There were no world-famous chefs, prepared food props or stage crew in this kitchen, but there was an abundance of delectable smells and great food.

Although it seemed like one of those cooking shows you see on television, it was just a group of women gathered in hopes of learning how to be better bakers and cooks.

The women, mostly members of Lynwood Baptist Church, had gathered to learn some tricks from a trusted chef, Frances Toole. A few were friends of Toole who stopped by to see how the group was progressing.

Toole has helped cook meals and plan church dinners at Lynwood for years. She's known as Miss Frances throughout the congregation, whose members rave about her fabulous hot rolls and delicious cinnamon rolls.

When she retired from cooking Wednesday night meals in November, she said she would hold classes to teach people how to make her famous rolls, and now she's following through on her promise.

She held two classes last week and plans two more in March.

The classes were informal gatherings where women chatted about church events, friends and families -- and even some failed cooking attempts.

Sue Gleason and Martha House helped Toole prepare salads and desserts for the Wednesday meals. Both knew how well she cooked, so they came to learn some tips during a lesson Thursday.

"I always had a fear of it failing, so that's why I never made anything with yeast," Gleason said, as she mixed her ingredients for the rolls.

The other women agreed, baking from scratch seems to take too much time and effort. Toole disagreed, saying baking and cooking are a matter of testing and experimenting.

"Mistakes don't hurt," Toole said. "I learn a lot from mistakes. You need to experiment with your own tastes. That's the fun of cooking."

She scanned recipes and read cookbooks for ideas but then put the books away when she was ready to cook.

"I just do what I want to," she said.

Patty Tapley always followed a recipe and did everything by the book. That was before Toole offered her tips and a recipe for hot rolls.

The recipe for rolls can include as many variations as there are cooks, Toole said. She likes to add some maple syrup, pecans and has even added fruit preserves for Danishes.

During the course of the two-hour seminar, Toole took the women step-by-step through her recipe for rolls, explaining the difference between "regular" yeast and fast-acting yeast -- both are suitable for the recipe.

She showed the women how to get all the yeast from the packets (by scraping it out with a butter knife) and how to test the water for just the right amount of warmth. Toole used her hands to test the temperature, which is OK if you're cooking at home, but she recommended a thermometer for public uses.

While the yeast was dissolving, she told the women to melt butter and mix it with milk and sugar.

The women had brought their own ingredients, and most had already measured the quantities they needed for the recipe.

When the yeast was ready and the sugar, milk and butter had been added, she told the women to add the flour -- two cups at a time -- to the mixture.

The recipe called for 4 1/2 cups of flour, but Toole suggested the women use the extra half-cup while kneading and rolling the dough.

The women were at different stages in their baking process, so Toole moved around the counter checking on each one, offering tips on how to mix the dough properly (by hand) and how to get the bits of dough from their hands.

By now, most of the women were caught up and ready for the dough to rise again. They washed up measuring cups and talked. Tapley said the rolls will "be a treat for my boys."

Dana Branson, whose husband, Alan, has great things to say about Miss Frances' rolls, said he'd be waiting for her at home when she returned with the treat.

After the dough rose and Frances showed the women how to roll it out properly, she showed them a variation for cinnamon rolls. She has a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon already combined into a gallon-size container to use for the filling.

When making cinnamon rolls, "you need to smell the cinnamon," Toole said as she sprinkled the mixture atop a layer of melted butter on the rolled-out dough.

While the rolls were rising, the women gathered in chairs around a table in the fellowship hall and shared stories.

Toole shared tips on how to get rid of bitterness in your coffee, a recipe for cheese spread, doughnuts made with mashed potatoes and dumplings.

She said her first cooking attempts were bad ones. As a child, she tried to make fudge during the years of sugar rationing and didn't cook it long enough.

Afraid she'd be punished for wasting the sugar, she hid the fudge in the basement and rats got into it. Her cousin had discovered the mess and "My Aunt Gertrude just said, 'Well, Frances, if you had just cooked it longer it would have been fine.'"

All the women had stories about their failed attempts at cooking.

Gleason shared a story about fixing her first "big" meal for her husband after they were married. She tried to cook chicken and mashed potatoes and nothing got done at the same time.

"I just cried," she said. "I had to start all over and I think we had cheese slices."

Tapley said, "Miss Frances can make even bad food turn good."

Toole often made treats for church groups who were leaving on mission trips, meeting groups at 4 or 5 a.m. with a plate of hot cinnamon rolls. She cooks breakfast Tuesdays for the men's prayer group and accompanied the youth on a weeklong trip last summer to cook the meals.

Cooking is not just Toole's gift, "it's my ministry," she said. "I can pamper them just like my kids."

Frances Toole's recipe for rolls

Makes 20-24 rolls

Step 1: 1/2 cup warm water

2 Teaspoons sugar

2 Tablespoons yeast

Let this sit in a warm area while you do the next step.

Step 2: 1 cup milk, warm

1/4 to 1/2 stick oleo or margarine (melt and add to milk)

1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 eggs at room temperature, slightly beaten

Add to the above. Mix all this with the yeast mixture.

5 cups flour -- Add 2 cups at a time to the above mixture. You can use a spoon to mix this or your mixer if it has a dough hook. Dough may be a little sticky. Do not put all five cups flour in; 1/2 cup will be for rolling out. Mix well with spoon or hands (this is kneading). After well mixed, set in a warm place to rise for 15 minutes (cover with a cloth.)

Then flour your table or countertop. Take half the dough out and knead two or three more times. Roll out the dough to a 1/2-inch or 3/4-inch thickness. Cut rolls and put in well-buttered pan. Do same with remaining rolls or fix into cinnamon rolls.

You will want to let this sit in a warm area or on a countertop (cover and let stand for 45 minutes). If they need longer, let them sit another 30 minutes. It really shouldn't take more than 1 hour, 30 minutes. Bake in 350-degree oven for about 15-20 minutes.