fidzu : blog

Content management systems are constantly evolving to meet the growing needs of organizations with vast amounts of information to share. One topic that's often overlooked until it becomes a problem is how structured data impacts editorial efficiency and long-term website success. When a site has hundreds, or even thousands of individual pages, keeping everything organized […]

25 May 2026 9:47am GMT

Hi there,

It's good to be home again. It was an unusually long break, but I appreciate the series of official bank holidays that morph into long weekends away from the computer.

And of course, the catch-up is overwhelming. The creativity inside the WordPress community around content creation, development and design is highly energizing.

And it's WordPress 7.0 release week! It's finally here!

So don't let me keep you any longer. Enjoy!

If you want to stop long enough to send me a note, I'd be delighted to hear from you.

Yours,
Birgit

WordCamp Europe is coming up fast. It'll take place Jun 4 to 6, 2026. The schedule just was posted. If you still are on the fence about getting your ticket. Here are another 49 reasons to head to Krakow. The schedule lists 34 Talks, 3 Panels, 10 Workshops and 2 Keynotes.

For armchair WordCampers, like myself, there will be a livestream. After the WordCamp recordings will be uploaded to YouTube and WordPressTV.

A first selection of what I might watch:

• Keynote: Two worlds collide: WordPress at CERN
• HTML API practicum: a deep dive with Dennis Snell
• Human in the loop means something with Tammie Lister
• Beyond hamburgers: latest Navigation block changes with Sarah Norris
• WordPress for scientists: building engineering websites at CERN (regular talk) with Akanksha Chatterjee
• Build your developer portfolio: a hands-on guide to FSE with Dejan Rudic Vranic
• Closing Keynote with Matt Mullenweg on Saturday June 6, 2026.

if you rather stay in North America, WordCamp US just opened up the online ticket booth. It'll take place from August 16 to August 19, 2026, in Phoenix, AZ. The calls for sponsors and speakers are also available now. The deadline for speaker submissions is next week Friday May 29, 2026.

Developing Gutenberg and WordPress

WordPress 7.0 "Armstrong"

After the decision to remove Real-time Collaboration from the release because it needs more time in the oven, so to speak, the release squad was really busy to produced RC 3 - 5 before the final release on Wednesday May 20, 2026.

Read more via the WordPress 7.0 "Armstrong" release post.

• The release squad also published the Field Guide with all the developer notes and salient details.
• Here on Gutenberg Times you can browse through WordPress 7.0 Source of Truth.
• For German-speaking WordPress users, I discussed the release with Simon Kraft on the Presswerk episode.
• Abha Thakor and I talked through a few features for the OpenChannels.fm episode to come out on Tuesday, May 26, 2026.

Justin Nealey product manager at GoDaddy breaks down why WordPress 7.0's three new APIs matter far more than the headline features for plugin developers. The Connectors API means site owners manage their own AI provider keys centrally; WP AI Client gives you a single provider-agnostic call to invoke any model; and the Abilities API turns your plugin into something the site's AI agent can reach for autonomously. Together, Nealey argues, your plugin stops being a destination users visit and becomes a verb the agent performs.

Ronak Vanpariya, web developer on Gujarat, India digs into why Real-Time Collaboration was pulled from WordPress 7.0 with a five-point technical post-mortem. You'll learn how RTC had to work across every corner of the Site Editor, how simultaneous edits triggered race conditions corrupting block data, and how the feature's reliance on persistent server connections would have overwhelmed shared hosting environments. Memory bloat on older devices and recurring block-tree breakage uncovered by fuzz testing sealed the decision. The feature lives on in the Gutenberg plugin.

Mike McAlister, creator of Ollie, released a video walkthrough of WordPress 7.0 covering the features he sees as most impactful for site builders. He walks through the new AI infrastructure - WP AI Client and the Connectors API - content-only pattern editing, customizable mobile menu overlays, block visibility controls for responsive design, per-block custom CSS, visual revisions, the new Icon and Breadcrumbs blocks, an upgraded Font Library screen, and a command palette shortcut.

