Loaf is a social enterprise bakery with the aim of 'promoting real food and healthy living in Birmingham, and build community through food'. It is situated in Stirchley on the main high street, to me it was clear that Loaf is doing a grand job at meeting it's aim. As I arrived for my course at 9:30 the Loaf bakery which is adjacent to the cookery school, was already attracting lots of customers collecting their fresh loaves and sourdoughs for the day.
Back at the cookery school, and our teacher for the day Gordan, a previous Loaf cookery school graduate, was ready to great all of the enthusiastic students. As we waited for all of our class mates for the day to arrive there were lots of freshly baked treats to tuck into including a variety of sourdough loaves, tea, coffee and some posh organic coridal.
From the outset I was convinced that we were in for a good day as Gordan used his humour and passion for bread to tell us the story of Loaf and how after going on the very same course we were about to complete, he gave up his secure job with the police and become and baker and beer maker.
We had a long list of things to bake so there was very little delay in getting straight into the kitchen. The cookery school is glass fronted so those walking down Strichley high street completing their Saturday morning errands are able to look in and watch as the class progresses. The kitchens were well equipped but were purposefully done so with everyday items that don't break the bank. There were no fancy mixtures or dough hooks in sight. The course was all about making bread as it should be made, slowly and by hand. In fact the most 'high tech' piece of a equipment was a piece of plastic - a dough scraper that costs around £.2.50. And whilst I do love my kitchenaid it was great to spend a day baking without gadgets something which I will do more of in the future.
Throughout the day we made a number of 'communal bakes' which Gordan would demonstrate and we would chip in with kneading etc. For the rest of the bakes we paired up and worked together to create our loaves and doughs which after being cooked were split at the end and packaged up to take home. At first I thought it would have been nice to have some individual bakes however I soon changed my mind and decided that the Loaf approach was far better and definitely supported their underlying ethos of community and the social side of baking.
The list of things we made throughout the day was vast! We made...
- Pita bread (which we ate with homemade hummus as a mid morning snack)
- Pizza (which we ate for lunch)
- Fougasse
- Focaccia
- A white loaf
- Granary rolls
- Ciabatta
- Brioche
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| Ciabatta |
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| White Loaf |
Over the course of the day Gordan shared his knowledge and top tips for bread making. We were so busy throughout the day that I took very few pictures and even less notes. However, I did remember some of the key hints and interesting tips to share with you.
- Accurate weighing is very important!
- Floured surfaces for kneading is not necessary. We did not use any extra flour at all when kneading. Adding more flour will change the taste and texture of your bread. Instead, knead your dough with wet hands this will make the dough easier to handle and adding more water will not alter the dough as it would with flour.
- If possible, avoid the sachets of fact action yeast. Fresh yeast or the tins of dried yeast is better as there are no other added ingredients. The sachets have added vitamin C which isn't in itself a bad thing however it is not needed and it tends to be added to bread in an acidic form. Get your vitamin C from other sources - not from your bread.
- Salt and yeast do not have to be on opposite sides of your bowl. It is a myth that they need to be separated like boys and girls at a school disco. It isn't advisable to put salt directly on the yeast but it is fine to roughly distribute them in your bowl.
- Bread should be made of flour, salt, yeast and water. Anything else added should be for flavour and nothing else. This goes back to the point about mass produced bread having other stuff being put in it.
- To test if your dough is proved - poke it! If it bounces back quickly it is under proved, if it deflates it is over proved and if it slowly springs back it is just about right.
- Wholemeal flour requires extra water. If you are making bread with 100% wholemeal flour add an extra 10% of water than that in a recipe for white flour. If doing 50/50 white and wholemeal flour add 5% extra water.
- If you want to add flavours the ideal ratio is 10% of the dough weight. For example if your dough weighs 500g add 50g of your chosen filling such as seeds.
- If you over prove your dough - don't worry simply use it for flat breads like focaccia instead.
- Buy the best flour you can - it does make a difference.
- Baking stones are great but expensive. Buy unglazed floor tiles from you local DIY shop, temper them and these are a perfect cheap alternative to baking stones that will give the same effect. Perfect stone baked pizzas and and amazing bread baking surface.
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| The BEST pizza I have ever eaten |
There was so much information to take in, Gordan was able to answer all of our questions and taught us some vital techniques that would see our bread making improve including different kneading and shaping techniques. The day flew by and before we knew it is was time for a quick nosy around the adjacent bakery where you are able to buy some baking essentials including that all important dough scraper and your very own handmade (locally) peel for getting your bread and pizza in and out of the over. Mastering this is sure to impress your friends a family.
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| Fougasse |
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| Focaccia |
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| Granary Rolls |
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| White Loaf |
I would highly recommend the course, the relaxed and friendly delivery was great and the passion that Gordan had for homemade bread was definitely contagious. There are lots of different courses available at Loaf including a course dedicated to sourdough and another to sweetbreads. Here's hoping that Santa reads this that I am on his 'good' list.
Happy bread baking, Rach x
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