Welcome to Cliffside Bakery

Last bread bake of the season

Hi, We will take a break for the summer so this Sunday, June 21st will be our last bed break until Sept. I am hoping to post more video and pics of us doing everything bread. I am also going to continue with the testing of the Red Fife wheat. My initial formula was WAY off, must improve.
Hope you have a great summer, drop by again soon.

Up close and personal

Hi, Some people like their dogs or cats. Me, I like to keep a nice liquid levain or a friendly stiff textured spelt levain. I have even been known to maintain a deep and satisfying relationship with a whole rye sourdough. These are my pets, and for the minimal attention I give them; water and flour on a regular basis- they, in return, help me to leaven the bread I bake. Imagine, millions- no billions of tiny wild yeast fungi, "eukaryotic microorganisms" milling around in a small container of flour and water, kept at room temperature, sometimes a little cooler. They live, reproduce, consume delicious meals of starch from the flour I have fed them, they belch up carbon dioxide and finally die. While they do all of this the bread slowly rises...

1. A mature liquid levain made of all purpose flour

Note the large bubbles and the wispy tiny bubbles- a good sign
of a healthy levain.

2. A stiff textured levain made of 100% whole grain spelt flour

This levain is both responsive and flavourful, what more
could you ask for in a "pet"?

3. Liquid Rye Sourdough

Ready to build into healthy, delicious rye bread-naturally.

All of these levains have a very nice earthy, not too sour smell.
When I'm arrive home after work I remove the lids off their respective containers, take a deep whiff, smile and mutter a few endearments to them and revel in the wonderment of nature.

Miche Shapiro

Hi, I baked just two of these large 2 Kg. Miches on Saturday night. To be totally honest no one had ordered a Miche but I felt like doing a least a couple of test loaves. At any rate they ended up serving as sacrificial offerings to the oven beast; the heat was up around 550 F and with other more numerous loaves waiting I needed to bring the temperature down somewhat. The two loaves baked for over an hour and came out a deep chocolate brown, too dark perhaps for most peoples taste but perfect for mine. The temperature did decline to a more acceptable 500 F, I got the temperature I wanted and the Miches were shoved onto a side table and forgotten...until today.
I decided to cut into one just to take a peek before reluctantly tossing them out and was pleasantly surprised by what I saw and tasted. The crust is highly carmelized almost to the point of being bitter, it maintains an almost sugary crunch into the crumb, a hint of earthy rye, strong baked whole wheat and a mild but long lasting tang. The formula is courtesy of my very good internet friend and fellow baker/chef/foodie, Jeremy Shapiro, a man on a mission to expand the role of the humble but tasty rye grain. Jeremy maintains a passionate and wide ranging food blog called stirthepots.com, I highly recommend it for those who are avid to read, look and listen to everything about good food. When I am seeking knowledge, general or specific or simply browsing, Jeremy never fails to entertain me and I'm grateful that he has continued to post, update and generally document his unending search for all that is tasty. I will be hitting a deli tomorrow for some decent cheese and good sausage, this is bread that will stand strong beside you through the storms of life...arrrggg. Put a lid on the psycho-babble yer a baker not an analyst.

5 Grain Levain

My 10 year old son chomps his way through a half a loaf of this bread every morning. It's loaded with sunflower and flax seeds, oats and whole rye berries yet it's a very light bread. Usually when I finish the mix I often wonder how on earth is this puddle of porridgy soup ever going round up into a cohesive dough, but a fold or two later and maybe an overnight retard and it springs forth with a nice bloom. Who says whole grain breads are stodgy and boring? These are high quality carbs baby! Munch, slather, crunch!

Cliffside in 1953

Hi, Lou Cincelle, a former longtime Cliffside resident was kind enough to give me a photocopy of a picture from an event from long ago. In the picture you will see a sign that says "Bakery". There was a business in that location called "Patisserie Parisienne" that Lou's parents ran from 1958 to 1976. At the time of this photo it was called "Sorensen's Bakery". If you have any old clippings from this era that are pertinent to Cliffside Toronto, please scan and send them over, I will post. I'm interested in anything of historical value that`s connected with our neighbourhood.

Semolina Levain

Hello, I continue to mine the fertile terroir of Jeffrey Hamelman's fantastic book, "Bread, A Bakers Book of Techniques and Recipes". This book is a bible for myself and many others. Jeffrey's commitment to the details of making good bread help make the attentive reader focus on developing the skills of manipulating time and temperature for optimal results. This latest bread, Semolina Levain is another of the "liquid levain" style formulas. 60% Durum Semolina flour, a mere 15% pre-ferment and long cool fermentation yields a very scrumptious blond crust with a tangy translucent crumb, studded with added roasted sesame seeds. A bona fide winnah. Go out and buy this book, your bread baking will rise ('~') to the next level. Enjoy the photos...

