Culinary Art students Kyandra Webster (left) and Sushella Rowe, proudly display their cakes during an exhibition entitled Florals in Bloom at the Hotel PomMarine. (S.Medford/BGIS)
Students of the Culinary Arts programme of the Barbados Community College’s Hospitality Institute staged a “flower” show in the Pelican Room at Hotel PomMarine this week.
The flowers, all made from gum paste, decorated a variety of cakes and were on display during an exhibition entitled Florals in Bloom.
Course Instructor, Toni Simpson, explained that the event was a final requirement for the second year students who were participating in the Baking Technology course.
She noted that fondant, gum paste, royal icing and marzipan work were all part of the curriculum, and this assignment allowed students to demonstrate their knowledge in those areas.
“The students have done very well. We have seen improvement from when they first started making the flowers to the final product. This exposes them to the world of pastry, a technical aspect of the culinary field. We don’t have a dedicated pastry programme, so this allows them to have another avenue that they could pursue on their culinary path,” Ms. Simpson pointed out.
Second year student, Khai Williams, proudly stood by his display, which highlighted the Dogwood flower. He stated that much research was done before his team designed the cake.
“There is a lot more to it than just the cooking. To cook, and cook well, you must understand the basics and the reasoning behind it. The passion, the drive and what really goes into it comes from the roots. So, in terms of how passionate you are about cooking and baking, passionate about anything, you really have to know about it; you really have to have a love for it,” the culinary student asserted.
Khai, who aspires to become an airline chef, offered some words of encouragement to other young persons, particularly males, who may have an interest in the culinary field.
“Go for it, don’t stop, keep going, and strive for excellence. Once you love it and you know this is what you want, then go for it. Settle down and study because at the end of the day it’s not the challenges you face, but how you tackle them,” the PomMarine student maintained.