The kitchen environment you have available to you definitely impacts on your ability to bake. The last time I cooked, I decided to make cupcakes, because my flatmate has muffin tins which afford me to make cupcakes. I've made them before in a cake tin by squashing in all the cupcake holders together, but they came out square, so muffin tins are much better!
When it comes to cooking and baking equipment, I thought I'd accumulated just the right amount over the years, but when I moved into my new flat, I discovered a few things I didn't have and would quite like: electric beater, muffin tins, cake racks. These extra things make it easier to bake and give me more options. I also like the fact that the kitchen bench here is nice and low, which fits with my small stature.
Annabel Langbein, in Anyone can bake (2010) states confidently that we only need 17 items in the kitchen to bake successfully - one day I'll have to compare my list to hers. On the other hand, Susan Campbell has published 268 pages of cooking implements in her 1980 manual of kitchen implements. This tells me that the equipment you need depends on the person.
Annabel Langbein, in Anyone can bake (2010) states confidently that we only need 17 items in the kitchen to bake successfully - one day I'll have to compare my list to hers. On the other hand, Susan Campbell has published 268 pages of cooking implements in her 1980 manual of kitchen implements. This tells me that the equipment you need depends on the person.
If I think about social factors - does baking fit into my overall environment? Yes, it's socially acceptable for a woman in New Zealand to bake - people are pleased with the results but not surprised that I can do this. Johnston (2008) talks about how people in today's society view baking as "eccentric" and that it used to be the normal response to "the birth of a baby, the arrival of a new neighbour or a sudden bereavement" (p. 7). I like to think I'm keeping the traditions of my Nana and my Mum alive when I bake for occasions and gifts.
If I think about the impact an observer would have on the activity, I think of me mucking up ingredients when I've tried to have a conversation at the same time as bake. Then I think about baking with my mother as an observer. At this point in my life, I find it impossible to bake with her present, as she constantly interferes, by making comments about my inadequacy as a baker and actually putting ingredients in when I'm not looking!Johnston helped me to put my activity of baking into a historical and cultural context. Johnston explores the history of baking in New Zealand in her introduction. She writes about how community organizations often created a collective cookbook for fundraising purposes and mentions the personal quality of the recipes, eg ‘Grandma’s buns’, an example from my cookbook. Johnston writes of baking being a way of communicating with neighbours in time of need and celebration. She also places baking in a modern context, as an activity that is often seen as time-consuming, and perhaps not worth the time.
References:
Campbell, S. (1980) Cooks' tools: The complete manual of kitchen implements and how to use them. William Morrow & Company, Inc: New York
Johnston, A. (2008) Ladies, a plate: Traditional home baking. Penguin Group (NZ): North Shore
Langbein, A. (2010) Anyone can bake. Annabel Langbein Books: Remuera
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