In other WordPress Core news:

Immediately after the release of WordPress 7.0, Jeff Paul published the WordPress 7.1 Call for Volunteers. Work has already started since the firsty 7.0 Beta in February. The first beta for WordPress 7.1 is roughly eight weeks out and scheduled for July 15, 2026, and the final release for August 19, 2026 aimed at the last day of WordCamp US.

In addition to the punted Real-time collaboration feature, I discovered a few tracking issue for WordPress 7.1 already:

• #76525: Block Supports and Design Tools in WordPress 7.1 Opened by Aaron Robertshaw, this tracks new and enhanced block supports for 7.1, carrying over items descoped from 7.0. A living issue is updated as supports are added or dropped from the release scope.
• #75707: Block Visibility: Configurable Breakpoints and theme.json Integration The follow-up to 7.0's block visibility work. The goal is to let themes define custom breakpoints via theme.json and make visibility extensible for future responsive features - laying a solid foundation before more viewport-aware tools arrive.
• #76045: DataViews, DataForm, et al. in WordPress 7.1 Tracks continued iteration on DataViews, DataViewsPicker, DataForm, and the Field API. Key work includes migrating @wordpress/dataviews to the new Design System primitives and extending DataForm to PHP-only blocks.
• #77199: Block Bindings in WordPress 7.1 Narrowed in scope to match contributor availability. The headline goal is integrating the Block Bindings UI into Block Fields and removing the previous Block Bindings UI, plus adding Block Bindings support for the Cover block.

First-time release lead Paulo Trentin brought us the latest version for the Gutenberg plugin, 23.2. In his release post What's new in Gutenberg 23.2? (21 May he highlighted: You can now style blocks differently for tablets and phones right from Global Styles, so your designs adapt to each screen. Pop-up dialogs slide up from the bottom on mobile, making them easier to tap one-handed, and animations across the editor now share a consistent feel. You'll also see smoother Content Types management, friendlier Shortcode handling, clearer Revisions diff markers for better accessibility, and steadier real-time collaboration when teammates edit together.

Justin Tadlock rounds up what's new for WordPress developers in May 2026, with WordPress 7.0 landing on May 20. You'll find early details on the Content Types experiment for managing custom post types and taxonomies in Core, a new @wordpress/grid package for building grid-based editor UIs, revisions support extended to templates and patterns, and a wave of block fixes covering the Tabs block, Image alignment, Search block styling, and Global Styles rendering.

If you are interested in learning more about this, the Content Types tracking issue outlines the experiment to bring custom taxonomy and post type management into the WordPress editor. The initial focus is on simple use cases - complex ones stay in plugin territory - with open tasks including a dedicated creation page, richer fields, a quick-edit versus full-edit distinction, and deeper DataViews integration. It's a living issue and community input is welcome.

The latest episode is Gutenberg Changelog #130 - WordPress 7.0, Gutenberg 22.9 and 23.0, WordCamp Europe, Block Themes and More with Tammie Lister, Chief Product Officer at Convesio

John Blackbourn clarified WordPress's PHP support stance in a post that's worth flagging for developers and hosts. The "beta" label for PHP 8.x support has been retired and removed retroactively from all WordPress versions. It was discouraging hosts and developers from upgrading. In short:

• The minimum recommended version remains PHP 8.3;
• the minimum supported version is PHP 7.4.

• Versions 6.9 and 7.0 now officially fully support PHP 8.5,
• Versions 6.8 and later fully support PHP 8.4, and
• Versions 6.4 and later fully support PHP 8.3.

Jeffrey Paul recaps what's new in the WordPress AI canonical plugin 1.0.0, a milestone release landing alongside WordPress 7.0. Two new governance experiments stand out:

• Request Logging gives administrators visibility into every AI request fired across Core, plugins, and themes;
• Connector Approvals lets admins control which plugins can access configured AI providers.

Beyond governance, you'll find comment moderation upgrades with sentiment and toxicity sorting right in the dashboard, AI alt text generation baked into the media editor workflow, and editorial workflow terminology tidied up. Looking ahead to 1.1.0, the team is exploring type-ahead suggestions, focus-aware crop suggestions, an AI Playground, and C2PA content provenance tracking for both text and images.

