When I step outside at 2 a.m., it’s cold and dark. I find my way to Mildrith’s shelter with the light of a headlamp. Sometimes a light breeze jostles the wind chimes. They sound like an eerie, monastic night-chant. Compline.1
The fire in Mildrith, the wood-fired oven, has been burning 17 hours. More, if the weather has been cold.
I pull on a pair of gloves to protect my hands when I open the steel doors. I can feel the heat radiating from the cob entrance to the oven. The latch screeches when I lift it to open the doors. Inside, a small pile of glowing coals is all that remains of the wood and fire. And a dusting of grey ash.
Hot air billows into my face. I aim an infra-red thermometer probe at the far inside wall. It’s 750ºF. Five hours ago, before I went to bed, the walls were over a thousand degrees.
The radiant heat of Mildrith’s walls
After sweeping out the coals and opening the air vents, it will be two hours before Mildrith is ready to bake bread. It’s the radiant heat from the wood-fired oven walls that bakes the bread. Not the fire.
I could go back to sleep now, but there’s work to do. The night sky draws me round to the front of the property. I look out onto Boundary Pass. The moon and stars are reflected there in the rippling waters. A freighter passes by towards to Turn Point. I’ll stand a moment.
But I’ll be thinking of Mildrith.
She’s made of the earth. Pender earth.
Mildrith is one of the best things in my life. She’s right near the top. Next to Jennifer and my family, I got a lotta love for Mildrith!
She’s made of the earth. Pender earth. Rocks, clay, hay, and horse poop, all born of Pender. And made by Pender hands!
She’s baked 1,500 loaves of Happy Monk bread. Her thick thermal walls and insulation layers hold heat for hours, even in the cold of winter. She’s produced 60 loaves of pillowy, chestnut-colored bread in one firing.
The steel doors look steampunk, forged by a Metchosin blacksmith who likes to play death metal music while hammering and welding the red hot steel.
She’s got a web of cracks around the entrance. They give her character. We’ll give her a facelift this summer and repair those cracks.
Why do I call the wood-fired oven Mildrith? You can read about that here. If you’re interested in the longer story of how the oven was built, check out this earlier blog post.
It’s loading time!
When the wall temperatures reach 550ºF, it’s time to load the oven.
This is the fun part!
I’ve carried trays of dough baskets down from the garage fridge. Fifteen of loaves are waiting on the workbench, ready to go. I dust the wooden peel 2 with flour, dump a boule onto it, score it with a razor, open the oven door, slide in the peel, place the boule.
Working fast! No dilly-dallying! Dump, score, place. Dump, score, place, until the wood-fired oven is full. Seal it up, slam the doors shut, start the timer.
Steam soon begins rising out of the chimney. Because the oven’s still quite hot, I’ll check the loaves in about 15 minutes. They won’t be entirely done, but I might need to re-arrange them, moving the darker loaves to a cooler part of the oven.
More steam billows out Mildrith’s doors. Twenty to 25 minutes, the first loaves are done. They’ve gone from cold dough to 200ºF+, internally. Using a metal peel now, I pull the puffy, golden brown loaves out of the oven and slide them onto trays.
No smell on earth like baking bread
There’s nothing quite like the smell of baking bread on this earth. I’m working fast, but my feet are off the ground as I float the trays into the kitchen. I line them up on cooling racks. The kitchen fills with the aroma. You can hear them crackling away. The singing crusts!
This is what Mildrith hath wrought: transformed raw dough boules into crusty things of beauty. Mouths water. We begin to dream of hot crumb, shattery crisp crust, butter melting, and the gentle tang of sourdough leavened bread. I’m smitten.
“She’s my one, my only,” I think. But no, not quite. I must be dreaming, intoxicated with the smell of Happy Monk bread. “Thank you, Mildrith,” I say.
The sky is dark blue, now. The morning is here. Bread will soon be warming the hearts and bellies of Happy Monk friends.
Rugbrød going out Sunday morning, for smørrebrød at lunch! For all to enjoy, but especially for my two Danish friends who have been clamouring for this Danish style rye for weeks! And @ellasharpmorton just back from Denmark, triumphant from her artistic conquests and rugbrød in her tummy!