Pana Rustika- The Inside Story

Hi, This bread began as an adaptation of "Rustic Bread" from Jeffrey Hamelman's book, "Bread". I began using a liquid levain instead of the yeasted preferment in the original formula and increased the hydration from 68% to 72%. The results have been pleasing, the loaf is well flavoured with whole grain rye and whole wheat flours, and the levain provides a mild tang. I needed a new name, one that paid homage to the original and that had some fake european nomenclanture (like Corinthian Leather), and Pana Rustika was born.

Bender's Laundromat

A memorable day. Thank you to everyone who took bread. And now...ZZZZ

A little chilly

Baking Bread January 18th

Hi, We're going bake bread for the first time since last spring, our reno is completed enough to devote some time to getting the leavens built back up to strength and making the production room ready.
Here is the list of what we're baking...

5 Grain Levain
Pain Au Levain
Krackerkorn
Roasted Red Onion Walnut Levain
Pana Rustika
Organic Spelt Levain
Baguette
Raisin
40% Caraway Rye
Ciabatta

The List

1. Fork Mixer
2. Maple Bakers Table
3. Commercial Sink

Son gives Dad thumbs up

Labour Day Weekend

Hi, We have driven north from Toronto to the family cottage for the last weekend of the summer. Along with the view of the lake, lying on the dock, messing around in the canoe, catching frogs in the creek and sleeping in late, I always feel the urge to cook and especially bake. Here is what I whipped up today: a huge loaf of Krackerkorn, made with a 50% preferment, sunflower seeds and coarse cornmeal. It's a pretty big loaf and already half gone. Supper is on it's way, fried yukon gold potatoes, sweet and sour cabbage, salad, wine and whatever is left from this loaf.
I hope that anyone who reads this has had a great summer and is wrapping things up in similar fashion: great food shared with those you love. Adios summer 2008, Cheers!

August 2008 update

Hello, We are over the hump now. The renovation of our house has progressed extremely well. The crew is fantastic and it's been a great opportunity to see the various stages of house building from the framing to the mechanical to the interior finishing. They are outstanding at what they do. I think it might be possible to do a bake around the middle of September. Yikes. Before you know it the summer will be over. Other than reno pictures I have nothing to offer, so I will leave with a picture of a platter that I worked on back in Feb. of this year at King Arthur Flour in Vermont. As always... don't the door hit ya where the lord split ya.

Latest News June 2008

Hi There, If you've been checking our blog expecting some more bread posts... sorry, no dice. We're actually renovating our house. It's a very dusty, confusing, exciting and tumultuous time right now. Part of our plan is to make access to our backyard oven easier, to that end there has been new space created by the construction crew. When completed we'll be able to roll the racks right out to the oven making production a little easier. I have also decided that it's time to acquire a bread mixer, my arms have suffered over the past couple of years and I think that to continue to hand mix all the doughs would be cutting this whole thing short. I'm currently checking the market here in Toronto for a used bread mixer in good condition at a reasonable price. I think the earliest this blog will see any new baking posts will be September. I hope you remember us and keep Cliffside Bakery bookmarked for a return visit. Au revoir for now... HAPPY BAKING!

The end of an era

I would like to introduce the readers of this blog to two of my co-workers, Joe Miller and Gerry Steckling. Today, May 6th 2008 was their last day of work at the grocery store where we all work. These guys have been a very big influence on me. We have worked together for the past few centuries decorating countless cakes, pastries and special orders. Both Joe and Gerry came to the baking trade by way of apprenticeships, Joe is from Scotland and Gerry from Germany. One came on a boat and the other on a ship. They each have over 300 years of experience! I have been lucky to be close enough to pick up a toolbox full of techniques, tips, tricks and witty things to say to customers. Secrets to help make me a better human baker. But the really nice thing is their unique individual personalities, Gerry is a class "A" firecracker and he doesn't suffer fools without a withering caustic humorous comment. Joe is a quiet fellow, as steady and even tempered as you'll ever meet but also with an incredible sense of humour and a great singing voice. The combination of these two men has helped keep me on an even keel as we have all weathered the daily grind of a busy retail store.

Their attention to perfecting the details of our business while maintaining prodigious output and keeping me and the rest of our crew in stitches without missing a beat is something I will surely miss. Joe and Gerry, you each have my deepest respect and admiration as masters of our trade and as friends. I hope you both have many happy years in retirement, and that just maybe...some lucky bakeshop owner will benefit from a few pointers now and then. Gentlemen, I salute you.
PS: I just noticed where Gerry's fingers are...typical Berliner.