Rae Morey, editor of The Repository, took a deeper dive into this release: WordPress AI Plugin Hits 1.0 Milestone With New Request Logging and Connector Approvals Experiments

Plugins, Themes, and Tools for #nocode site builders and owners

Jay Walsh, Director of Communications at Woo, announced that WooCommerce stores can now sell directly on YouTube via the Google for WooCommerce extension. You connect your store, tag products from your catalog in videos and Shorts, and they surface as shoppable cards while viewers watch - and also appear in your Channel Shopping tab. The same Merchant Center product feed that powers Google Shopping and Performance Max campaigns keeps everything in sync automatically, with AI-generated ad creative variations across formats included in version 3.6.

Milind More, Senior WordPress engineer at rtCamp introduces three new connectors for the WordPress AI plugin:

• OpenRouter for routing across hundreds of models with cost optimization,
• LM Studio for fully local inference suited to GDPR-sensitive workflows, and a
• Universal OpenAI connector for any OpenAI-compatible endpoint including Ollama, Groq, and Mistral.

All three are built on the same PHP AI Client SDK heading into WordPress Core 7.0, so your setup today carries forward without code changes after the upgrade.

Artur Piszek explains how he uses WordPress as a sync backend for Obsidian with PushMD. This plugin was created with Adam Zielinski, the maker of Playground. It allows you to treat your WordPress site as a git remote using the REST API. You can git clone your blog as plain .md files. Write in Obsidian and push updates to sync. This setup turns your site into a repository without needing an external service. It is also compatible with the upcoming Guidelines/Artifacts system in WordPress Core, which lets you store private notes and configurations there too.

Seth Rubenstein at Pew Research Center shared a preview of PRC Block Bits, now open-sourced on GitHub. Block Bits solves a specific gap between block bindings and RichText: where bindings replace an entire block's content with dynamic data, a "bit" lets you embed small dynamic pieces - an inline icon, a copyright year, live text - right in the middle of a paragraph or heading. You register bits via a PHP and JS API, choose between a pure-PHP callback or Interactivity API strategy, and an editor toolbar dropdown handles insertion. Built-in bits for icons and copyright ship out of the box.

Theme Development for Full Site Editing and Blocks

Damir Tahiri of Rareview has open-sourced the WordPress starter theme that underpins every one of the agency's builds. It's Gutenberg-ready, ships with global style variables, includes a one-command Figma sync, and runs an interactive setup that renames and configures everything automatically. You can grab it on GitHub and use it as the foundation for your own projects.

Building Blocks and Tools for the Block editor.

On the WordPress Developer blog, Róbert Mészáros shows you how to get started writing WordPress E2E tests with Playwright, using a book review site built on Block Bindings as the test subject. You'll set up wp-env and Playwright, write your first test against the admin dashboard, then progress to inserting block variations, verifying patterns with aria snapshots, and testing front-end output by creating posts via the REST API.

Also on the WordPress Developer Blog, Felix Arntz, Senior Software Engineer at Vercel, walks you through building a provider-agnostic image generation plugin using WordPress 7.0's built-in AI Client. You'll see how a single wp_ai_client_prompt() call handles provider routing, how support checks gate your UI gracefully when no image-capable provider is configured, and how the REST API and Media Library integration come together. The full source code is on GitHub at wptrainingteam/ai-client-imagegen.

Sérgio Santos, Lead Engineer at 10up/Fueled, diagnoses three specific bugs you hit when using RichText outside a block - in InspectorControls or a Modal. The format toolbar fills route to the wrong slot, the inline toolbar is opt-in via inlineToolbar, and isSelected never turns true outside a block context. Each problem gets a targeted fix, and the pattern has since been packaged as a reusable component in 10up Block Components.

Eric Karkovack walks you through using my.WordPress.net as a safe AI sandbox - no production site at risk. You install WordPress in your browser in two steps, add the AI Assistant app from the apps menu, connect it to Anthropic, OpenAI, or a local Ollama model, and start prompting. It's a low-stakes way to explore what AI can do inside WordPress before committing it to a live environment, though API costs from OpenAI or Anthropic still apply.