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#rye #ryebread #rugbrød #danishrye #danishryebread #smørrebrød #openfacedsandwich #openfacesandwich #openfacedsandwiches #woodfiredovens #woodfiredbread #woodfiredryebread #breadhead #happymonkbakery #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #bbga #southpenderisland #southpender #penderislandbc #penderisland
Today’s grey-skyed, wood-fired bake, the Salish Sourdough and the mighty Seed Feast. Forty-five loaves, bagged and delivered to Happy Monk customers. Tomorrow I’ll make a Danish Rye for this week’s Baker’s Choice … going a bit out on the limb to please two Danish customers who’ve been clamouring for Rugbrød and the promise of smørrebrød, open-faced sandwiches!
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #coboven #Mildrith #Mildriththeoven #woodfiredovenbread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderislands #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Happy Monk Tidings - Baker's Choice: Danish Rye (Rugbrød); My daughter, Ella Morton's art exhibits; Blog Post: Coronavirus in the Sky; PLUS: Wood-fired Oven Update - [ See link in Profile ]
Happy Tidings from the Happy Monk Baking Company - Baker's Choice: Rye-Currant Pan Loaf; Blog Re-Post: The Island Within; And Mildrith Gratitude - [ See link in profile ]
Whole Grain Spelt Pan Bread for the Baker’s Choice, yesterday. And a bunch of old guys came round to the Happy Monk’s place to collect their loaves. Lots of gratitude for the bounty of the bread, the grain, the oven, the warmth of the season, the great neighbours and the people of Pender Island.
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #coboven #Mildrith #Mildriththewoofiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #spelt #speltbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Pyromaniacal glee. Firing up Mildrith for a Sunday morning bake. Sprouted Rye Pan loaves going in tomorrow at, let’s say, four a.m. These loaves smelled like cookies as they bulk fermented this afternoon. Buttermilk, malt syrup, Hoyne’s Dark Matter beer, whole spelt and rye flour and tons of toasted seeds! Not to mention the sprouted rye berries!
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #rye #ryebread #speltbread #hoynebrewing #hoynedarkmatter #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderislands #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Pillowy, sesame-flecked loaves of Harvest Bread, or Struan Bread by another name. You throw in a little of whatever grain and meal you have, in this case oats, cooked brown rice, cornmeal, drizzle some Pender Island honey, lots of wholegrain flour. And make it with sourdough! A glorious, flavourful loaf, tender. Sublime when eaten hot from the toaster, schmeared with salted butter.
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#struanbread #harvestbread #pillowybread #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #peterreinhart #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbakers #southerngulfislandsbakeries #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Happy Monk Tidings - Baker's Choice: Struan Bread; Happy Monk Blog: Revisiting Rachel Carson and her landmark Silent Spring - [ See Link in Profile ]
Looking for the heart of a Saturday night! Loaves of Rye Buttermilk Loaf emerging from Mildrith, the wood-fired oven, and all the glorious smells. Times have changed! No longer the cutting loose on a Saturday night, but blissful bread-making splendor and appreciation of the startling Waxing Gibbous moon and its reflection off the waters of Boundary Pass!
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #breadhead #ryebread #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #olives #olivebread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #waxinggibbous #moon #southerngulfislands #tomwaits #tomwaitslyrics
#happymonkbaking Seed Feast!
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#sourdough #sourdoughbread #bread #breadhead #woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredbread #redfife #redfifewheat #seedbread #realbread #bbga
Thank God for dappled things ... Happy Monk breads do not involve the death of any trees. The wood used to heat Mildrith the wood-fired oven comes from wind-fallen trees on Pender Island which are donated by property owners for a tax receipt. They are then bucked and chopped by volunteers of the Green Angel Choppers and sold to Pender residents for the going rate of $350 for a cord of firewood. Proceeds are then put into worthy community projects, such as funding solar energy panels for the community hall. The Happy Monk Baking Company is just one stakeholder in a chain of community “pay it forward” endeavor!
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#community #payitforward #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #woodfiredovens #woodfiredoven #woodfiredbread #woodfiredhottubs #woodfiredbaking
Happy Monk Tidings - July 29 - Baker's Choice this week: Rye-Buttermilk Loaf; Happy Monk Blog: The Pandemic is Beginning to Leave Its Mark. Again! [ See Link in Profile ]
‘Tis not through envy of thy happy lot,
But being too happy in thine happiness,—
That thou, light-winged Dryad of the trees
In some melodious plot
Of beechen green, and shadows numberless,
Singest of summer in full-throated ease.
