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Heather's Hearth
Heather's Hearth
Handmade Organic Sourdough Bread in the Upper Ottawa Valley
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This little saying seems to be true most of the time…especially when you have two big exams coming up.

The Middle East
This is what I’ve been up to…

heathershearth

Heather MacMillan
This November I truly wasn't ready for winter...it This November I truly wasn't ready for winter...it is typically one of the hardest months for me. But I have learned how to embrace it, and this year choosing to take a work break it went much smoother. And once December comes and the snow arrived I remember how much I love this time of year ❄️❄️❄️ Feeling good and ready to embrace the snow and darkness ☺️ What is your relationship with winter? #wintertransformation #farmlife #snowday #firstsnowoftheyear
The oven is up and running again! I will be doin The oven is up and running again! I will be doing a delivery to Ottawa (west of Booth street, no further south than Stittsville) and Arnrprior, Dunrobin, Renfrew & Almonte on Friday December 8th. Farm pick up is also available for Thursday evening (the 7th) Ordering is open now until Monday December 4th 7PM This is your chance to stock your freezers up for Christmas 🙂 Did you know that this bread freezes super well!? Sourdough Varieties available: Valley Sourdough (classic) Turmeric Cranberry Seed (pumpkin & Sunflower) Apple Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk and Cherry Gluten free Walnut Raisin Seedy Sandwich (sesame, poppy & flax) Einkorn Ancient Grains (Spelt/Khorasan) Dark Rye & Granola Comment below with a bread emoji and I will send you the link to order! 🍞🍞🍞 #sourdoughbread #homebakery #woodfiredbread #homedelivery #ottawa #ottawavalley #supportlocal #renfrewcounty
Sourdough culture or starter is the foundation of Sourdough culture or starter is the foundation of the sourdough bread baking process. After teaching a workshop yesterday, I am continually reminded that taking care of this living, breathing thing and getting it ready to bake is the most intimidating and confusing parts of the process-until you start doing it at home on your own! Every group is different and this one put me through me paces! Lots of amazing questions, but also a slight panic, or unease in not understanding the steps of taking care of it. I am always grateful for this, as it helps me continue to strive to find new and creative ways of teaching this. I always reassure folks, that once you start going through the steps at home and actually diving in and physically doing it you will start to get to know your starter and what it needs. There is a balance between following the steps provided and starting to do things your way. What has your journey with a sourdough starter been like? Are you a committed baker? Or struggling to commit to taking care of your starter? #sourdoughstarter #learntobakesourdough #Sourdoughbread #ottawavalley #renfrewcounty
Wow, it's already time to start thinking about the Wow, it's already time to start thinking about the new year!? Or is that just a way to skip Christmas lol. I have two workshops planned for early 2024 that are now ready for registration! They are an amazing Christmas gift if you are trying to avoid material items (and/or want a loved one to start baking bread for you 😆). All jokes aside, here are some details: January 21st- Sourdough Simplified at the farm. This is my long workshop, lunch included (sorry no bring a friend as I don't have space in my home) February 25th- Wholegrain or Blended Sourdough Sandwich Loaf. This one is in Killaloe and you can bring a friend. I am so excited for this new one. It's been in the works forever it seems! 3rd pic- the type of loaf you learn to make at Sourdough Simplified 4/5th pics- the type of load you learn to make at the Sandwich Loaf workshop All the details can be found by dropping a bread emoji below or sending me a DM 🍞❤😊 #sourdoughbread #learntobakesourdough #sourdoughbreadworkshops #homebaking #ottawavalley #renfrewcounty #onhighlands #comewander
Part 6- Baking! OK, there are many other small st Part 6- Baking! OK, there are many other small steps missed in this photo story, but I could only fit in so much. I hope you have enjoyed following along! Perhaps this is the best part...but if I had to choose I wouldn't be able to pick just one step. They all go together to create the delicious bread and missing one would definitely put a wrench in the process. Baking your loaf of sourdough in a dutch oven of some kind gives it the crust-y crust that many folks love and associate with homemade sourdough bread. Like I mentioned before- my in person workshops offer so much hands on experience (as shown in this series). It truly gets you off on the right foot with your sourdough journey. I still have space in my workshop on Sunday November 26th in Killaloe and I will be announcing a couple workshops planned for the New Year very soon (stay tuned!). If you are interested in my workshop in a couple weeks, drop a bread emoji below 🍞❤🫶 And if you have any questions at all my inbox is open 😊 #sourdoughbread #homemadebread #handmadesourdoughbread #learntobakesourdough #sourdoughbreadworkshops #renfrewcounty #ottawavalley
Part 5- Scoring! Also a very fun part of the proc Part 5- Scoring! Also a very fun part of the process. This part is after you "proof" your bread. Proof is a fancy baking word for letting the bread rise. You can proof your bread at room temperature or in the fridge. To get a really nice, firm surface to score cooling it down in the fridge is the way to go. We cover these different ways of proofing in my workshops. To score your bread, ideally you use a very sharp double sided razor blade that is held in some kind of a holder. The one pictured is from a company called @wiremonkeyshop. Scoring is done to allow the bread to burst up and open in the direction and location that you want it to. Traditionally, every family would have a signature score for their bread. When they brought their proofed dough to the community wood-fired oven their "signature" on the bread ensured they got their own bread back after baking. What would your signature be if you needed one on your bread?
Part 4- Shaping! This is one of my favourite part Part 4- Shaping! This is one of my favourite parts and also one of the most difficult to learn. It takes a lot of practice. Getting your hands used to the right amount of pressure, direction and gentleness takes doing it over and over again, as well as getting your dough to the right level of development and rise (or proof). The state your dough is in can really affect how easy or hard it is to shape it! If you've already learned how to shape bread, how is it going for you? And if you haven't learned, what questions do you have about it? Drop your answers in the comments! #sourdoughbread #homemadebread #handmadesourdoughbread #learntobakesourdough #sourdoughbreadworkshops #renfrewcounty #ottawavalley
Part 3- Adding salt and more hand mixing! Even in Part 3- Adding salt and more hand mixing! Even in the photos you can see the difference in the dough between the first hand mix and now. The dough is already transforming before your eyes, while it sat still. This is where you add salt and a bit of extra water if it is in the recipe and the most work you will do with your hands as you develop the dough. Not pictured in any of the posts are the stretch and folds done during the long phase of bulk fermentation (all done before shaping). There are may different methods and particular tweaks to the sourdough method. Many bakers claim their way is the best. I can honestly say that there is a lot of similarities in the different methods and one way may work best for one person while another may work better for someone else. One thing I do think from my own direct experience as a self-taught baker and teacher is that MANY of us do best with hands-on learning facilitated from an instructor. There is still space in my workshop on Sunday November 26th if this peaks your interest in learning how to bake sourdough bread right before the holidays! Drop a bread emoji below if you want info on the workshop and how to sign up 🍞😄🫶 #sourdoughbread #homemadebread #handmadesourdoughbread #learntobakesourdough #sourdoughbreadworkshops #renfrewcounty #ottawavalley
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We do not have a farm/bakery stand open at this time so please arrange a visit ahead of time if you want to come to the farm. 1646 Mine View Road, Cobden, Ontario, Canada | K0J 1K0 | heather@heathershearth.ca | 613-281-8524
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