About

It's much more than a hipster trend. Here are a few good reasons why supporting organic farming is a good thing:  Organic farms are havens for wildlife. On average plant, insect and bird life is 50% more abundant on organic farms, with around 75% more wild bees. Organic farmland stores more carbon and organic soils are around 25% more effective at storing carbon in the long-term. If Europe's farmland all followed organic principles then agricultural emissions could drop by 40-50% by 2050. Organically produced crops and cereals were found to have up to 68%  more antioxidants than non-organic. Organic farmers must...

 What is naturally leavened bread? It's only in the past 150 years that we have used commercially produced baker's yeast to leaven our bread. Before then, and for thousands of years dating back to 3700 BCE, breads across the world were leavened by the fermentation of naturally occurring wild yeasts.  I use a natural yeast culture called a levain to leaven all of my bread, except The Woodlander, which uses baker's yeast.  A levain is a mixture of water and flour that is home to wild yeasts and friendly bacteria. They munch on the proteins and starches in the flour,...

Special producers, special flour One of the most important things that sets my bread apart from others is the incredible flours that I am able to use. What makes them so special? All of my flour comes from two family-run, traditional mills in England: Gilchesters in Northumberland and Shipton Mill in Gloucestershire. They share a passion for protecting the health of the soil and the environment, supporting sustainable farming, using heritage and rare grains and promoting genetic diversity.  Kinder to our bodies Almost all of my flours are stoneground from whole grains. Only a very small percentage of flour in the UK is...

I was born and spent my childhood in Norfolk, almost always to be found looking for bugs in a field, up a tree, or squirrelled away making something. Invariably with scraped knees and dishevelled hair. For many years as an adult I lived a very different life as a professional in the city, but in the end, you can't take the country out of the girl. I couldn't shake an unfulfilled desire to live amongst nature, where I knew my neighbours and most, important of all, to make things with my hands. I left London in 2015 and moved to live in a...