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#johnkeats #johnkeatspoems #odetoanightingale #summer #poetry
Spelt-Honey loaves get a dose of Barry’s Bees honey for tomorrow’s Baker’s Choice bread. This is really delicious honey and it comes from our fair Pender Isle! Beautiful aroma and subtle flower taste! Can’t wait to start pulling these loaves out of Mildrith, the wood-fired oven!
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#honey #honeybread #spelt #speltbread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #artisanbread #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #baker #bakery #bbga #realbread #breadhead #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Happy Monk Tidings - This week's Baker's Choice: Spelt and Honey Loaf, featuring Barry's Bees Honey!; And Blog Excerpt: Confessions of a Would-Be Baker [ See Link in Profile ]
Happy Monk Tidings: Baker's Choice: Mountain Rye for the rye aficionados and the Happy Monk Blog: This Living Rock Island - [ See link in profile ]
The signature of a real wood-fired oven, written on the backside of a Salish Sourdough loaf from last week. You can see the rectangular impressions of the hearth firebricks. This is as good as a certificate of authenticity, made by Mildrith and the Happy Monk, South Pender Island!😃 you won’t see it in pan loaves, though. Look for it next time you open up a bag of HM bread!
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Sourdough Pan Loaf raised on a pedestal.
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #sandwichloaf #panloaf #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Olive Loaf, with a couple of Kalamatas winking at you from the crust. .
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #olives #olivebread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
Sometimes seems as if the bake week happens in a hypnotic trance of woodchopping, fire-building, dough-mixing, loaf-pulling (from the oven), not to mention all the “back-end” tasks like stamping bread bags, ordering and bookkeeping. Spent two hours this morning chopping and stacking wood for tomorrow morning’s bake before even starting on the dough-mix, but was thankful to stand up every now and then and listen to the amazing birdsong here on Pender Island.
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #woodchopping #woodchopper #firewood #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany #thirdmanrecords
Inside Mildrith yesterday morning, 11 Salish Sourdoughs risen and baked exuberantly to a luscious golden colour. The oven had baked two loads previously and it’s still just shy of 500ºF in there. She’s my inanimate love with a soul!
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #bread #realbread #naturallyleavened #baker #bakery #bbga #artisanbread #breadhead #sourdough #sourdoughbread #penderisland #southpenderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakery #happymonkbakingcompany
New Blog Post: The Allure of the Tassajara Bread Book, a 1970s classic that seems to be as relevant now as it was back in the day. Also” the week’s Baker’s Choice: Whole Wheat – Spelt Sourdough Pan Loaf. [ See Link in Profile ]
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#tassajarabreadbook #tassajarazenmountaincenter #classicbreadbooks #classiccookbooks #zencooking #zenbaking #southpenderisland #penderisland #southerngulfislands #happymonkbakery #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #bread #breadmaking #sourdoughbread #artisanbread #artisanbreadbaking
100% Rye with Currants, a happy loaf to enjoy on this day of rest. .
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredovenbread #sourdough #sourdoughbaking #sourdoughbread #rye #ryebread #ryebaking #ryecurrantbread #southpender #southpenderisland #southerngulfislands #southerngulfislandsbc #penderisland #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany #happymonkbakery #bbga
Rye Currant Sourdough coming out of the oven ... this one worked. No curses because it’s Sunday.
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#woodfired #woodfiredoven #woodfiredbread #coboven #cobovenbaking #cobovenbread #ryebread #ryecurrantbread #sourdough #sourdoughbread #southpenderisland #southpender #penderisland #penderislandbc #southerngulfislands #happymonkbakery #happymonkbaking #happymonkbakingcompany
Compline is the “canonical hour”, at one in the morning, when monks rise to say their night prayers in chapel.↩
A peel is a shovel-like tool used by bakers to slide loaves of bread, pizzas, pastries, and other baked goods into and out of an oven. It is usually made of wood, with a flat carrying surface (like a shovel’s blade) for holding the baked good and a handle extending from one side of that surface.↩
Quote from “Ode on a Grecian Urn” by John Keats.↩