Many customers have noticed that the selection of bread at Evergrain has changed to just two types of loaf, the traditional baguette and the round campagne. Interested in why this change was made, I spoke with Doug Rae to get an informative explanation of the bakery’s direction over the next six months. He explained that they are trimming the selection in order to focus on the craft of making naturally leavened bread with only grain and no add-ins.

“We’ve pulled out of all the farmers markets, including Chestertown, and we’re focusing fully on the storefront now because we feel that we’re at a place where we can, and we’re becoming more clear on what we really want to focus on, which is creating a customer experience in our own shop setting,” Doug said.

They are branching out the focus of the bakery in other ways, such as with pizza night, in order to make Evergrain more of a late-night destination, which is something Doug said he feels the town needs.

“We’re also revamping the bread program and simplifying it into an array of, you could say, functional breads. We’re focusing fully on fermentation as opposed to mix-ins. We feel that the real craft that we’re trying to master is fermentation and fermenting grain. We’re extremely excited to see what we can create through fermenting grain and opening people’s eyes to what that’s like as opposed to focusing on the raisins or walnuts or olives or hazelnuts or whatever’s in it.”

“If you eat this plain flour, with no fermation at all, it’s relatively flavorless and bland. The starches and carbohydrates are so complex that the tongue literally can’t decipher anything. The process of fermentation breaks those apart so that the tongue can decipher the flavors. The skill of the baker is, how much of the full potential of that grain can you evoke from your skills? Rye really well fermented gives the bread a spicy component. Kamut has a nutty flavor. Semolina tastes like pasta. The baguette is sweet because it’s all white flour.”

“The world barista champion from 2008 said that as artisans we’re trying to minimize the amount taken away from the full potential of the product when we’re transforming it. So, when they’re roasting coffee, the less they mess it up, the better it’s going to be. The less that human intervention disrupts the natural product, the better.”

Doug was careful to emphasize that reducing the selection to two different breads does not mean a move to perpetual sameness.

“With that campagne, the pain au levain loaf, we’re constantly mixing in new types of grain to see what kind of flavor we’re evoking, so it’s not actually the same campagne loaf any one day or during any one week. Sometimes it has ancient grain like kamut, which comes from Egypt. We’re also doing semolina, we’re also doing whole wheat rye. Most of it’s organic. That’s going to evolve for the next probably six months. People are going to always see something different even though we’re offering one naturally leavened loaf. The baguettes will always stay the same; that’s kind of the standard bearer. With the pain au levain we’re going to make one incredibly delicious and nutritious loaf. The idea is that if you can master the craft of fermentation so well, people can eat a whole loaf and not feel like they did in the sense that it’s not unpleasant. A lot of the bitterness from whole grain is neutralized through the fermentation, and that’s what we want to do. We want to get so good at it that eating healthy bread isn’t a chore or something forced — it’s actually what one wants to do the most. Like with Poilâne bakery in France, all they do is wheat.”

“We want people to go on this journey with us. We’re paving the way to something we think will be better.”

Doug said that the ultimate goal for the changes is to maximize people’s appreciation of the food they eat and the moment in which they enjoy it.

“Food is generally the focal point around which a memory is anchored into one’s consciousness. If you eat an amazing loaf of bread or an amazing hamburger or whatever, sure it’s amazing, but what really makes it is the environment you consume it in. Who with, and what are the circumstances. That croissant with jam or that sandwich or that neapolitan pizza is so great because there’s awesome music playing in the background or live music playing, and people you hadn’t seen in so long, and you’re all coming together to enjoy that in the moment. That’s what I think really carves out in your memory the specialness of the moment because of who you’re with and also how incredible the food was. It’s the experience, and I think that’s what everyone had when the family meal was still preserved. Food was always the focal point. It’s about sitting down together and sharing with people you care about. We’re just trying to create an ideal environment for that to happen again.”

“One of the most common things that customers say is that during their busy workdays when they come in here they feel like a whole load has been lifted off their shoulders, and they just stepped out of the stress and business and they can just relax. That’s exactly what we’re going for. You can kind of forget whatever is going on outside, there, when you step in here. You can step out of Chestertown and into a Parisian café.”

 

Forbes Magazine offers profiles of some of the most innovative ‘food projects’ online.

“Below is a list of some of the most interesting food projects underway utilizing web technology.  Some are new and some old; a few have loyal followings and others should; some are still in startup mode and while others are well underway.  Yet all are ideas that deserve attention.”

(Continue reading from Forbes here)

First there was walk for a cure and now you can eat healthy and cook for a cure, too.

ANNAPOLIS – Maryland has a state bird, a state flag, and even a state crustacean, the blue crab. In 2008, Smith Island Cake became the state dessert. Now, legislators in both the House and Senate are hearing a bill that would make the soft-shell crab sandwich Maryland’s state sandwich.

The purpose is not state pride, but economic benefit.

Delegate Rudolph Cane, D-Wicomico, who introduced the bill in the House, said Smith Island Cake turned out to be one of the legislature’s finest economic programs.

“I think we can do the same thing to help the watermen,” Cane said.

Delegate Rudolph Cane, D-Wicomico, introduced a bill that would make the soft-shell crab sandwich Maryland’s state sandwich. He testified before the House Health and Government Operations Committee Thursday, showing off the Maryland Life article on the sandwich that inspired the legislation. (Capital News Service photo by Jessica Wilde)

The bill says soft-shell crab sandwiches are generally quite simple.

“A traditional sandwich consists of breaded and fried soft-shell crab between two slices of white bread or toast,” the bill reads. “Lettuce and tomato are common additions; there may also be a squirt of lemon, Old Bay seasoning, or some tartar sauce. The focus of the sandwich is the sweet and savory meat of the crab and the crunch of the soft shell.”

Sen. Richard Colburn, R-Dorchester, who introduced the bill in the Senate, said watermen are an endangered species and this designation would help them.

“The Maryland waterman is on the state seal,” he said. “And that’s a dying breed.”

But it was Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller, Jr., who convinced him to introduce the bill, after reading a 2012 article in Maryland Life on the soft-shell crab sandwich, Colburn said.

“This is very unique to Maryland,” Miller told the Senate Education, Health and Environmental Affairs Committee Thursday. “It is a Maryland delicacy.”

Miller described the sandwich as crunchy, with paws sticking out of it.

“It’s just divine,” he said.

And Colburn said it is the only sandwich you can eat with legs sticking out the side, a quote that also appears in Maryland Life’s video, “How to Make a Soft Shell Crab Sandwich,” narrated by publisher and editor Daniel Patrell.

Patrell also testified before the committee on what he said was not frivolous legislation.

“Rather, it shows some remarkable foresight,” Patrell said, referencing the Smith Island Cake and its economic impact.

Miller brought a Smith Island Cake with him to the hearing, and gave it to the committee.

Why not the crab cake sandwich?

“If you eat a crab cake, the crab could come from Thailand,” Colburn said. This way the crab will be coming from the Chesapeake Bay.

Colburn said he thinks the bill will pass, and that it will not take a lot of time away from other important issues.

It received no opposition in the Senate, although Sen. Ronald Young, D-Frederick, said he would not vote for it or against it.

“I think it’s ridiculous,” Young said. “There’s a limited number of soft-shell crabs. Prices are going to go up. And it’s going to be harder to get them.”