What you'll do
Boost your baking skills and satisfy your sweet tooth in this mouthwatering weeklong class. Whip up creative confections every day as you master culinary techniques, experiment with flavor, customize recipes and make food truck-worthy treats that look as good as they taste.
Start by making sweet, petite cheesecakes, stretching yourself to be courageous as you customize the filling with unusual or unfamiliar flavors. Bake a batch of gourmet cupcakes, then practice piping skills to frost them with fluffy buttercream. Perfect a pair of French favorites: cream puffs made from airy choux pastry and flawlessly flipped, flavorfully filled crepes. Be reflective as you sample every element and plate your food for photos, considering how you could tweak each dish to elevate taste and presentation. Throughout the week, imagine what your own food truck might look like, designing a concept, logo and menu full of irresistibly original desserts.
Note:
This weeklong class is more than just innovation-igniting projects—it’s an immersive experience full of delightful details, including interactive games, silly traditions and dress-up days designed to build community, bolster confidence and deliver loads of camp-away-from-camp fun. The curriculum includes some popular recipes from our Chefology major at Galileo Summer Quest. If your child has made mini cheesecakes, cupcakes with buttercream frosting or crepes with us at summer camp, they’ll be familiar with some of this week’s projects—and have the chance to put a new spin on a dessert they’ve made before.
What you'll need
Ingredients
- Dry ingredients: flour, granulated sugar, powdered sugar, brown sugar, baking powder, salt, cornstarch, cocoa powder, chocolate chips, graham crackers
- Wet ingredients: butter, milk, whipping cream, cream cheese, sour cream, eggs
- Fruit: apple, citrus (lemons, limes or oranges), frozen fruit (any type)
- Spices/flavorings: cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla
- Additional flavorings (choose 1 or 2): ground spices (cinnamon, instant coffee), whole spices (cardamom pods, ginger root), extracts (peppermint, lavender, rose water), sweeteners (honey, maple syrup)
- Optional: com syrup, baking soda, coconut oil, buttermilk
- See your welcome email after you enroll for a more detailed shopping list and ingredients broken out by day.
Materials
- Appliances: stove or electric burner, oven or toaster oven (cupcake tin and baking sheet must fit inside), food processor or blender, electric hand mixer
- Cookware/bakeware: cupcake tin, baking sheet, saucepan, non-stick frying pan
- Tools/utensils: vegetable peeler, measuring spoons, measuring cups, mixing spoons, spatula
- Other essentials: cupcake liners (paper or silicone), zipper bags or piping bags, parchment paper, toothpicks, storage containers (to store desserts)
- Miscellaneous supplies: notebook or 10+ pieces of paper (for note taking), camera or smartphone (for food photography)
Technology
- Computer or tablet with speaker and camera
- Internet access
- Zoom application installed, signed in with child’s name
What you'll take away
- Experience with baking techniques, flavor experimentation and plating design
- The skills to be courageous and try new things
- The skills to be reflective and seek to improve your work
- A batch of original delectable desserts, including mini cheesecakes, buttercream-frosted cupcakes, cream puffs and crepes
Join the community
The last step in the Galileo Innovator’s Process is share. Great learning can come from sharing successes and failures—to solidify your own experience as an innovator and to inspire others.
ELL
Some bilingual staff & support for multilingual families.
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Support for Students with Special Needs (Oakland Camp Director has a Masters in Special Education).
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Yes. Every year, we award thousands of weeks of specially priced camp through our financial assistance program. Apply on our Financial Assistance page. Scholarships available.