The Baking Education Center:
professional level classes
Setting Up a Successful Bakery
If you’ve always dreamed of opening a small bakery, this class will help. Learn all aspects of beginning an artisan operation, from what equipment to buy to how to write a business plan. Students will have the opportunity to mix and bake products to understand the choices involved in product and equipment selection, costing and market assessment. Specific topics include: bakery layout, equipment selection, product selection, cost control, market assessment, business plans, and management plans.
- SOLD OUT!Monday-Wednesday, July 27-29, 9 am to 5 pm $725
- SOLD OUT! Monday-Wednesday, November 2-4, 9 am to 5 pm $725
Advanced Bread Baking
The Advanced Bread Baking class is designed for professionals seeking to further their knowledge and refine their hands-on skills. Building on the Fundamentals of Bread Baking class, the curriculum offers a more complex and technical examination of the bread baker's art. Lecture material will focus extensively on the creation, use, and maintenance of sourdough and levain cultures, as well as the production of laminated pastries. Students will produce various breads of both French and German origin. Hands-on time will also be devoted to decorative breads. Breads will range from those using 100% white flour to those using 100% rye flour. A key focus will be on breads that are naturally leavened, with emphasis on various ways to incorporate them into different production schedules. Students will produce viennoiserie, including brioche, croissant, Danish, and variations of these, such as French brioche and German bienenstich. Product evaluation and time allotted for questions and answers will be incorporated into each day's class. Lunch is provided.
- Monday-Friday, August 10-14, 9 am to 5 pm - $975
The Fundamentals of Bread Baking
The Fundamentals of Bread Baking class is designed for professionals and those with basic professional experience who wish to elevate their skills. The lecture portion of each 8-hour day is designed to build a sound academic understanding of the entire bread-making process. Extensive hands-on work, with an emphasis on proper shaping techniques, will be a focus of each class day. Students will learn about the function of ingredients in bread, the control of the fermentation process, the various forms of yeasted pre-ferments and how to use them, as well as practical applications, such as determining proper dough temperature, baker’s math, and how to adjust the weight of bread formulas to meet production demands. This class also provides a discussion and introduction to the production of croissant and brioche. The criteria of what makes good bread will be discussed along with daily product evaluations. Time will be allotted each day for questions and answers. Lunch is provided daily.
- SOLD OUT!Monday-Friday, September 21-25, 9 am to 5 pm - $975
Baking with Whole Grains
During this three-day class, we will produce a variety of baked goods, from crackers and flatbreads to naturally leavened sourdough breads and breads made with 100% rye flour. We will make sweet and savory products, and products that incorporate a range of grains and flours that are not typically seen in baking. Class focus will be on formula development, hand skill refinement, technical lecture, and product evaluation. Product evaluation and time allotted for questions and answers will be incorporated into each day's class. Lunch is provided.
- Monday-Wednesday, October 19-21, 9 to 5 daily - $675
- Sign me up!
Survey of Classic French Breads: From Miche to Levain to Baguette
James MacGuire, translator of Raymond Calvel’s “The Taste of Bread,” and Jeffrey Hamelman, director of King Arthur Flour’s Bakery, are offering a master class on classic French breads. The 3-day, 16-hour class will be taught by both instructors and will feature variations of Miche, Pain au Levain, and Baguette. The class will combine technical and historical lecture with abundant hands-on time to practice hand skills, bread scoring, and baking. Lecture topics will include the historical and cultural context of the breads and technical aspects of bread production, as well as methods of retarding pain au levain. Students will make sourdough cultures and will bake several formulas to compare the effects of varying flour, hydration, mix time, and different production considerations. Class size is limited to 12, and tuition includes lunch.
- SOLD OUT!October 29-31 - $550
Thursday, 2 to 5 pm, Friday, 9 am to 4 pm, Saturday, 9 am to 3 pm
