Author: Rachel Mumme

This coming week you’re in for a treat. I have fond memories of eating focaccia by the slice while traveling in Italy. Drenched in olive oil, the edges just a little crispy, sometimes with toppings and sometimes just a little salt, it was always the right thing to eat. While I can’t transport us all to a rustic hillside town, I can bring the flavor of focaccia right to you.

Focaccia from my kitchen is naturally leavened, or made with sourdough starter. Almost everything I make is done this way; I find the flavors deeper and the fermentation makes it a healthier choice! I’ll keep it simple with sea salt and olive oil, but you can dress it up any way you like. We often slice them horizontally and make pizzas, or stuff them with deli meats, cheeses, and all the other sandwich toppings. Focaccia also makes a great snack, and we’ve drizzled it with honey for a sweet and salty combo that’s hard to beat.

I have a different schedule this next week, and will be baking on Wednesday, August 9th only, for pickup at my home in the afternoon. I’ll go back to the regular Thursday and Friday schedule after that and plan to stick with that for the next few months at least.

Also available next week is my house sourdough. This is what most people think of when they think of sourdough: a crusty loaf with a tender, open crumb. I make all my breads by hand, and for this one I mill some of my own flour. It’s the bread most often on my table, and it goes with everything.

I’ll cut the focaccia into squares about 6″ across; you can dream of your favorite vacation spot while enjoying sourdough focaccia at your own table!

Please be sure to order by Tuesday morning and I’ll have fresh sourdough focaccia and a crusty sourdough loaf ready for you by dinner time on Wednesday. 

You’ve probably seen pictures of babka: swirls of cinnamon and sugar laced through a rich and tender dough, the sugar caramelized on the outside making for an Insta-worthy shot. Babka is Jewish in origin, hailing from Eastern Europe. It means “little grandmother” and is meant to evoke the image of the swirls of a long, matronly skirt. Babka threads the needle between bread and cake – it’s a sweet bread but not overly so, and the layers and swirls make for a fantastic presentation. Babka is enriched with milk, butter, eggs, and brown sugar. If you have a dairy allergy, I can also make it dairy-free!

This particular babka is a sourdough version – I like the complex flavors that a long, cold proof brings to this loaf. It’s perfect on its own – no need for butter here, though I wouldn’t judge you if you slathered it with some! You could slice it and make decadent french toast, topping it with fresh Michigan blueberries. I usually make an extra loaf, then slice and freeze it for when I need a special snack for one of the kids. If it doesn’t go in the freezer right away it never lasts more than a day. It’s so, so good.

I’ll be baking on Thursday and Friday of the coming week, August 3 & 4. Pickup is at my home either day, or at the college on Thursday the 3rd. Please place your orders by Monday, July 31st, letting me know your preferred day and location for pickup. Sourdough cinnamon babka is $11 for a loaf; we usually get 10-12 slices from it, depending on who does the slicing 🙂

We’ve been on a whirlwind trip to see family and friends in Minnesota this past week. Lots of hugs and smiles, late nights, and great food graced our lives. Now as we return we’re setting our sights toward the coming school year and all that it brings. I think we all feel more at peace when we have something of a routine to life, and the school year certainly brings that!

Routine is essential in breadmaking, too. The regular care of feeding and maintaining a starter, the practice of mixing, shaping, and scoring loaves, the trial and error of new flavors and techniques! This week, though, there is only delicious joy: beer and bread are a natural combination that always wins.

This week’s bread is a beautiful mix of freshly milled flours and beer; specifically Guinness. If I’m being honest, I’m not always a big fan of Guinness. I enjoy it more in the winter than the summer. But while a mild beer would get lost in this bread, the great points of Guinness really shine. It’s malty and robust and the addition of honey really balances the flavor. It really works well in many ways. A good strong cheese always pairs well with savory sourdough varieties, and this is versatile enough to go with jam or french toast. It would also make an excellent garlic bread!

I will be baking on Thursday, July 27th and Friday, July 28th this coming week for pickup at the college or at my home in HIllsdale. Please place your order by Monday, July 24th so that I can be sure to pick up enough beer! Guinness and Honey Sourdough is $9/loaf. 

