bread this week; my new hero

i got two things that i am pumped to share:

1. the 411 on when and where you can get bread this week
2. i met my new hero on friday, and i took tons of photos

so let's get the business outta the way, cuz i know you're hungry -

• tuesday - Bi Rite Market, starting at 3pm
• wednesday - Mission Pie & Bi Rite Market, starting at 10am (come say hi @ Mission Pie!)

the following week i will be back on with the regular Wed, Thurs, Fri schedule as i had before my trip, which you can read about here. but just in case you're scared of clicking links: Wed & Thurs @ Mission Pie and Bi Rite Market @ 5pm, Friday bread by subscription at select locations. (but you keep your eyes peeled cuz i some nice news - bread will most likely be ready earlier in the day on Wed & Thurs! details to come)

but check this - on friday evening i pulled over three times to eat bread out of my trunk. why was bread in my trunk? cuz i put it there. why? cuz i knew that if it was all up with me, i would've made myself sick by eating it all.

back track - thursday afternoon i set off for chico to hang with this dude:

folks, meet dave miller, one of the most righteous guys i've ever met. 

i'd been hearing about mr. miller and his bread for a long time, and i finally decided it was time to see what he was up to. i shot him an e-mail while i was in thailand (cuz let's face it, i was half way around the world and i was getting all excited about the idea of going to visit him when i was back in town) and he was super kind and welcoming, and said he'd be happy to have me come hang. i got to chico about 10:30 at night, checked in to the Safari Inn (cheapest room in town), and five hours later was sucking down hotel coffee driving down back roads, on my way to his bakery. i got lost in a day dream on the way there - i wonder how he slashes his loaves??? - and drove right by his driveway, but i eventually found him.

so what makes this fella so special? it's this:

white birkenstock clogs?!? i'd never seen these. shit, i didn't know they even made these in white. i do have a pair in brown, that i love dearly, i must admit.

but seriously, it's his god damn bread, what do you think it is? 

it's crazy. guys, let me make this clear - i pulled over three times while i was driving in order to get more bread out of my trunk. i put the bread in my trunk in the first place cuz i knew i'd make myself sick by eating too much if i had easy access to it. it's real good bread.

but it's not just some of the best bread i've ever tasted, no no NO. it's the WAY he makes his bread. the vast majority of bakeries buy flour that they use to make bread, myself included. but this isn't the way dave does it, no sir. he buys grains (wheat, spelt, kamut, rye) directly from farmers, exclusively farmers that are very near him, and he mills the grains himself. as if this wasn't enough awesomeness, he uses the flour FRESH. 

this may not sound like a big deal, but it flies in the face of what almost anyone who works in the industry will tell you about flour. in fact, it would've flown in the face of what i would've tried to tell you about flour too, til i saw him do his thing and tasted it with mine own eyes & tastebuds. 

almost all flour you buy in the store is at least a few months old. it gets put through an "aging process," that is said to help it make a better dough that is stronger and more elastic. but there are a few rebels out there who are following their own path, and this path doesn't include waiting for that flour to age one day before it gets baked into amazing bread. aside from dave, alan scott, the late great baker and oven builder, was an outspoken proponent of freshly milled, whole grain bread. there are others out there, and i'm gonna find em.

so what does it all mean? it means that dave has a direct relationship with farmers, uses fresh whole grains in his unbelievably delicious breads, and totally kicks ass. that's what it all means. 

mr. dave miller, i salute you.

here are some shots from my visit:

a well-used, well-made tool is a beautiful thing.

each bread gets its own bed.

just relaxin.

in transition.

my early morning daydreams answered.

at ease.

zen style.

good god.

this makes me absolutely bonkers.

hopefully i see some of you this week. if not, enjoy your holiday and try not to injure yourself with too much food.

<3 josey