Ma Baker…

That night in Kuching, after our dinner with my cousin and my aunt at this restaurant, they took us to another cousin’s house…

This cousin is very much into baking – big time…

– baking bread, that is…and artisan bread at that, no less!

An artisan baker needs to have the highest ability to mix, ferment, shape and bake a hand-crafted loaf of bread. They understand the science behind the chemical reactions of the ingredients and know how to provide the best environment for the bread to develop…

That is the beauty of artisan baking. It is an art…and on top of that, a special kind of love. Otherwise, one might just as well go and grab one of those bread makers from the stores and let it do everything.

That night, she was not free to go out for dinner as she had some friends’ orders that she had committed herself to earlier so she had to stay in and bake…

Now! Now! Hands off, Yoong! Step back! Step aside! Sorry, this is NOT for your SM fetish indulgences, I’m afraid…

This is actually called a peel, a baker’s peel…for loading and moving the buns in the oven…

…like how they handle pizzas. Muahahahahaha!!!!!

Anyway, back to the bread, an artisan baker must know how to combine their materials to build something strong and at the same time, delicate or elegant. Combining the raw materials in different ways will create various shapes, textures or colours. When so much thought and creativity went into it, needless to say, the finished product is something to be proud of – like a mother upon the delivery of her new-born baby.

These were her sourdough bread loaves…

…made with all natural ingredients, no commercial yeast and no dough conditioners, softeners or preservatives, and raised with her locally-cultured levain (starter) that she has named and copyrighted as BorneanSourDo’h©, fermented and proofed over 2½ days. She makes two types – the light wholemeal-atta and light rye in two shapes – oblong or round.

She had also made these ciabatta bread that night…

…so we were able to try some of it. They enjoyed eating it dipped in balsamic vinegar but not me – I’d rather have it with a generously-thick spread of rich, creamy butter…

…and if you stack layers of ham and bacon on it and throw in an egg and a couple of sausages, I’d be your slave for life. Hehehehehehehe!!!!

I loved her hot-crossed buns…

…even though she forgot to cross them. It is the tradition in the west to eat these for Easter and if I remember correctly, she said that they took her three days to make – including all the time needed to get the dough ready and what not.

Thanks, Gerrie, for the buns and for allowing us to sample the rest of your labour of love. Maybe on my next trip, we can drop by one morning for a BIG English breakfast? I’ll bring the coffee – Mui Hock’s, no less! Wink! Wink! Muahahahaha!!!