A commute like no other

I'm currently living in the village of Bishop's Frome, just a hop, skip and a jump from the bakery. Thankfully this means I get to keep up my cycle commute, but gone are the days of the congested, death defying, fume-filled roads of London. Instead, my first cycle saw me set out on my lamp-lit street at 3:50am, turning out of the road into a wall of pitch black, with open fields on either side and not a car in sight.

Slightly unnerved and feeling a little dis-oriented, I looked around in an effort to calm my over-active imagination and found myself to be lucky enough to be cycling beneath a beautiful clear, star-filled sky. All fears of giant beasts jumping out from the bushes were allayed by this most wonderful sight. Though I did then nearly fall off my bike as I kept a look out for shooting stars!

After the thick fog a few weeks ago (which saw me glued to the white lines in the middle of the road for my guiding light) I've now invested in a head torch, so even on the darkest of nights I can make my way just about clearly to the bakery - though this does mean Pete is greeted by a dalek each morning!

Time flies when you're having fun

Wow, has it really been two months since we took over the lease at The Hop Pocket and Unit 53 became the home of Peter Cooks Bread.

The Get In

The first two weeks of March saw us (and a lot of helpers) getting the myriad of baking equipment into the unit. The most testing of which was our Tom Chandley oven which only just scraped through the doorway - that is after removing a part or two. Thankfully the promise of its glass oven doors made it all the worthwhile.

Once the equipment was in, it was time to get our hands well and truly dirty - sadly not yet in dough, but in marigolds. But after a full day's clean, the bakery was starting to take shape.

Our First Bake

Next, it was time to test out the oven, and of course our lovely big spiral mixer. Let the baking commence.

From an overnight white, to wholemeal, to some soft rolls, the bakery was starting to smell just as it should, sending out wafts of lovely freshly baked bread. 

After feeding our starters, it was then time to get some Sourdough on the go and start building our repertoire of Real Bread.

Sharing the Joys of Real Bread

The next two weeks saw us take to the road as we visited local delis, cafes , restaurants and pubs, sharing our Real Bread wares. There's nothing like delivering a box of freshly baked bread to bring a smile to people's faces.

Our First Order

Thankfully our samples hit the spot and we landed our first order, followed by another, and then another. And so it was time to say goodbye to our luxury baking day's of 9am starts and hello 4am.

Follow our Real Bread Journey

Hello, 

Shona here, I'll be charting the progress of Peter Cooks Bread as we set about sharing the joys of Real Bread with Ledbury and beyond.