Fresh from last week's WordCamp Portugal:

• Imran Sayed presented The Fastest Way to Build Gutenberg Blocks: Modern Tools, Scripts, and AI at WordCamp Portugal 2026. The talk cuts through the complexity of custom block development by focusing on practical, immediately usable workflows built around modern WordPress tools and scripts.
• Milana Cap presented WordPress Gems for Devs: Accessibility with Interactivity API and makes the case that it's one of the most exciting APIs to land in WordPress in recent releases, with positive implications not just for developer experience but for performance and user experience too.
• Jorge Costa presented AI is in WordPress Core. Here's How to Use It . The talk digs into the AI building blocks already shipped in WordPress Core - the WP AI Client, the Abilities API, and the MCP adapter, and shows you exactly how to bring AI-powered features into your own plugins, themes, and sites.
• JuanMa Garrido presented WordPress Development and Management with Claude Code. The talk treats Claude Code as a command center for WordPress work, generating block themes from HTML designs, querying a production site in natural language, installing plugins, and reading error logs, all from the terminal. Three concepts are at the core: Skills, MCP, and the Abilities API.

Need a plugin .zip from Gutenberg's master branch?
Gutenberg Times provides daily build for testing and review.

Now also available via WordPress Playground. There is no need for a test site locally or on a server. Have you been using it? Email me with your experience.

Questions? Suggestions? Ideas?
Don't hesitate to send them via email or
send me a message on WordPress Slack or Twitter @bph.

For questions to be answered on the Gutenberg Changelog,
send them to changelog@gutenbergtimes.com

23 May 2026 1:08pm GMT

A recap of the 2026 I/O Dialogues, where leaders discuss the future of AI, quantum computing, robotics and creativity.

22 May 2026 6:00pm GMT

At Google I/O, we introduced new ways for developers to expand their reach and scale their business with less complexity.We're expanding their reach by meeting users whe…

21 May 2026 5:00pm GMT

The Texas Energy Impact Fund announced its first grant recipients from its $30 million commitment to energy efficiency in the Lone Star State.

21 May 2026 4:00pm GMT

BackTalk on topics like website wait times, storytelling in case studies, platform longevity, and brand positioning in today's digital landscape.

21 May 2026 1:27pm GMT

Petite cicatrice, mais lourde opération… Que traverse vraiment le corps pendant une césarienne et pourquoi la récupération dure si longtemps.

L'article Césarienne : cette petite cicatrice cache en réalité une chirurgie bien plus lourde qu'on ne l'imagine est apparu en premier sur 20SIX.fr.

18 May 2026 2:07pm GMT

Et si vos lunettes amélioraient aussi votre audition ? Nuance Audio combine correction visuelle et écoute assistée dans une monture discrète !

L'article Nuance Audio : et si vos lunettes pouvaient aussi vous aider à mieux entendre ? est apparu en premier sur 20SIX.fr.

18 May 2026 1:55pm GMT

Saviez-vous que tondre sa pelouse en suivant le bon timing peut tout changer pour l'aspect général de votre jardin ? On vous en dit plus !

L'article Pourquoi tondre sa pelouse au bon moment change tout pour le jardin ? est apparu en premier sur 20SIX.fr.

18 May 2026 11:50am GMT

Acheter des originaux sur le site LesDessinateurs.com Vous pouvez me suivre sur Instagram, Bluesky ou Facebook.

02 Jan 2024 10:41am GMT

Dans le journal L'Equipe du dimanche et du lundi, vous pouviez trouver un de mes dessins en dernière page. Voici un petit échantillon des dessins réalisés en 2023 pour le quotidien sportif. Acheter des originaux sur le site LesDessinateurs.com Vous pouvez me suivre sur Instagram, Bluesky ou Facebook. Acheter des originaux sur le site LesDessinateurs.com Vous …

Continuer la lecture de « Une année de sport »

01 Jan 2024 9:11am GMT

Acheter des originaux sur le site LesDessinateurs.com Vous pouvez me suivre sur Instagram, Bluesky ou Facebook.

