What do you like about baking?
I have loved baking since I learned to make a hedgehog cake back in secondary school D&T class. My mum always used to make me really fancy and clever birthday cakes and I guess I have carried on the tradition. I love being able to make things that not just look good but that most people enjoy and comeback for more and I also do baking as a stress reliever. It is incredible that with just a few ingredients you can get something so loved. I am regularly asked to make cakes for people and pre-lockdown I regularly used to bring cakes into the office for everyone to enjoy.
Have you made any adaptations to your kitchen to make it wheelchair friendly?
I do my baking in my regular height kitchen which hasn’t had any adaptations so I have to use my elevating wheelchair in order to reach the countertop and the oven. I have all the usual kitchen gadgets such as stand and hand mixers so that I don’t have to put pressure on my arms when mixing the ingredients and I have the same oven that they use in the Great British Bake Off where the oven door slides away so I can get up-close to the oven without having to lean over the oven door.
Do you have any top tips on specific equipment/ utensils you use?
I would definitely recommend getting a stand mixer or hand mixer to take the pressure off of your arms, there are so many on the market and you don’t have to spent lots as the cheaper ones are often as good as the top end ones. I would also recommend getting a mixer that has a handle on the mixing bowl as it makes it easier to pick the bowl up and pour out the cake mix into cake tins.
Any other top tips you would like to share?
When baking my biggest tip would be FOLLOW THE RECIPE. Baking is not like cooking where you can pick and choose which ingredients you use and the quantities, baking is a science, just a few differences can have big consequences on the end result. However, if your cake doesn’t turn out like you want you can always cut off the burned bits and crumble up the rest of the cake and mix it with some melted chocolate or icing and make cake pops. Baking doesn’t have to be difficult, there are so many recipes and video tutorials out there so just have fun and experiment.
