Fr. Colbert da Silva
KURLA-MUMBAI, AUGUST 30, 2013: Don Bosco College – Hospitality Studies, Kurla was privileged to host a series of comprehensive bakery 
Master baker Andre was brilliant. Utilizing the locally available raw material he was able to replicate the amazing German breads and pastries. In the elaborate workshops he conducted, he taught various breads like the humble breakfast loaf, Zoff German Bread, spicy wheat sticks, the Swabian mixed wheat bread as well as an array of cakes and pastries like apple strudel, butter cake, quiche and the sinfully delicious Sacher torte.
The two hundred odd participants ranged from Hospitality management students to entrepreneurs, industry professionals and experts in the field of bakery and confectionery. During the brief two weeks that Mr. Houben was on campus he patiently and meticulously guided all participants through the intricacies of pretzels, German Stollen and a whole range of nearly ten different products with his time-tested recipes and detailed techniques in the art of baking. Students were enamored with the range of products taught and were motivated and encouraged to experiment and challenge 
In his report Mr. Andre Houben wrote, "During my stay in India I only met very nice, helpful and open minded people. I enjoyed the workshops with the kids a lot. To see, how easy it is to get a nice smile 'just' from making bread together." He further added, "With a few tricks and the local raw materials we were able to make very nice bread and pastry products. For example we replaced rye flour in the recipes by using the atta flour."
The brief exposure to International baking and confectionery introduced the students to not just German products but also the art used by international practitioners and spurred them to strive for greater challenges in the hospitality industry.