30 Dec 2023 1:06pm GMT

Much as I love pasta, I'm not sure it loves me. Last year my carb-heavy comfort food diet led to some weight gain so I looked into low carb pasta as an alternative. There's a lot out there and I'm still trying different brands and styles, but I thought now would be a good time to share what I've learned so far.

Pasta with Butternut Squash and Brussels Sprouts

My introduction to legume and bean-based pasta was thanks to Barilla. I was lucky because I got to attend a webinar with Barilla's incredible chef, Lorenzo Boni. I tried his recipe for pasta with butternut squash and Brussels sprouts which I definitely recommend and have now made several times. If you've seen his wildly popular (150k+ followers!) Instagram feed you know he's a master at making all kinds of pasta dishes and that he often eats plant-based meals. I followed up with him to get some tips on cooking with pasta made from beans and legumes.

Pasta made with beans and legumes is higher in protein and so the recommended 2-ounce portion is surprisingly filling. But the texture isn't always the same as traditional semolina or durum wheat pasta. Chef Boni told me, "The nature of legume pasta makes it soak up more moisture than traditional semolina pasta, so you always want to reserve a bit of cooking water to adjust if needed." But when it comes to cooking, he says that with Barilla legume pasta you cook it the same way as semolina pasta. "Boil in salted water for the duration noted on the box and you'll have perfectly al dente pasta." They are all gluten-free.

Chickpea pasta

When I asked Chef Boni about pairing chickpea pastas with sauce he said, "Generally speaking, I prefer olive oil based sauces rich with vegetables, aromatic herbs and spices. Seafood also pairs well with chickpea options. If used with creamy or tomato-based sauces, keep in mind to always have some pasta water handy to adjust the dish in case it gets too dry." He added, "One of my favorite ways to prepare a legume pasta dish would be a simple chickpea rotini with shrimp, diced zucchini and fresh basil. The sauce is light enough to highlight the flavor of the pasta itself, while the natural sweetness helps keep the overall flavor profile more appealing to everyone." I like the Barilla brand because the only ingredient is chickpeas. Banza makes a popular line of chickpea pasta as well although they include pea starch, tapioca and xanthan gum.

Edamame pasta

I tried two different brands of edamame pasta, Seapoint Farms and Explore Cuisine. The Seapoint pasta has a rougher texture than the Explore. With the Seapoint I found the best pairings were earthy chunky toppings like toasted walnuts and sautéed mushrooms. The Explore Cuisine edamame & spirulina pasta is smoother and more delicate, and worked well with an Asian style peanut sauce. I was happy with the Seapoint brand, but would definitely choose the Explore brand instead if it's available.

Red lentil pasta

Red lentil pasta is most similar to semolina pasta. Barilla makes red lentil pasta in a variety of shapes. But for spaghetti, Chef Boni says, "Barilla red lentil spaghetti is pretty flexible and works well with pretty much everything. I love red lentil spaghetti with light olive oil based sauces with aromatic herbs and some small diced vegetables. It also works well with a lean meat protein." I have to admit, I have yet to try red lentil pasta, but I'm excited to try it after hearing how similar it is to semolina pasta. It is made only with red lentil flour, that's it. It's available in spaghetti, penne and rotini.

Penne for Your Thoughts

Do you remember seeing photos from Italian supermarkets where the shelves with pasta were barren except for penne? I too seem to end up with boxes of penne or rotini and not a clue what to do with them so I asked Chef Boni his thoughts on the subject. He told me, "Shortcuts such as rotini and penne pair very well with all kind of ragouts as well as tomato based and chunky vegetarian sauces. One of my favorite ways to prepare a legume pasta dish would be a simple chickpea rotini with shrimp, diced zucchini and fresh basil. The sauce is light enough to highlight the flavor of the pasta itself, while the natural sweetness helps keep the overall flavor profile more appealing to everyone." Thanks chef! When zucchini is in season I know what I will try!

