Niveditha Mani from Sai Baba Colony who owns and runs her home-based brand Pink Oven, wasted no time in accepting the invitation from Book Mark, the city-based library and activity centre for children, to host a workshop for children above the age of six. She is happy that she did.

“I have been baking since I was 11 and I understand the excitement and the enthusiasm of these kids at the workshop. It is nice to see parents encouraging their children to learn the art of baking at a tender age,” Niveditha said, after the workshop.

At the half-day-long workshop with two dozen participants below the age of 11, Niveditha taught them how to make vanilla cupcakes with cream, chocolate cream cakes, energy bars, and custard cookies. Of these, except the chocolate cream cakes, the rest of the dishes required baking.

Niveditha’s course was a complete one – right from making the dough for the cup cakes, to decorating. When the cupcakes were ready and out of the oven, the little kids grabbed them to taste them. They were simply delighted.

For the city baker who regularly hosts baking and cake decoration workshops for adults, teaching the kids was a different experience altogether. While she was busy melting the first set of chocolates for the chocolate cream cakes, she left a few pieces on the table next to her. When she returned, the chocolates were gone – the children ate them up! With the children circling around the oven, eagerly waiting for the cakes to get ready, Niveditha enjoyed teaching the budding bakers as much as they enjoyed learning the art of baking from her.