LIFESTYLE NEWS - Pastry chef Alison Greenlees says that being in the kitchen has been a part of her life from as early as she can remember. Starting off as a toddler and licking clean the mixing bowls and wooden spoons that her mother used while making cakes and cookies, through to her high school years, where she spent every free moment in the kitchen creating pastries and other delicious things to eat.
“I just love being in the kitchen. It’s my happy place and I and knew from a very early age that baking was something I wanted to do for the rest of my life,” she says.
The 24-year-old Sandbaai resident is now the pastry chef at Hame, a popular restaurant and whisky bar in Hermanus.
Greenlees grew up in Johannesburg and, after matriculating in 2019, enrolled at Capsicum Culinary Studio’s Rosebank campus for the Professional Patisserie Course.
“I chose to study at Capsicum because to me their pastry course appeared very well-rounded and comprehensive, offering everything I wanted to study as well as a few extras I hadn't even thought of. Before signing up, I went for a tour of the campus and that sealed the deal. It has stunning facilities, a great location and all the bells and whistles you could wish for.”
Greenlees says she thrived there and absolutely loved the course.
“From breads and cakes to chocolate and sugar work, it was everything I wanted and more. It not only allowed me to build on my love for everything pastry, but it also showed me how much more I could do and achieve if I let my mind and creativity run wild.”
Greenlees’ dedication to her craft was evident when she received the “Spirit of Capsicum” award and graduated top of her class in 2022.
Since graduating, she’s had a hectic, but exciting and rewarding few years.
“After I left Capsicum I began working at various in restaurants in Johannesburg, but then decided to do my own thing and started a small catering business.”
When her boyfriend was offered a job in Zastron in the Free State, Greenlees moved with him and soon found work helping manage the kitchen and training the staff of a local hotel. She also aided in opening a small boutique shop where “anyone who had a passion could sell their work and show the love for their respective skills.”
As if that wasn’t enough, Greenlees also took up an offer to work with students from another culinary school in the area.
“A local restaurant employed a few students for their industry practical, and the owner asked if I would be willing to come in and give the students a few tips, tricks and lessons on life in the culinary industry.
“For me this experience was beyond rewarding. Getting to work with those students was just like going back to being a student myself, calling on all the incredible lessons my own instructors had taught me; lessons that I will never forget.
“Teaching people that the kitchen does not have to be a stressful environment is a passion of mine as I have always considered it my safe place; a place where I can switch off and allow myself to breathe and bask in the joy of creating.
“Because of this, I decided to run a few courses most notably a day course in cookie decoration; the art behind royal icing. This was the most fun I'd ever had, as it allowed me to demonstrate how just a few basic steps can open a whole world of possibility for designs and skills. Once you understand the basics and fundamentals of baking and pastry, how the ingredients work together and how flavours complement each other, there's nothing stopping you from creating new desserts, treats and baked goodies.”
Photos: Supplied
After a year living in Zastron, Greenlees and her partner moved to the Western Cape to experience a new lifestyle and also to be closer to her newborn nephew. It was not long before she found her dream job - working as a pastry chef at Hame.
“I came across the role accidentally,” she says. ”While I was chatting to a potential landlord I mentioned that I was a pastry chef and looking for work. It turned out she knew the owner of Hame and recommended me for the position. I went for an interview and the rest is history.”
Greenlees’ position entails maintaining the restaurants daily cake table, the lunch and dinner dessert service menu and the daily stock of cakes, tarts, muffins and cookies for the restaurant’s coffee shop.
“Although I am the sole pastry chef I do work alongside a wonderful colleague who is in charge of all things croissants.”
So what are her future plans, goals and dreams?
“I’ve always wanted to run my own bakery where I can teach classes and show people how calming baking and being in the kitchen can be. So that is definitely my five year goal. I also hope to have started a family by then, so having my own place where I can be as hands-on or hands-off as needed will allow me to reach my career goals and have the family life that I've always dreamed of.”
Greenlees says that she also wants to master sugar work, an area of pastry that she’s not had much practice with, but until then she’s working on perfecting her speciality which is making tarts.
“While it’s not the most intricate and delicate skill, it's something I love doing. I've managed to find and perfect the best recipes for all things tarts - from flaky and buttery pastries to simple fruit fillings and more unique flavour combinations. Nothing beats a good homemade tart. Tarts and pies also have some fun areas to play around with such as a simple or standard lattice top or something more elegant, more complex, more unique and eye catching. The possibilities are endless.”
We put Greenlees to the test and asked her to share a recipe for a simple, easy-to-make yet delicious tart. Here’s what she sent us:
Alison’s Apple Tart
Ingredients
- For the pastry
- 200g unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 100g icing sugar
- 300g flour
- 1tsp vanilla essence
- 1 egg
- Pinch of salt
Method
Cream butter until smooth and light in colour. Add in icing sugar and beat together for 1 minute. Stir in the egg and vanilla essence, then add the flour and salt and mix until just combined. Don't over mix. Wrap in clingfilm and allow to rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour. While it is resting, make the apple tart filling
Ingredients
- 4 apples
- 45g flour
- 115g unsalted butter
- 100g brown sugar
- 100g caster sugar
- 1 to 2 tsp cinnamon
- ½ tsp salt
- ¼ cup water
Method
Preheat oven to 180°C. Place all the ingredients in a sauce pan and heat until butter has melted, and sugar is slightly dissolved, and you have a thick but runny consistency. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.
While the filling cools, remove the dough from the fridge and using two thirds of it, spread it out in a tart dish, ensuring an even spread on the base and sides of the dish. You do not need to roll the dough out, just press it into the dish in small sections.
Next, peel, core and slice the apples and arrange them on the tart base. Use the other third of the dough to cover the apple slices. Have fun with the design for your top pastry, but a simple lattice works beautifully.
Roll out the pastry and cut into 1.3cm wide strips. Arrange the lattice on top of the apples, allowing for decent gaps between the pastry to accommodate the filling. Once the pastry top has been completed, grab your cinnamon filling and pour over the lattice, allowing it to run between all the gaps and gather around the apples.
Do not overfill. This filling should not drown the apples, a little goes a long way.
Place in oven and bake until golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool for a few minutes to allow the pastry to firm up.
Removing it from the dish too soon will cause the pastry to break. Serve warm with a big scoop of vanilla ice cream or a dollop of whipped cream.
‘We bring you the latest Garden Route, Hessequa, Karoo news’