15 Feb 2022 6:46pm GMT

Julia is a new film based on Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child by Bob Spitz and inspired by My Life in France by Julia Child with Alex Prud'homme and The French Chef in America: Julia Child's Second Act by Alex Prud'homme. Julia Child died in 2004, and yet our appetite for all things Julia hasn't waned.

I grew up watching Julia Child on TV and learning to cook the French classics from her books, And while I never trained to be a chef, like Child I also transitioned into a career focused on food, a subject I have always found endlessly fascinating. I enjoyed the new film very much and while it didn't break much new ground, it did add a layer of perspective that can only come with time. In particular, how Julia Child became a ubiquitous pop culture figure is addressed in a fresh way.

I reached out to the filmmakers,Julie Cohen and Betsy West to find out more about what inspired them and why Julia Child still holds our attention.

Julia Child died over 15 years ago and has been off TV for decades. Why do you believe we continue to be so fascinated by her?

In some ways Julia is the Godmother of modern American cooking - and eating. Her spirit looms over cooking segments on the morning shows, The Food Network, and all those overhead Instagram shots the current generation loves to take of restaurant meals. Beyond that, though, Julia's bigger than life personality and unstoppable joie de vivre are infectious. People couldn't get enough of her while she was living, and they still can't now.

There have been so many Julia Child films and documentaries, what inspired this one?

Well there'd been some great programs about Julia but this is the first feature length theatrical doc. Like everyone else, we adored Julie & Julia, but a documentary gives you a special opportunity to tell a person's story in their own words and with the authentic images. This is particularly true of Julia, who was truly one of a kind.

The impact of Julia Child how she was a groundbreaker really comes across in the film, are we understanding her in a different light as time passes?

People understand that Julia was a talented television entertainer, but outside the professional food world, there's been an under-recognition of just how much she changed the 20th century food landscape. As Jose Andres points out in the film, almost every serious food professional has a sauce-splashed copy of "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" on their shelves. We also felt Julia's role in opening up new possibilities for women on television deserved more exploration. In the early 1960's the idea of a woman on TV who was neither a housewife nor a sex bomb but a mature, tall, confident expert was downright radical. She paved the way for many women who followed.

The food shots add an extra element to the film and entice viewers in a very visceral way, how did those interstitials come to be part of the film?

We knew from the start that we wanted to make food a major part of this story, not an afterthought. We worked with cook and food stylist Susan Spungen to determine which authentic Julia recipes could be integrated with which story beats to become part of the film's aesthetic and its plot. For instance the sole meunière is a key part of the story because it sparked her obsession with French food, and the pear and almond tart provides an enticing metaphor for the sensual side of Julia and Paul's early married years.

Note: Susan Spungen was also the food stylist for Julie & Julia

Julia is in theaters now.

23 Nov 2021 11:30pm GMT

I met Rick Rodgers early in my career as a recipe developer and food writer when we were both contributors to the Epicurious blog. Not only is he a lot of fun to hang out with, but he has also been incredibly helpful to me and is usually the first person I call when I'm floundering with a project, client, or cooking quandary. His interpersonal skills, business experience, and cooking acumen explain why he's been recognized as one of the top cooking instructors in America. Literally.

You built a career as a cooking instructor and cookbook author. How many cookbooks have you written?

I was asked recently to make an official count, and It looks like an even hundred. Many of those were collaborations with chefs, restaurants, celebrities, bakeries, and business entities, such as Tommy Bahama, Williams-Sonoma, and Nordstrom. I made it known that I was available for collaboration work, and my phone literally rang off the hook for quite a few years with editors and agents looking for help with novice writers or those that wanted a branded book.

Which cookbook(s) are you most proud of?

There are three books that I get fan mail for almost every day: Kaffeehaus (where I explore the desserts of my Austrian heritage), Thanksgiving 101 (a deep dive into America's most food-centric holiday and how to pull it off), and Ready and Waiting (which was one of the first books to take a "gourmet" approach to the slow cooker). These books have been in print for 20 years or more, which is a beautiful testament to their usefulness to home cooks.