A few years ago I acquired a grain mill. The more I read about whole grains and how they are made into flour, the more I was convinced that I wanted to use all of the wheat and not just the parts that wouldn’t spoil. Now when I bake I mill the wheat just before mixing the dough, keeping everything fresh and ensuring that all the nutrition of the wheat ends up in your bread. The flavor of bread with freshly-milled flour is noticeably different than flour that’s been sitting on a shelf. 

Finding ways to include more whole grains in meals can be challenging but this bread makes it easy. If you’ve tried whole grain bread but think it tastes like cardboard you will be more than pleasantly surprised by this naturally leavened loaf. Made with a combination of half bread flour and half freshly-milled whole wheat, it’s a great way to pack in some extra nutrients! Plus, the nutty flavor and tender inside (‘crumb’, in baker speak) will win you over on taste.

I will be baking on Thursday and Friday this coming week, July 13th and 14th. Pickup is either at my home (both days) or at the college (Thursday). 

50/50 sourdough is $8 this week for a 1.5lb loaf. Please order by Monday evening, July 10th.You can order on the website here, or email me with any questions or special requests. Payment is by cash, check, or cashapp. 

I don’t know about you but July snuck up on me this year. Next week is Independence Day and we’ll be making burgers and brats for dinner. My family has a pasta salad that’s been handed down for a few generations; it’s not extravagant but it’s summer comfort food for sure and goes well with anything from the grill! A great burger deserves a great bun, and that’s what I’m making for the 4th. 

These are naturally fermented and are enriched with just a bit of milk, egg, and butter. They have a good portion of organic white whole wheat, which I’ll mill just before mixing! I can also make these dairy free – just let me know in the order notes. They’re soft but will hold up perfectly to the juiciest burger you can make – no soggy mess that falls apart on your plate! 

In order to get them to you in time for the 4th, please order by Sunday night, July 2nd; I’ll bake them Monday afternoon, July 3rd and you can pick up on Monday evening or Tuesday from my home. These burger buns come in a pack of 6 buns for $10.

In certain parts of the country, bagels can be a divisive issue. A quick search will go into the distinctive differences between New York and Montreal style bagels. Not having lived in either of those places I don’t have bagel loyalty; what I do know is that homemade sourdough bagels are my favorite kind to eat. I made a big batch while we had family visiting, and we enjoyed them in so many ways! I like a good savory breakfast so I added a fried egg on top to make an open-faced sandwich. My kids have been eating them with butter and jam (it’s the season for strawberry jam!), and one loaded with peanut butter or cheese gives a great protein punch for the day.

Sourdough bagels are made over three days; the resulting flavor and texture is unbeatable! This version is made with white flour, but I’ll be experimenting with some other grains in the coming months to see what other flavors might work well. The only other additions are honey and a bit of sugar. These aren’t sweet, though; the additions just help fermentation along and balance the acidity of the starter.

Bagels will either be topped with oats or left as they are; if you have a preference please indicate it on your order; otherwise you’ll most likely get a mix of the two! Sourdough bagels are $10 for four bagels.

Due to some travel this coming week, I will just be baking on Wednesday, June 28^th, for pickup at my home or at the college. Please submit your orders by Monday morning, June 26^th!

My very first cookbook came from my brother when I was 7 years old. It was a cookie cookbook and the inscription in his own hand indicates his hopes that this gift will really be a gift for him! I think I made every recipe in that book.

Years later, my preferences have shifted; while I still love sweets, I prefer those that are more subtle and let the flavor – rather than the sugar – shine. Sourdough starter can be used to leaven sweets as well as savory breads; this week I experimented with some flavors that I hope you’ll love.

My next door neighbor asked a while back if I ever made anything with matcha, something we both enjoy. I’ve been thinking about it ever since and this past week decided it was time to try it out. I mixed up a sweet roll filling with matcha, sugar, and coconut oil, then sprinkled dried strawberries over the top. I rolled, twisted, and shaped the dough into knots and the result was fantastic! The color is, well, matcha green but if you can get past that the flavors range from earthy to subtly sweet to bright. I really enjoyed having something sweet that didn’t require a strong cup of coffee to keep me awake afterward!

