Breadness Buzz - Breaducation Field Trip 2, Totally Sold Out, The Disappearing Sign...

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NOTE: If this is your first Breadness Buzz, or if you've been part of our tribe but missed earlier posts, visit the Breadness Buzz Archive here and catch up on this content written especially for you (by me!). It's a great way to meet like-minded artisan sourdough aficionados and be part of this journey I started back in 2016. And now for this week's Buzz...

Sourdough September brings cooler weather and another field trip for Delphi Academy LA students

This weekend marks the official change of the season. I think we all agree that summer was hotter and longer than usual, so the drop in temperature and the cloudy skies are a welcome relief. Cooler weather also puts more money in your pocket as air conditioning is replaced by a few open windows and power bills drop sharply!

Sourdough September has been a great month so far with our sharing the magic of how we make Breadness with customers and students alike. Last week we hosted a second class from Delphi Academy LA. The students were a couple years older than the first class and there were lots more of them! I think this was the most people we've had at the bakery at a time. With Rhys, Alex and myself doing our usual tasks of dough-making and baking, we able to immerse the students in the time-honored processes and tradition of crafting artisan sourdough from scratch.

In the photo below I've just taken a dozen loaves of our signature Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan sourdough from the oven and am explaining how, contrary to popular belief, this bread is not ready to eat yet. It will be 24 hours before the curing process is complete and the bread ready to slice and enjoy for several days to come.

Artisan sourdough dough-making is a 3-day process. Here, Rhys is stretching and folding the dough made on day 2 of the process. This happens every 30 minutes for 3 to 4 hours, depending on temperature, barometric pressure, humidity and the activity level of the starter/preferment. This step builds strength and structure in the dough. Rhys knows when the dough is ready to be divided into 12 loaves, based on how much it has risen while going through this step of the process.

Here I'm holding a hot Petite Loaf with a heart score on the top. This smaller loaf is perfect for one or two people who like to enjoy their Breadness little by little throughout the week.

Last week I introduced you to the water that had mysteriously collected at the bottom of our Migali refrigerator.

After discussing the matter further with the factory tech, the next step was to move the unit away from the wall and remove an access plate on the back where the upper drain tube empties into the lower tube. I needed to run a snake wire through the lower tube to see if there was any blockage. The wire went through without complaint.

So now, the next step is a doozie. It involves removing the evaporator assembly cover from the inside top of the fridge. This is where the water comes from during the refrigeration process; it's pulled out of the air and collects in a tray which is supposed to drain down the tube and into the tray I showed in last week's Buzz. Apparently, something is blocking that water flow and it requires shutting down the fridge (we have a mini-fridge where we can stash the precious starter jars while maintenance is occurring), then removing about a dozen screws on the interior ceiling of the fridge that are not easy to access. This won't happen until Monday so tune in to next week's Buzz to find out...

If you (dear reader) have a Breadness story you'd like to share, please post it on your favorite social and/or e-mail it to us at rmt@breadness.com .

Last week we made 192 loaves of our artisan breads (which was 24 more than we made the week before). I also made 23 bags of Breadness Crisps. And we had about a dozen loaves in the freezer in case we ran out of stock. Well... despite all that, come Friday, we had sold (and/or given away free loaves to those who completed their Frequent Flour Rewards Cards, or had birthdays that week) all of Friday's allotment and were into Saturday's "hot loaves" that customers needed to place in curing bags on their own later in the day (and they were instructed to not eat that bread until the next day).

On Saturday, we ran out of that bread, too and had to sell Sunday's bread with the same proviso as above. On Sunday we had 11 loaves left on the shelf (we would have started with 47) and those were gone by noon! The frozen breads went next and those were gone within an hour or so. And the Crisps were flying off the shelf all weekend; the last bag going about 3 pm on Sunday.

At that point, the only bread in the bakery was in the 2 sample bags on the counter. We stayed open, of course (we still have olive oils, balsamics, butter, jams, honey, tapenades, cutting boards, knives, tea towels, etc.) but when loyal customers came to get Breadness and hadn't ordered in advance, we had to break the news to them. Additionally, several people had asked for our Breadness Bowls. And this is the week I get to ship out 20 loaves of Breadness to those who contributed $100 to the Indiegogo crowdfunding for the upcoming film "Hollywood Town - The Harriet Schock Story," so I had to figure out how to make this all happen this week!

This week at the bakery we're making 220 loaves!!! That's our highest ever!

Right now, the most bread we can make per day is 72 loaves, and we do 3 bread cycles. Our proofing cabinet holds 6 tubs of dough that make 12 loaves each so that's 72. However, I needed to "think outside the tub" to solve this problem and devised a way to make one of the tubs 16 Petite Loaves/Breadness Bowls. It's the same amount of dough but the loaves are smaller. And the only difference in the loaves is the score on the top of each loaf: Petite loaves get a heart or triangle score; Breadness Bowls get a circle score. Bowls should also be cured an extra day and ideally should be frozen after that to better hold the fillings that will go inside.

This breaks down to: Cycle 1 (Tuesday through Friday) - 48 Country Loaves + 24 Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan Loaves; Cycle 2 (Wednesday through Saturday) - 60 Country Loaves + 16 Petite Loaves/Breadness Bowls; Cycle 3 (Thursday through Sunday) - 72 Country Loaves.

So... with the weather cooling down, with demand for our sourdough breads going up, with Breadness Bowls coming back into season, with at least 20 loaves to ship out in-town and across the country, and with more people strolling down our stretch of Magnolia Boulevard, this is going to be one busy weekend!

And I made 15 bags of Sourdough Crisps (available in 3 flavors this week: Naked, Tuscan Herb Infused and Applewood Smoked. Sorry, no Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan Crisps this week as we sold all of those loaves last week. Will have some next week if we don't sell all of them this week.)

Besides totally selling out last week, when I went to the bakery on Wednesday, the BIG slice of Breadness in our sign was gone! Someone had a BIG APPETITE!

Not to worry... I think I know who took it, and they promised it would be returned in better condition than they found it!

Best advice: order early to ensure there'll be Breadness for your eating pleasure this weekend!

Random Acts of Breadness is located at 2214 West Magnolia Blvd. in Burbank (2-1/2 blocks east of Buena Vista on the south side of the street). Come to the bakery and sample our artisan wares, or order on line for bakery pickup, or have Breadness delivered or shipped to your door. You may also order by phone at 818-562-7303 and pay when you come pick it up. We're open Friday & Saturday 12 to 6 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Reminder: If you (or someone you wish to gift) live within 120 miles of Los Angeles, we can ship on Thursday (via UPS Ground) and in most cases your Breadness Box will arrive on Friday (Saturday at the latest). Place your order before Thursday at noon here.

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