Over the past year, we at Allendale Bakery have been delighted to work with a lovely and enthusiastic young baker, Alice Pope, who has learned many of our recipes and protocols in that time.
Now that we’ve ceased production of our own, we’re so pleased that Alice has begun production of her own, from our facility, carrying on a tradition of real bread baking. Look out for Alice’s Artisan Bakery labels on bread that is definitely her own, which also has some provenance from Carrie’s careful instruction.
We’re wishing Alice all the very best as she develops her own lovely business, while we happily grow older and less stressed with the production line.
You can find Alice’s Artisan Bakery on Facebook, and she also has an Instagram account. We’ll try to update this page with appropriate links, as they come in.
Although Allendale Bakery has ceased production, after a decade of breadmaking (at various times on a daily or weekly basis), we’re still eager to help train aspiring bakers. Anyone can make bread, but just a little bit of friendly advice in a course situation can make all the difference between leaden bricks and a light, satisfying crumb.
So, after an autumn of travel and settling down to retired life, and an extended interlude while winter blocks us in up in the fellside of Spartylea, we’ll be more than ready for some formal courses, and Carrie has now picked her dates and subject matter. Enquiries are already rolling in, with some courses half-full already, so don’t hesitate to contact her by email (info@allendalebakery.com).
The day-long courses kick off with coffee and introductions at 8:30 in the morning, followed by dough-making and loaf forming throughout the next few hours. Lunch is offered at around 1pm, and baking commences thereafter. Usually by about 4pm all the freshly baked bread is stacked on cooling trays ready to wrap up for each participant to take home. These baking course days are an ideal gift, of course, and we’re delighted to provide vouchers in advance. Course fees range from £95 to £110, and we ask kindly for payment in advance.
Please note that we keep our course fees low by trusting participants not to let us down by cancelling or attempting to re-book a different date at the last minute; each course is limited to 4 participants.
So, with all of the fine print out of the way, our course offerings for 2018 are as follows:
- Saturday, 28th April, 2018: Breadmaking for Beginners
- Saturday, 5th May, 2018: Sourdough Techniques
- Saturday, 19th May, 2018: Middle Eastern Breads
- Saturday, 2nd June, 2018: Italian Breads
- Saturday, 30th June, 2018: French Breads
- Saturday, 7th July, 2018: Sourdough Techniques
- Saturday 11th August, 2018: Stuffed Breads
- Saturday 26th August, 2018: European Festival Breads
- Saturday 1st September, 2018: Breadmaking for Beginners
And that will be the extent of our offerings for the coming year, as we ever-so-effortlessly glide into retirement proper.
Up here in the fells of Spartylea, we’re definitely experiencing a springtime of loveliness . . .
It’s because of the harsh winters here, of course, that we can’t offer our popular breadmaking courses until the blizzard season is reasonably past. So we’re delighted to have commenced again throughout March, anyway, and we’re looking ahead to a full summer as well . . . enquirers looking for that ideal Easter or birthday present should get in touch with Carrie (info@allendalebakery.com) to confirm availability and prices.
- Saturday 18th March, 2017 Breadmaking for Beginners
- Saturday 25th March, 2017 Sourdough Techniques
- Saturday 22nd April, 2017 Italian Breads
- Saturday 29th April, 2017 Sourdough Techniques
- Saturday 6th May, 2017 French Breads
- Saturday 20th May, 2017 Breadmaking for Beginners
- Saturday 10th June, 2017 Scandinavian Breads
- Saturday 24th June, 2017 Sourdough Techniques
- Saturday 29th July, 2017 Breadmaking for Beginners (2 places left)
- Saturday 12th August, 2017 Sourdough Techniques (2 places left)
- Saturday 2nd September, 2017 Flat Breads & Dips
So, our best suggestion for enquirers is to email the bakery (info@allendalebakery.com) to enquire about prices (typically in the region of £90-£115) and availability. Carrie our friendly baker will pencil your reservation in, confirming with you when she’s received payment (or forwarding on our special generic voucher that your recipient may use at any course). We do remind our course participants that we try very hard to keep prices low, so late cancellations are not only a severe hardship to us but could force us to raise our fees in future. Our courses are available on a first-come, first-served basis, to a maximum of 4 participants on each day-long offering.
And all best wishes for the festive season!