I’ve often made loaves of naturally leavened sweet breads filled with cinnamon and sugar, chocolate, or apples. Those have been customer favorites! I wanted to try some new flavors and those in a more portable form. Taking a sticky loaf of babka on a picnic or a day trip isn’t the most practical, but who doesn’t enjoy something sweet in the afternoon?

These sweet rolls are made with a subtly sweet sourdough base, just enough sweet to counter the tangy-ness of the sourdough. I’ll make two varieties this week: the matcha and strawberry, and a cinnamon sugar version. Both have the same base dough, enriched with milk, butter, and a small amount of sugar. If you’re looking for a vegan version, I can easily make one with vegan dairy products – just ask!

These sweet rolls will freeze well, and are wonderful to have on hand for a friend who stops by for coffee in the afternoon, or for a special breakfast. Sweet rolls are 4 for $10. I will be baking on Thursday, June 22^nd and Friday, June 23^rd. Please order by Monday evening, June 19^th for pickup at Hillsdale College (Thursday) or my home (Thursday or Friday).

Every baker has a different formula for their go-to loaf. This one is mine: 75% bread flour and 25% organic freshly-milled whole grain flour with a bit more water than usual to account for the whole grains. I prepare the starter at night, mix in the morning, shape in the evening, and bake the next morning after the loaves rest in the fridge overnight. If I’m up extra early, we have fresh bread for breakfast! Otherwise, we let them cool and usually devour one at lunchtime. This is probably the most versatile bread I make, and it’s a rare occasion that we don’t have a loaf in the bread drawer and a few in the freezer. It’s not too sour, and the whole grains fill you up! I will be baking on Thursday, June 15^th and Friday, June 16^th. Please order here by Tuesday morning, June 13^th.

Sourdough bread. The very words conjures up certain images, flavors, textures. Crackly crust, soft crumb, tangy flavor – these are all true for this week’s loaf, my house bread. This sourdough is on our table every day. We use it for everything from toast, to grilled cheese sandwiches, to croutons for salad, to thick slices slathered with butter, accompanying soup or salad. I’ve cubed it for stuffing, processed it for bread crumbs, and sliced it for a breakfast casserole. We usually have a few loaves in the freezer for busy days, or to share with friends. I like to freeze it in slices, to make thawing easier! This bread is a great way to incorporate more whole grains – it’s made with 25% freshly milled flour, a mix of whole wheat and spelt. I mix everything by hand, and there are no hard-to-pronounce ingredients here; just a few flours, water, salt, and starter. I’ll bake these on Thursday and Friday this coming week, and they’ll keep well on the counter for a few days. A linen bag is a fancy way to store homemade bread, but I keep mine in a zippered plastic bag. The crust gets a bit softer, but that works well for my kids! Please order by Monday evening, April 10^th, for pickup on Thursday, April 13^th or Friday, April 14^th.

This week brings a very exciting partnership with Rebel Farm in Osseo in what I hope will be the first of many joint endeavors. The bake of the week is a 100% freshly-milled spelt sourdough featuring Rebel Farm’s maple syrup. The depth and interest in the flavor of this syrup is miles away from store-bought and what it brings to this spelt sourdough is magic. Spelt is a nutty-flavored grain, and I’m milling it just before mixing, preserving all its nutrients and goodness. I’ll add maple syrup to the spelt along with my sourdough starter, water, and salt. Two days later, voila! A healthy bread that you’ll want to enjoy in many ways. With a bowl of soup? Yes, please. French toast, topped with more maple syrup? That’s what’s on my weekend menu!

Rebel Farm is offering farm shares in poultry and veg, available for pickup at the Hillsdale Farmer’s Market this summer. It’s a great way to support local farmers and enjoy outstanding produce!

Click here to order by Monday, March 27 for pickup on Thursday and Friday, March 30 and 31. And be sure to visit Rebel Farm‘s site to grab some syrup of your own and to see all that they’re up to!