jan milliman

The Mister and I are big fans of food and always looking for new things to try in the kitchen. We have a lengthy mental list of recipes and techniques to master, and we’re hoping to check off a few things over the winter months. We’ll get that tortilla press out of the box yet!

One thing we love is a good loaf of fresh bread. Growing up, my mom made home made whole wheat bread on a regular basis. Of course the kids at school thought it looked weird, but my sandwiches were tasty. The Mister’s mom brought home bakery loaves, but they’d lose their luster after a day or two. So, fresh bread is a priority around here.

Enter The Bread Man

As you’ve probably guessed, learning to make bread was on our list. But now, thanks to Chet Fery, “The Bread Man” we can cross it off.

We won a bread making lesson from Mr. Fery in the Brockport Unitarian Universalist Fellowships’ recent silent auction. So, we invited a couple of friends to join us and all gathered ‘round the kitchen counter to learn the ropes.

Fery’s interest in bread grew out of a desire to replicate Buffalo’s beloved Bocce Club pizza in his home kitchen. If you want to nudge your grown kids to leave the nest, non-stop pizza production is one tactic, Fery suggests. Our boy, however, promises that this would only make him never want to leave.

At his son’s urging, Fery turned to making bread instead, and he has made and given away over 30,000 loaves since. Bread is kindness, Fery says. He has shared this kindness through his bread lessons with everyone from troubled students to senior citizens. Along the way, he’s gathered some wonderful stories which you can read on his website at http://breadtimestoriesandmore.com/.

Fery’s technique is straightforward and easy. He doesn’t even activate the yeast first! We made several traditional loaves in bread pans, including a whole wheat/white hybrid. The boy produced a handmade loaf inspired by Wegman’s Garlic Tuscan. We couldn’t believe how well everything turned out.

Added bonus: With the kid itching to make more bread even before we’ve finished our first loaves, maybe we can get started on those tortillas.