What is a Baker

Here at the bakery we're coming up to our
5 year anniversary in August. And over the
years our biggest challenge has always
been finding employees who can bake.

What we do best is baking from scratch.
That has always been our business model
and always will.

To find that person who is willing and to
believe in that concept is like looking for
a needle in a hay stack

Our customers tell us the joy and happiness
we bring them with our products.
And they also let us know when something
isn't right when a baked product is not
meeting our standards. That always leads
us to a "baker" who isn't following our recipes.

We've had Pastry Chefs who can't bake a chocolate
chip cookie to novices who start from nothing
and become the cream of the crop to some who
just don't get it. It's been tough to find people
who really care about baking.

We have, between Cheryl and I, over 50 years
of baking experience. We both starting baking
with our moms and grandma's when we were
both around 8 years old.

My mom wasn't the greatest baker, but she
made it with care and it always tasted good,
something moms are always good at.
Inspiring me to bake on.

So at this stage, we are bakers true and
true who are committed to baking from
scratch the old school way.

No generic methods from a pastry school
text book, no shortcuts on ingredients,
no quick solutions to a time consuming
recipe.

We bake our desserts and breads with
tradition and our hearts with no excuses.

So, what is a baker to me?
It seems to be a lost art, but I know
there are folks out there that believe in
baking just like us.

Andrew Zimmern Would be Proud

Davids Supermarket across the street from the bakery
is a Savannah classic and a foodie/gourmands nightmare.
Being the first ever grocery store in Savannah, Davids
Grocery was the cats pajamas back in its day.

But.....nowadays, after multiple owners,
it's past prime and is now known for its
funky smell. A hazmat crew would bucket
to their knees.

We found this product (pictured above)
collecting dust on the shelves. It's not something
I or anyone I know would eat, but hey somebody
does(?)

I think Andrew Zimmern should pay a visit,
there is plenty of bazaar foods for him to explore at the
legendary Davids.

respect

Respect is taking into consideration the views
and desires of others and incorporating it into
your decisions. When you respect another, you
factor in and weigh others' thoughts and desires
into your planning and balance it into your
decision making.

An example would be: respecting someone's opinion.
You may or may not agree, but you place it into
consideration, and it may ultimately influence
your decision (even if partially).
Respect can also be applied to taking care of
oneself or the environment. Respect adds
general reliability to social interactions.
It helps people get along with other people.

What a crazy week

For some reason this poem popped into my head
this week.

Old Mother Hubbard
Went to the cupboard
To get her poor doggie a bone,
When she got there
The cupboard was bare
So the poor little doggie had none.

Good luck old lady

99.2% Customer Satisfaction

I would have to say that our customers are the best.
But as a business owner, there are some that try
our patience and push the limits of rudeness.
Those customers make up the other .8%.

Lets see, lets name a few:

*That guy that butts to the front of the line
of everybody else because he doesn't have
the time to wait.

*The guy who calls in his sandwich order
outside the door and expects it when he
walks in the door to the register.
I call him "Mr. President"

* Or, how 'bout the woman who wants us to make
something we don't make and continues to ask for
it even after many variations of "no mam, that isn't
something we do"

* "Why is your bread so hard and burnt looking?"
We do european artisan breads baked in a steam
injected hearth oven - if you want soft chewy bread
that sticks to the roof of your mouth, go buy it in a
plastic bag at the grocery store.

* "The Stalker from Florida" She wants us to ship
cupcakes to Florida, even tho we don't ship.
She says she stays up nights thinking about our
cupcakes...she HAS to have them!!!

* "The Money Crumpler" Throws their cumpled
up money on the counter and glares.

* "Mr. Boycott" He says we've gotten too busy for him
and he isn't coming in here no more because
we don't talk with him like we used to.
Thanks for the support Mr. Boycott.

Then There's
* "Mean Bread Guy"
* "Mean Chocolate Chip Guy"
* "Miss Angry" - She's a hoot
* "HAve it my way Sandwich Guy" HE likes to make
up his own sandwich.

* Mr. Famous - We haven't seen him in a long time.
hmmm, what's he up to lately?

All in all our customers are great and we do our very best
to treat them with respect and happiness. I mean come on,
your at Back in the Day Bakery, the coolest laid back
bakery around. Good food, desserts and bread, what more
could you ask for.

So to those customers that are having a bad day and
want to dump it on us - sorry, we're having too much
fun these days for you to ruin it.

Happy smiles and desserts to you all

Della Fattoria - Petaluma, CA

It was our last official day in Cali and we were on our last leg
of our trip and feeling pretty tired at this point.
We woke up debating if we should visit the place that
inspired us to come to Cali. We were tired, but we made the
drive north to a Cafe/Bakery called Della Fattoria.

We drove to Petaluma, CA - just 30-45 minutes from SF.
as we walked into the cafe it was like walking into
a warm familiar place. Beautiful flowers atop the display
cases filled with delicious goodies.

We had to wait on the sweets and ordered lunch.
We both had simple but elegant flavored sandwiches.

We have always admired Della Fattoria from afar after seeing
the bakery in a book called Artisan Bakers Across America.
So it was a pleasure when Kathleen (owner) came over to
our table and introduced herself. We talked and shared the
fact that we are bakery nerds and came here to see the
cafe/bakery.

Kathleen invited us to see their wholesale operation
where they bake the bread.

Kathleen gave us directions and we found our way to the farm.
We got a little lost, but we had the good fortune running
into Edmond.

Edmond is one of those people you feel like you've know a
long time. He quickly and openly showed us the prep room,
the massive (2) wood fired hearth ovens they built (a bread bakers
dream oven), mixing toom, and the grounds of the farm.




We chatted about bread, business, and the philosphy of baking.

Della Fattoria is a very eden-like bakery/business.
Their farm and family are warm-hearted, open
and sharing.

Cheryl and I want to thank Kathleen and Edmond for
being such good people.

My Favorite Sandwich

I thought I would share one of my favorite sandwiches to make.
It's pretty simple, but the ingredients need to be fresh.

1 Sandwich - Ingredient list:
Apple Wood Smoked Bacon
Fresh Ripe Tomatos
2 Large Eggs
Green Leaf Lettuce
Pain au Levain
European Butter
Grey Salt & Pepper to taste

Prepare:
Pan fry bacon until crispy
Pan fry eggs overeasy
Lightly toast Pain au Levain

Assemble:
Butter the Pain au Levain
place eggs first, then bacon,
tomato, lettuce

The Pain au Levain is a favorite bread of
mine that I bake on a regular basis.
It's a whole wheat bread with rye making
it a bread for all occasions.
Nice dense interior, thick chewy crust,
rich deep flavor.

Give it a try and enjoy