Sourdough Bread Q&A

How and when did you get into the sourdough bread business?

We started making sourdough bread several years ago after our neighbor gave us some starter and a recipe. After a short while we discovered Einkorn flour an ancient wheat that is easy to digest, was never hybridized, or bred to harm us, contains a lot of protein, and is said to not affect people who have gluten sensitivities. However, due to the fact that Einkorn wheat has a different gluten (the right gluten that should naturally be there) baking with it and getting good consistent results can take a long time to master, it took us over a year to get good loaves, and we still sometimes get a sticky or odd loaf.

Einkorn sourdough loaves

Is there anything I can do to get good results with Einkorn; I don't want to get bad results.

I believe a big part of getting good results with Einkorn sourdough is having a starter that has been “eating” Einkorn for a long time, we do sell starter so if you're interested in baking with this flour and need a starter, please come on out! Click this link to check it out https://www.longcreekfarm.net/products/%7Btitle%7D

an active starter

Another tip to get good results with sourdough is to weigh all your ingredients every time, that way you will know you are always putting the same amounts of everything in, every time!

Why would you want to sell regular wheat sourdough if Einkorn is healthier?

Here’s why you might want to bake with regular flour as opposed to Einkorn, most people have never heard of Einkorn and you as the baker need to bake and sell products that people want, and almost everyone wants regular white flour sourdough. But don’t make this scare you away from offering Einkorn to people, a few people have said that they would want sourdough but due to sensitivities will have to pass, but when we offered them Einkorn, they bought it and are now repeat einkorn customers.

I choose the type of flour I want to bake with, but I have no experience baking, and don't even know what customers want.

So, once you have decided on what kind of flour you are going to use you need to make a few loaves for yourself or friends to get some experience with the process. A good way to decide on the flour is to put up adds for each kind and see what people want.

I have never made bread before, what do I do?

We do not stretch our bread, we just mix, sour and then bake.

If you have never made sourdough before we have this step-by-step video on making the bread and feeding the starter. Einkorn Sourdough Bread | Long Creek Farm

Also, keep in mind that we bake on order, we never have to worry about loaves not selling.

Who do I market to?

We offer our bread to customers in paper bags

Good customers to advertise your bread to are bakeries, caterers, and small businesses that offer similar products such as handmade cheeses, eggs, etc.

Make sure you never take more customers than your oven and starter levels can handle and be prepared to feed your starter daily if orders pick up, a local caterer orders 12 loaves of sourdough from us which means we have to always be feeding starters so that we can supply her, our other customers, and ourselves with bread.

Is there any benefit to having a bakery business over a farm business?

One of the biggest pros of having a baking business as opposed to a farm/animal business is that if no one orders bread the flour lasts a long time and doesn't cost you anything to keep, where as a herd of 100 calves that don't sell cost a lot of money, time and space to keep.

Are there some laws I need to look into before I get started?

Yes, in some states you may need an inspected kitchen, some states don't want dogs in the kitchen etc. here in OK we don't need an inspected kitchen, and the law doesn't say we have to do anything concerning dogs.

Some states don't want doggies in the kitchen

Hopefully this blog has helped you feel more comfortable starting a sourdough bread business, it can be a lot of things to keep on top of at first, but with time it should become easy.

If you have any questions, please feel free to reach out to us!