Bakers at The School of Artisan Food are rising to the challenge of Sourdough September, the month-long event by the Real Bread Campaign to raise awareness of the real thing vs ‘sourfaux’.
Baking tutor David Carter will be showing how to make the bread in two Sourdough Demonstrations, sharing his tips and secrets for making, looking after and using a sourdough starter. All that’s needed to make real sourdough bread is flour, water, time for the wild yeasts to develop and an understanding of the artisan process.
The School is also running a ‘sourdough clinic’ where would-be bakers can take along their sourdough starters for analysis and troubleshooting on Wednesday 5 September 2018 and Saturday 29 September 2018.
Set up to teach all aspects of artisan food production, The School is well placed to share its expertise in the making of ‘real’ bread using the slow fermentation artisan process, which rarely features in the supermarket version of so-called ‘sourdough’.
As there is no legal definition for sourdough or artisan bread, there is little to prevent those terms being used to market any loaf regardless of how it’s made, leading to the Real Bread Campaign to call for better loaf labelling.
Julie Byrne, MD, The School of Artisan Food, said: "The inferior bread being sold by supermarkets as sourdough and artisan bears no relation to the real thing. They are mass produced and full of additives as taste and goodness are sacrificed to the bottom line. We stand with all who are calling for better loaf labelling and will continue to play our part in spreading the Sourdough love."
For those looking to confidently produce sourdough breads, the two-day hands on course - Introduction to Sourdough Baking - guided by internationally renowned baker and author of How to Make Bread Emmanuel Hadjiandreou is a must. He will share his baking expertise to give a fascinating insight into the science behind the artisan process learning how to create a wild yeast starter and make a selection of loaves.
Wayne Caddy, Head of Baking at The School of Artisan Food, who has made a series of how to make Sourdough videos for the School’s You Tube channel, explains: “A good sourdough should reflect the characteristic of the grain. It’s the baker’s job to get the best out of the grain. Similar to wine, the grape often determines the character of wine; sourdough bread is no different.
“Dough with very little fermentation, such as a mass produced loaf, contains much higher levels of gluten. If you imagine gluten like an elastic band - tough, strong and resistant - this gives your gut a rigorous workout. Long-term consumption of gluten-rich breads may lead to gluten intolerance.”
To find out more about the courses on offer throughout Sourdough September, visit www.schoolofartisanfood.org
