What is flour? Flour is ground up grain, right? You may be shocked to learn that this is not necessarily fully so. On a recent trip to Canada I took the time to read the ingredients on the back of a flour bag. It is a national brand, an institution, in fact, called Robin Hood. [...]
Posted on 07. Feb, 2012 by virtuousbread.
How do I know my bread is done? We get a lot of e mails from our wonderful students about the actual baking process which may not go exactly to plan when they get home. Here is a list of the top five concerns: 1. How do I know the bread is done? 2. Does [...]
Posted on 06. Feb, 2012 by virtuousbread.
Christmas is over, we are into starving, dieting, and fasting, and I wonder how much food was thrown away this year? All that leftover food from the ritual of gorging makes me feel disgusted, if I am honest. What is it about us that we need to do feast and then famine? Why cannot we [...]
Posted on 19. Jan, 2012 by virtuousbread.
Wow, it's 2012. Time for new year's resolutions, getting fit for the Olympics, gathering strength for the US elections and adapting to our continually changing world in which we are all locked into economic recession, the perplexing impact of technology, joblessness and increasing hopelessness among young people, and the usual nasties of war, famine, and [...]
Posted on 02. Jan, 2012 by virtuousbread.
It seems incredible that 2011 is nearly over. Yesterday I taught the final class of the calendar year - a dinner party bread class - and the class felt like a dinner party, it went by so quickly with lots of chat and banter, good food and drink, and general lively cheer. If anyone doubts [...]
Posted on 19. Dec, 2011 by virtuousbread.
"Triumphant". That's it, that's the final word. After baking and teaching and yeasting and sourdoughing all autumn long I was finally able to cut into some stollen this week. First the sourdough stollen at The Clink and second (had to try it before the Fourth Advent Tea this Sunday) at home. Triumphant. So triumphant the [...]
Posted on 12. Dec, 2011 by virtuousbread.
When I lived in Johannesburg in 2002 the bread was abysmal. Lots of white sliced and I cannot recall a decent baker. I know that baking at altitude poses some challenges, but the are not insurmountable, and I could only conclude that the Johannesburgers has become used to white sliced bread in a bag - [...]
Posted on 08. Dec, 2011 by virtuousbread.
What does the Prime Minister eat for breakfast? Does he even eat breakfast? And what about his family? Well, here at the global headquarters of Virtuous Bread we have some inside information for the curious. Not that we know everything. Not even, that we know anything much. We do know, however, that Samantha Cameron bakes [...]
Posted on 24. Nov, 2011 by virtuousbread.
VB spent two days last week with an incredibly talented team from Ryland Peters & Small photographing bread. Taking a few (ok, 12) bread recipes, we spent a time baking, cutting, presenting, eating, snacking, styling, and photographing for a special book on bread that will come out this time next year. It was amazing what [...]
Posted on 22. Nov, 2011 by virtuousbread.
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Which nationality cuts a cross in their bread before eating it?
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Making sourdough starters
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A Bake Off!
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Why virtuous bread? Am I insane? Or am I making a difference?
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Baking my way through The Italian Baker - with a twist
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Susie: I wish mine came out like yours. It looks so beaut...
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Robin: The most important is the shortest dimension (usua...
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virtuousbread: Hi Andrew - sound like a conversatoin....do give u...
