Shrewsbury’s artisan bakery Bread and Loaf is celebrating ‘Sourdough September’ by giving away starter kits to help home bakers have a go at the oldest method of making bread themselves.
The small bakery, in Castle Gates, is giving away a recipe and portions of its own sourdough culture during the first two weeks of September as part of the national campaign to educate people about the benefits of sourdough.
Bread lovers who rise to the challenge are being invited to return with one of their own creations at 2pm on Saturday September 26 for a taste-off to discover the best made loaf.
The winner will receive 13 free artisan loaves from the bakery – one every Saturday in the run up to Christmas – as well as the opportunity to develop a special Christmas recipe with bakers Kate Warwick and Martin Priddy.
Sourdough September is a month-long awareness drive by the Real Bread Campaign to educate people about the health benefits of sourdough and to unlock the secrets of how to make the traditional fermented bread.
Kate and Martin, who opened the bakery last year, will also be providing tasters of their various sourdough real breads during the month.
“We want to get people baking with sourdough which is the most natural and oldest method of baking bread,” said Kate.
“It is more tricky, because you rely on the natural fermenting yeast and bacteria in the flour, and there’s a tendency for people to give up too easily.
“We’ll be giving away starter kits, consisting of our own sourdough culture and a recipe, and offering people tips if they email us with questions.”
“Even if people feel their efforts are a complete disaster they can come back on September 26 to find out how other people have got on. The message is persistence. People may find their loaves look flat to start with, but they’ll taste good and it’s all part of the journey of making real bread,” said Martin.
“We’re constantly creating new recipes, using lots of different kinds of ingredients, and we’re very excited at the prospect of being able to work with a keen amateur baker on a new recipe for Christmas.”
Sourdough is made by the slow fermentation of naturally-occuring yeast and bacteria in the simple dough of flour and water. The process breaks down gluten in the flour making it more easily digestible.
“People who can’t tolerate bread will often find, as long as they are not coeliac, that they can eat sourdough quite happily,” added Martin.
Bread and Loaf opens Thursdays and Fridays, 10am to 6pm, and on Saturdays, 10am to 4pm.
Sourdough breads are made by adding flour, water and a little salt to a small portion of mature sourdough culture and allowing the dough to naturally rise over a period of around 18 hours.
Sourdough culture is made from a simple mixture of flour and water that is allowed to ferment at room temperature for at least a week. It must be stirred and fed regularly with further small amounts of flour and water. A mature culture can be ‘kept alive’ for decades, if looked after properly and fed regularly.
A mature culture enhances the flavour of the bread. Kate’s culture, from which the shop’s sourdough loaves are made, was started six years ago.
The benefits of sourdough:
Sourdough contains only the natural yeast and friendly bacteria found in the flour. Allowed to ferment and rise the dough over a number of hours they help to break down the gluten within the flour so it can be more easily digested.
In contrast high volume commercially made bread contains added chemical preservatives and modified flour to make the dough rise much more quickly and increase the shelf life. The preservatives stop the gluten being broken down and can create the sensation of feeling boated after eating the bread.
Find out more about Shrewsbury’s artisan bakery Bread and Loaf at http://www.breadandloaf.co.uk
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