Baking a Cake, Tukwatanize Style

The women learning to measure and mix cake ingredients using a receipt.

This past week about twenty of the women from the Tukwatanize (means “to work together” in Rutooro) circle met with me at the Shalom Parent School to learn to bake a cake.   One of the income generating ideas of the women is to start a small catering business.  We have agreed to start with focusing on baking cakes.  Good quality cakes, made specifically for special events, are in high demand in the local markets.  It is a nitch market and has potential to be very profitable.  Baking cakes is kind of a mysterious thing here.  It is left to those who are more educated or have received special training in such things.  Because of this the price for even simple cakes is very inflated and offers us a good opportunity. 

The women have never used standards of measures or a receipt to make anything before.  So, my first challenge was to share the baking standards of measures with them so that they can consistently make good quality cakes and be able to accurately estimate the cost of the ingredients.  Next, we worked together through a chocolate cake receipt step by step, mixing the ingredients.  Finally it was time to bake the cake.  This is where I became the student and the ladies became the teachers.  Since most of the women do not have access to power or an oven, they decided to try to bake the cake using a more traditional method, over a fire.  This definitely peaked my curiosity.  So the women poured the cake mixture in a metal mold pan and then placed it in a much larger aluminum pan that was about half full of sand which had been pre-heated over the fire.  We then covered the larger pan with old, rusted tin sheets and placed bricks on top and waited with anticipation.   Each time we checked the cake, I showed them how to use a toothpick to test the readiness of the cake.

Placing the cake mold in the pan filled with sand

Covering the pan with tin sheets to keep the heat in

While waiting for the cake to bake, I took the opportunity to show the women how to make a simple butter frosting and an icing glaze for the cake.  We also worked together through the cake receipt to estimate the cost of each item to determine how much we have invested in making this specific cake.

Finished cake!

Well, the moment of truth had arrived, the cake was finished and ready to be served, and it was AWESOME! Of course, we all had to share in the fruits of our labors.  One more mystery was solved and the women left encouraged that each one of them was capable of baking a cake without the need of years of schooling or special training.  This week we are going to get together again and they will demonstrate their new skills to me as they bake another cake. They have agreed to bake a more traditional Ugandan spice cake.  I have challenged them to create a receipt for their cake according to our new standard of measures and to present the estimated cost of the cake ingredients.  Can’t wait to taste the next cake!

Blessings,
Luan

Learning Knitting Skills

Grace (left) and Jennifer (right) knitting in their small shop.

For the past month I have been learning how to knit sweaters and various other items using a manual, knitting machine.  I have purchased two such machines through the generous giving of some of our supporters.  The Lord has provided a wonderful and patient teacher named Jennifer in my path.  I am spending about four days a week in her shop as she teaches me the basics of knitting.  She has allowed me to use half of her little shop (6’ x 5’) to set up and leave my knitting machine.   Her daughter Grace, who is here on holiday break from university, is also teaching me how to utilize the pattern making part of the machine.  They are both giving of their time and skills for free!

I am learning these knitting skills so that I will be able to teach the first young women who will participate in the Sewing Seeds Project.  Lord willing, discipleship and skills training will begin in February 2012.  Jennifer was unavailable to help as she needs to tend to her own business.  The first quarter of the year is the busiest season for knitting sweaters as all of the school children return for the new school year.   I am confident that I will be ready to pass on what I have learn to the young women and Susan who will be partnering with me in the ministry. 

Please pray for wisdom, discernment, direction, and unity as we move forward together in the ministry.   Pray that the Lord will reveal to us the young women who love the Lord, have a teachable spirit, and will be committed to participate in the project.  

In Him,

Luan