It’s been a funny old year, but we have compelling reasons to be grateful, not least of which is our mini-sabbatical throughout this coming autumn. We’re expecting to do some serious research into Spanish and Portuguese breads, and at the same time we might consider the merits of some local bodegas as well.
So our last breadmaking courses for this year are nearly upon us, and there are a couple of places still available on each of them. Should you wish to avail yourself of this opportunity during 2018, now’s your best chance! Course fees run at around £100 (£95 for the beginners course, £110 for the Festive breads) for a full day of breadmaking (8:30 – 4:30), and you must remember to bring a big bag with you to carry home all the bread you’ll bake during the day.
Contact Carrie, our intrepid and ever-learning breadmaker for further details and final availability, by emailing her: info@allendalebakery.com
- Saturday 11th August: Stuffed Breads
- Saturday 26th August: European Festive Breads
- Saturday 1st September: Breadmaking for Beginners
Meanwhile, you’re as welcome to our friendly site as you’ll be to our bakery, to browse and learn great things about breadmaking.
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.