Pancake flip test passed with ‘frying’ colours for aspiring young Storrington chef

An avid baker has been impressing his peers this Shrove Tuesday with his pancake flipping skills at Bainbridge Court, a residential home for young adults living with autism and learning difficulties in Storrington, West Sussex.Self-confessed ‘expert pancake flipper’, 32-year-old Ryan Spencer said, “I love to bake, and I am amazing at making pancakes and flipping them – but I still can’t decide what my favourite filling is.”Ryan, who has lived at Bainbridge Court, one of seven homes in the South East run by Pathway since 2010, took to the kitchen to prepare, cook and flip pancakes for staff and the other seven young adults living in the home.Home manager, Wellington Nyengerai said, “Pancake Day is a highly anticipated day for everyone here at Bainbridge Court, but especially for Ryan, who takes an active role in the daily meal and dessert preparation at the home.“With support, he makes fantastic cakes and is always eager to try new recipes. Aside from baking, we help Ryan cook evening meals, working together to encourage him to make a meal from scratch.”His love of baking began when he was a child and due to the support from the team, harnessing his passion, Ryan is now the resident cake baker at Bainbridge Court.Ryan added, “I prefer baking to cooking and what I really like to bake is crumbles and cake.“Whenever there’s a party at the home, I will always make a cake and help with all the food preparation. I get lots of compliments, which makes me want to bake more”When Ryan was 18, he volunteered in the café at Aldingbourne Trust – a local organisation which supports people with learning difficulties.Ryan said, “I used to work in the kitchen and serve customers tea, coffee and cake. I would take their order and manage the till – I even used the credit card machine.”Ryan’s other passions include IT and DJing, and one day he hopes to return to working in a café or kitchen environment to put his cake and pancake making skills to the ultimate test.