Breadness Buzz - Sourdough September, Breaducation Field Trip, Raw Farm Butter is Back!

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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...

One of the bullet points from the organization that promotes Sourdough September is educating folks about the art and craft of making traditional sourdough bread. This is something we do all year round, but for September we scheduled 2 field trips for students at Delphi Academy Los Angeles to go behind the scenes and learn the secrets of how Breadness is made. We call this activity "Breaducation" and it's not only interesting and fun, but it also smells pretty awesome inside the bakery!

In the photo below it looks like I am doing the Vulcan Mind Meld with our jar of sourdough starter... hmmm... the microbes are happy that they are getting much admiration... logical? Perhaps...

And the best part of the field trip is getting to take some Breadness home! Because their field trip was on a Thursday and we baked loaves while the students were there, the bread needed 24 hours to cure. So students were allowed to take the "hot loaves" home but were given specific instructions on when to place the open loaf into the supplied curing bag, seal it, then open the bag and slice the bread the next day.

Here's one of the Delphi students having her first slice of the Breadness loaf she brought home. Yummy!

It takes a competent team and lot of moving parts to run a unique micro-bakery like Random Acts of Breadness. One of the areas that's rarely discussed is the maintenance of our equipment. I bought all of our "heavy metal" brand new so I expected it would last forever if we treated it right. But, even with TLC and my affinity for mechanical and electrical things, stuff can happen. Migali is the brand of our refrigerator and freezer. Those of you who have been following my blog since before we opened in 2021 are familiar with the drama this unit has provided (the exploding sourdough starter, for example!). This time, it's not as dramatic, but rather, it's a mystery that requires solving: Where is this water coming from?

This is the inside bottom of the left side of the fridge. Water mysteriously appeared a couple weeks ago where there isn't supposed to be any water. The compressor and condensor coils for this unit (and the freezer) are bottom mounted, so the only thing that could create moisture would be the cooling tubing that runs inside the back wall of the unit (not easily accessible). The operating temperature range for this fridge is normal and within spec.

I called and the Migali support tech back east had me check a few things to see if we could figure out where the leak is coming from.

This is what things look like at the bottom of the unit, behind the grille. This is a water catch tray where condensation from the cooling tubes is supposed to end up. The blue tubing at the bottom of the tray gives off heat and this evaporates any water that collects in the tray. Looks dry to me. The big gray tube comes from the condensation collector inside the back wall of the fridge. The heart of the refrigerator, the compressor, is the large black dome-top unit on the right.

The Migali tech had me remove the cover that conceals this drain tube (in the top center section of the fridge) and check for any leaks. None here.

Moving down from that top tube, there's a water trail visible on the back wall. Let's see where that leads...

Well, there's where the water collects before sliding to the left as shown in the first photo.

That's as far as I've gotten in this investigation because I have to do this in sections, then take photos and send them to the tech. The next step involves having to move the fridge away from the wall so I can remove a plate that covers an access point for the water tube. That will be done on a day we're not open. At any rate, I thought you might like to get a glimpse of this aspect of the bakery. I don't mind challenges like this as there's always something to learn from the experience. As Joni Mitchell famously sang, "Life is for learning." (to be continued...)

We completely sold out of Raw Farms Butter last month and the dairy was out of stock as well. Fortunately, we got our largest shipment to date last week and we keep it frozen so it will stay at the peak of flavor for when you're ready to unwrap a stick to serve with your Breadness! Available in a 1-lb. box (4 sticks) or by the stick.

This week at the bakery: Traditional Country Loaves, Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan Sourdough and Breadness Crisps in 4 flavors!

Many of our customers buy more than one loaf of bread so they can freeze some for later use (or give it as a gift in the middle of the week). If you plan on freezing your bread, let us know so we can give you bread that's already frozen and double bagged. Many of the frozen loaves are already sliced, making it easy for you to take only the slices you want from the frozen loaf and letting them thaw in another sealed bag on your counter for about 30 minutes. We have fresh and frozen Country Loaves and the Cinnamon Raisin Maple Pecan Loaves described above. (Just the thing if you want your Breadness for later in the week!)

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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