After much anticipation, the moment everyone in AEGEE-Groningen had been waiting for finally arrived: the very first CookCie activity of the ‘24-’25 year. Inspired by the legendary shows The Great British Bake-Off and the Dutch national treasure of Heel Holland Bakt, the CookCie proudly presented their twist: The Great AEGEE Bake-Off!!
Before diving into the details of this exciting event, let us introduce the wonderful members of the CookCie: Angie, one of our three incredible General Members, is a creative and always cheerful Hungarian girl. Despite being in her first year with AEGEE, she has a passion for cooking and baking. Ann, our second General Member, is the most experienced committee member with many years in AEGEE. Known for her love of baking and hedgehogs, Ann’s home often doubles as the committee’s clubhouse. Elze, the creative mind of the group, is not only an incredible photographer but also an amazing designer: she made our amazing committee logo displayed on our fabulous apron. She always brings fresh and creative recipes to the table. Desta, the numbers guy, handles our finances. The first-year member keeps a perfect balance between his love for pita falafel and budgeting for the committee and is already part of another committee. Nova, after transferring from AEGEE-Amsterdam to Groningen, quickly became an invaluable member as our Secretary. She excels at keeping track of all committee activities. Then there is Yara, our third General Member. Just got back in AEGEE after a long trip abroad to Asia. Although she joined after this event, she will be here for all the other activities. She has been a member for over 3 years now, with a lot of experience, and is always full of enthusiasm. Lastly, there’s me, Joris. After a busy year on the board, I thought I’d take it easy—yet here I am in the CookCie, ready for more fun and chaos!
Together we make an amazing, creative, a bit chaotic, and ‘gezellige’ committee!
On the day of the Bake-Off, 17 enthusiastic participants gathered at the Wiebengacomplex, each eager to prove themselves as the ultimate Meesterbakker. The participants were divided into teams of 4-5 members and started with a quiz about baking. The results of this quiz determined the starting packages each team would receive for their baking challenge.
Once the quiz was over, it was time for Bakkers klaar, bakken maar! The teams had 1,5 hours to create amazing muffins. The process wasn’t without challenges—one team, due to their poor quiz performance, had to start baking without a recipe. Throughout the session, participants could earn extra ingredients or baking utensils by completing mini-challenges. However, there was a catch: penalties could also be applied, such as losing utensils or baking while wearing oven mitts!
After 1.5 hours of intense baking, creativity, and plenty of laughter, 20 incredible muffins were presented to the judges—none other than the CookCie members themselves (because, who better?). Following a very honest evaluation, a winner was crowned: Team 4, and that was quite astonishing, because they didn’t even have a recipe, Joris de W, Nine, Anke, and Iris impressed the judges with their deliciously chocolatey muffins. A big congratulations to the winning team!
The Great AEGEE Bake-Off was a resounding success, filled with creativity, fun, and tasty treats. Thank you to everyone who participated! We can’t wait to see you at the next CookCie activity!
