Dear Breadfriends (7/10/2014). Ovens, granola, supreme court, imminent repairs.

Hello Dear Breadfriends,

It's been a lovely past couple of weeks, full of shining sun, exciting weather, good conversation, and lots of love to be shared.

I have to say, though, that it's had it's down side, too, but this probably isn't the place for a rant about the Supreme Court.. for a start.

No..

OK

I'm really writing to share short news concerning all the things we make in our electric oven, including cookies, granola, and pastry. It's not happening this week. I'm sorry to say that, but it's true.

In that last storm the lightning was bursting directly overhead, and we took a direct hit. Our three-phase generator, which powers pretty much all the major electrical stuff in the bakery, was hit with some kind of big electrical pulse, burning wires and blowing up capacitors. It quit. I spent most of yesterday working on it--with help from our brain-trust--and ordering new parts, and I'm hopeful that we'll have it up and running soon. Until then.. well.. we're a rustic bakery. Today we prepped more than 400 loaves of bread by hand from start to finish. Old-time style. We are lucky that our big oven runs on wood!

I'm hoping that this electrical blow will be the last of the infrastructural breakdowns for a while. Our computer is struggling, the internet is down, the bookshelf fell off the wall... and then the storm came.. 

But I'm not complaining. This morning we all got to the bakery early and began mixing. Sly and the Family Stone and Chango Spasiuk kept us dancing. We finished and ate lunch together on the porch, watching the clouds roll over the valley and the sun fall on the rye. We were all full of gratitude.

So what's the story? Just bread and pasta for a while. If you have a cookie or granola share, we'll be crediting your account.

Till soon,

your baker,

stef