help me with this dessert, she knows I love chocolate as her, so we enjoyed a lot making truffles. When I arrived her home, she started telling me which were the ingredients , how I had to make it... and I took notes in my little notebook as I have been taking in the other desserts. Then, she made a round of truffles, to give me an example. After seeing how my aunt made the truffles, my turn arrived. My aunt took the camera and we started recording all step by step. I realized that the truffles were a very easy and delicious dessert, appropriate for all the situations: family lunch, a dinner with friends... Although I fulfilled my aim and I achieved my goal, we had a little problem. We think I threw more cognac than the dessert needed and that may be reason why the chocolate did not get frozen. So for the next time I have to make the truffles with the help of two spoons, because with the hands the chocolate gets thaw. In spite of that all was great, I felt good with my results and I enjoyed a lot eating them!

Making cookies:

Miren: Making cookies is easier than I expected, the process is very short and the steps are easy to follow. For doing that, I have had the help of my mother who has taught me making cookies. Firstly, one day when she was making them I saw the process while I was taking some notes, useful for the next time. Once I had them, I memorized the steps and then I have been able to do it on my own. I think the result has been good, although I have had some difficulties with the proportions and because of that I had to solve them while the process was going on. The oven has been also problematic because as it is new, I did not know which programme was suitable to do cookies, but finally I achieved my objective and I have continued making cookies more times. MY FAMILY LOVES THEM!!!

Eli: This dessert has been the last I have made individually. I have had different sensations during the process but in general I can say that it has been easy to make cookies. On the one hand, I got nervous while I was making the dessert because I decided to tell the steps to make the cookies in English. To make it by this way, I got the instructions that a friend gave  me to make the dessert and I translated to English. When I started with the project I was very afraid of the language because I knew that I had to work on it to improve. I decided to speak in English while I was making my last dessert and although I was very nervous, I felt good with myself and proud of my work. On the other hand, I felt a bit lost while I was making the desserts because although I had the steps I had to follow, I did not know very well  how I had to add the ingredients. 

The process of making the dough was easy but when I put the dough on the baking tray I had difficulties to mash the balls. However, I decided to make it by the way I could and at the end they were well mashed. Referring to the presentation, I am not an original person and because of that I do not know how to decorate my desserts. In this case, I decided to use chocolate to make a nice face next to the cookies in order to transmit that eating the cookies could be funny. Besides, my judges told me that the cookies tasted very well and congratulated me for making very delicious desserts.

Iraitz: Yum! What a succulent dessert! I have done this dessert two times: once with my mum and the other one with my aunt. It has been a delicious process, I love this butter cookies so I have been very motivated at the time of making them. The first time as with all the other desserts, my mum explained me how to make them and I took some essential notes about ingredients, quantities and the steps I had to follow. Then, we made the dessert as a group without recording and I took some photos to the results. Whereas the second time, my aunt recorded me and I made the process on my own with the help of the notes I took the first time. I have to say that both times have been really important and they have contribute a lot in my learning process. The results I achieved in my two opportunities have been satisfactory. I have enjoyed a lot eating this delicious treasure!