How did you get started as a cooking instructor and what are some highlights of your teaching career?

I was a theater major at San Francisco State College (now University), so getting in front of a crowd held no terrors for me. When more brick-and-mortar cooking schools opened in the eighties, I was ready for prime time. During that period, there were at least twelve cooking schools in the Bay Area, so I made quarterly trips here a year from the east coast, where I had moved. My Thanksgiving classes were so popular that I taught every day from November 1 to Thanksgiving, with a couple of days off for laundry and travel. The absolute pinnacle of my teaching career was being named Outstanding Culinary Instructor of The Year by Bon Appétit Magazine's Food and Entertaining Awards, an honor that I share with only a handful of other recipients, including Rick Bayless and Bobby Flay.

Flódni

How have cooking classes changed since you started?

Because there are so many classes available, I can teach at any level of experience. At the cooking schools, we tended to walk a fine line between too difficult and too easy. The exposure to different cuisines and skill levels on TV also has seriously raised the bar. Unfortunately, students want to walk before they can run. They want to learn how to make croissants when I doubt that they can bake a pound cake correctly. It is best to build on your skills instead of going right to the top. That being said, in my online classes, I am concentrating on the more challenging recipes because that is what the market demands of me.

Tell me about your baking school, coffeeandcake.org

As much as I loved my cookbooks and in-person classes, I knew there was a more modern way to reach people who wanted to cook with me, especially since so many cooking schools had closed. I retired the day I got my first Social Security check. But…as I was warned by my friends who knew me better than I did…I was bored, and wanted a new project. I heard about online classes through other teachers who were having success. I found an online course specifically for cooking classes (Cooking Class Business School at HiddenRhythm.com), got the nuts and bolts down, and I finally entered the 21st century!

How do you decide which recipes to teach?

I felt there were plenty of other places to learn how to make chocolate chip cookies and banana bread-just take a look on YouTube alone. I had a specialty of Austro-Hungarian baking thanks to my Kaffeehaus book, so I decided to niche into that category. I have branched out to a few other locations, but my goal is to expose students to something new and out of the ordinary. I also survey my students on what they would like me to teach, and those answers are amazing. People are truly interested in the more difficult desserts. Perhaps it is because so many people discovered baking as a hobby during the pandemic?

For students who have your cookbooks, what are the advantages of taking an online class?

There is no substitute for seeing a cook in action. Plus you get to answer questions during class. In a recent class, I made six-layer Dobos Torte in two hours' real-time to prove that you can do it without giving up a week of your life. And we don't have to travel to each other to be "together." My classes are videotaped so you can watch them at your convenience.

What are some highlights of your upcoming schedule of classes?

Honey cake

In October, I am teaching virtually all Hungarian desserts, things that will be new to most people. I am making one of my absolute favorites, Flódni, which is a Jewish bar cookie (almost a cake) with layers of apple, poppy seeds, and walnuts between thin sheets of wine-flavored cookie dough. San Franciscans in particular will be happy to see a master class that I am teaching with the delightful Michelle Polzine, owner of the late and lamented 20th Century Cafe and author of Baking at the 20th Century Cafe. We will be making her (in)famous 12-layer honey cake on two coasts, with me doing the heavy lifting in New Jersey and Michelle guiding me from the west coast. That is going to be fun! In November and December, I am switching over to holiday baking and a few savory recipes for Thanksgiving, including my fail-proof turkey and gravy, which I have made over 300 times in classes over 30 years' worth of teaching. It ought to be perfect by now

Head to Coffee and Cake to sign up for classes or learn more.

05 Oct 2021 3:56pm GMT

03 Dec 2014 8:12pm GMT

16 Jul 2014 6:08pm GMT

Après presque un mois et demi d'absence, deux bouclages d'albums et plein de projets, je trouve enfin le
temps de poster quelque chose sur ce blog ! Ces jours-ci, je vais avoir pas mal de choses à vous montrer !
On commence tranquille avec un petit dessin aux couleurs estivales.

14 Jul 2014 4:25pm GMT