Wild FermentationLe Pain – l’envers du décorArtisan Baking Across AmericaSmall cakes – From Fondant Fancies to FlorentinesThe Bread BuildersOpening up the crumbCrisp, golden, light, salty & oilyA baguette by any other name……Bake class: cookie cravings
Australia: Melbourne: bakeries
Making a Focaccia Genovese in a commercial bakery
(originally published in British Baker)
Foccacia has a home, in Italy, and a birthplace in the town of Genoa. That’s what Italians from Genoa tell me. But then as every man, woman and child of Italian extraction seems to have a slightly different take on their homeland’s culinary traditions, [...]
…would smell as sweet.
Recipes and tricks for improving your sticks
(Originally published in British Baker)
Recipes for the perfect baguette are probably as numerous as bakeries in France, and each baker appears to claim a secret ingredient or technique that makes him the star boulanger. But do they have anything in common?
Well, flour for a start. A [...]
(from British Baker, first published November 2001)
Before the arrival of cheap and affordable domestic ovens, there was a clear division between the types of baked goods that were made at home, and those that were purchased from the local baker.
We had our trade goods that formed the core of our production, tin loaves and Vienna [...]
(from British Baker, first published October 2001)
There is a streak of opinion in our industry that holds us to be a sub branch of the DSS, providing cheap food for the needy and the poor. To produce a better loaf, a premium baked pie or cake, is a perceived snub to our core market of [...]
(from British Baker, first published August 2001)
Saturday in the bakery store should be a grand day. A sense of wonder and amusement and deep desire should be impressed upon every customer who walks through the door. Well, that’s my take on weekend retailing. Theatre, magic, part side-show, part freak show. See the amazing two pound [...]
(from British Baker, first published July 2001)
Well, I’ve heard your comments, and a few readers will be pleased to know that the photograph above the page will soon be changing soon. Some felt that a picture of a denim clad baker in a wheat field sent the wrong impression, an alarming and somewhat puzzling response. [...]
(from British Baker, first published July 2001)
Thought I’d test a recipe for a Christmas cake, and vary it a bit using mead to soak the fruit in. Mead. You remember, that rather sweet honey-based alcohol that became the stuff of our history. I thought its sweetness and honey notes would be good in a fruitcake, [...]
(from British Baker, first published June 2001)
Probably the most common question craft bakers (and increasingly plant bakers) ask me is ‘how can I create and develop new breads’. Often the techniques are slightly different, but though teaching courses are a great idea, very few of us have the time free to go to them. Good [...]
(from British Baker, first published May 2001)
I’ve got a joke. A guy goes to the doctor and says, “If I cut alcohol, salt, sugar, butter and meat out of my diet, will I live a longer life?” The doctor thinks for a moment and says, “Don’t know. But it will certainly seem longer.” Like many [...]
(from British Baker, first published May 2001)
It saddens me a little when I see so many excellent fruits and vegetables come into season, yet many bakers within our community seem unwilling to use them. Preferring instead to rely on the convenience and consistency of tinned or frozen fruit. Listen, I do accept there are many [...]
