Getting to know the flour-covered people behind this blog
The Orange Baker is actually two people, but I, Joop, spend the most time behind the stove and kitchen counter.
I am a Dutch native, living in Texas, with my wife and our two daughters. I am not officially trained but taught myself the classical European way, with strong influence from France, Italy and the north of Europe. Cook books, the occasional workshop, YouTube and my younger brother, Jasper, have been my inspiration throughout my journey.
My wife has the same passion for food from all over the world. She has strong Mediterranean roots, and she has a unique knack for flavor combinations, and classic recipes and ingredients from the southern European region, all the way to the Middle Eastern Gulf region.
I have baked when I was younger (I remember baking scones with my grandmother and apple pie with my mother), but I paused for quite a few years when I was on high school and college. I had a job next to school in the weekend in a bakery, and loved being around bread and cake all Saturday long, but didn’t really bake at home anymore.
The baking bug really returned in 2014. I remember the recipe that triggered it: Donna Hay’s Lemon Yogurt cake. I was home during the week, and instead of ransacking the pantry of chips and chocolate, I decided to try and bake something myself. There was something extremely satisfying about creating something pretty and tasty from scratch.
Then, I finally caught on the Great British Bake-Off on the BBC, the British television station. Seeing a group of amateurs bake the most amazing dishes every week provided me with the inspiration to try it, too. I bought Paul Hollywood’s book, and apart from one recipe, all of them succeeded. With practice and a lot of repetition, I got better and better, and it got even more fulfilling!
Many of my family members, friends and neighbors have acted as guinea pigs. They have patiently tried all my different experiments, and helped me with pointing me to new recipes or ingredients. It has happened more than once, that I was watching the Bake-Off or Jamie Oliver, and I would get inspired to also bake Millionaire’s Shortbread of Raisin Rolls in the middle of the night. I am very fortunate that I have never had to eat everything myself.
The one recipe I couldn’t master, you ask? Paul Hollywood’s Soda Bread. One of the easiest recipes, and for the love of me, it took me forever to get it right. No matter what I did, it was a raw, blob of dough every single time. But as with many things, practice makes perfect. I finally got the hang of that one, and it’s a wonderful, quick bread to whip out if you need something tasty, fast.
My new obsession for a bake I can’t get right: macarons. One day I hope to be able to post a recipe with beautiful photos, but until that date, I will keep trying. Any tips? Send them my way!
Thank you for visiting this blog, and I hope you have a good time trying out some of the recipes. Feel free to comment if you have questions or tips.
Happy baking!