Erica Leahy was working in an office job when she realized she had missed her calling. So she gave up her stock options and health plan, left the office and set off for the life of a pastry chef. After unpaid internships, several stints baking for fine restaurants, finding her feet in a commissary kitchen and starting a family, she opened Three Dau…

Gillian Lundgren was lured to the Bay Area by her favourite aunt and has never left. Through a long and varied career as a baker in San Francisco, from bakeries to pop ups, she founded Black Jet Baking Co. right down the block from where she got her start. She's putting down deep roots and making sure the people in her neighbourhood are well fed. I…

Carly Rossmeissl wants to experience everything baking has to offer. Since graduating from baking school she's travelled from New York to Austin to Wisconsin, working with bread, cakes, desserts and even stuffed pretzels. But her work keeps coming back to two things: solving problems and building strong, happy teams. In this episode we talk about C…

There's something special about small town bakeries. And when your bakery is on the main street of a small town in the heart of Sonoma, California and you're baking stellar bread from a massive brick oven, well, now you really have something special. Jessie Frost has all that and more. A native of the Sonoma area, she baked around the Bay Area befo…

When Mark Hart decided to go out on his own, he built a commercial baking space, but not for his own production baking. Instead, he and his partner Luis Cabral started Rise Baking Lab, a teaching and event space where they can share their love of baking with professional and amatuer bakers alike. In this episode, Mark and Luis share their vision fo…

Jonathan Stevens new book, The Hungry Ghost Bread Book, is a throwback to the first wave of books on artisan baking in the 1990's. And for good reason, because Jonathan has been part of the North American bread scene from the very beginning. In this episode, Mark and Jonathan take a trip back to the early days in Northern California, figuring it ou…

Holly Showalter was a pastry chef in Virginia when the big skies of Montana came calling to her. After several years working different jobs and settling into the local community, Holly opened Wild Oats Baking. Now she's feeding the people and the people are fully embracing her and her food. In this episode, Mark and Holly talk a little about tiny h…

Today Mark is joined by Karen Bornarth of the Bread Bakers Guild of America and Martin Barnett of the Baking Association of Canada to talk about the state of the baking industry in North America. They reflect on the success of two recent national meetings, discuss the range of benefits that nationwide education and advocacy can provide, ponder the …

Once Lyndsey Bell realized that the corporate life was not for her, she and her partner Jay Valeri dove into the world of donuts and coffee. Since they found their sweet spot and opened Bigfoot Donuts seven years ago they have gone from strength to strength. In this episode, Mark, Lyndsey and Jay talk all things donuts and coffee, being able to tak…

When we get tired and frustrated as bakery owners, we often fall into the trap of thinking of our employees as expenses and not assets and partners. Luckily, there are resources like the Good Jobs Strategy to help us reset our thinking and put our employees at the forefront of our business success. In this episode, Mark talks with Sandhya Mahadevan…

Ian Herrington turned the turmoil of Covid into the catalyst to make the leap into bakery ownership. Now Leavened, his elegant bakery / cafe in Cleveland is making a name for itself within the neighbourhood and for miles around. In this episode, Mark and Ian talk about the quiet rhythms of a bake team working around the bench, the joy of working wi…

Tom Moore loves starting new projects. And the best thing is, they work. His new bakery cafe, Tombo Eats on Yates Street in Victoria launched to huge buzz this year and is already one of the must visit spots downtown. In this episode, Mark and Tom discuss the wild and crazy food journey Tom's been on since dropping out of school to apprentice as a …

Carlos Ruiz was a litigation lawyer and quickly found that the daily grind of destroying the opposition was killing him inside. Baking and especially feeding his community was the antidote. In this episode, Mark and Carlos talk about making the switch from law to the bakery life, making connections with teachers and mentors, the stresses of support…

Jessica Rivers is co-owner and connection engine of the amazing bakery Working Culture Bread in Victoria BC. In the three years since Mark talked to her husband Adam in Episode #128, the bakery has grown and their family has too. Through it all, Jess and the Working Culture team have built even stronger ties within the community, through fundraisin…

Sarah Black sadly passed away on February 15, 2024. To commemorate this kind and thoughtful baker and teacher, we are re-publishing Mark's chat with Sarah from Episode 153. Recorded in October, 2021 Sarah's family announced her passing via Sarah's Instagram page. Helpful Links Support the Podcast Here Rise Up! The Baker Podcast website The Bakers4B…

The podcast hits a major milestone by going back to the beginning. In this special 200th episode, Mark is joined by Daisy Chow of Breadboard Bakery in Arlington, Mass. and Nate Houge of Brake Bread in St. Paul, Minnesota for a wide ranging conversation about everything that's changed since they first met back at Wheatstalk in Rhode Island in 2018, …

Claudia Fimbres and her husband Brad named their store and restaurant Mamacita after Claudia's mother, but these days, it's Claudia who is mother and aunty to an entire community of Latin food lovers in her new home of Pearl Harbour, Newfoundland. In this episode, Mark catches up with his old friend and learns of her life in cooking, from growing u…

Working with a coach or consultant can be a leap too far for many small business owners, especially owner-operator independent bakeries. Lisa Arnold set out to bridge the gap in her town of Springfield, Tennessee, with Small Town Startup, a marketing agency, startup incubator, coaching practice and meeting space. Lisa is bringing the skills and bes…

After working as a baker on both coasts, Amy Corliss returned to her home state twelve years ago to open her own place in downtown Fort Collins, Colorado. She recently moved down the road to a new space and is focused on building community, growing her team and feeding the people in a converted 1905 heritage house. In this episode, Mark and Amy tal…

Ed and Natasha Tatton have been building an outstanding, 100% plant based bakery in Whistler, BC for several years, and have just launched a stellar cookbook from the bakery. The book is both approachable and very detailed, explaining the intricacies and advantages of vegan baking while bringing Ed's incredible flavour combinations to each recipe. …

Martha Barber began her baking career by taking cookies into the office at Christmas time. Now she's shipping her delicious shortbread all over Vancouver Island and onto the mainland too. In this episode, Mark and Martha discuss the steady growth of her bakery, how strategic partnerships have helped the business grow, finding predictable, repeatabl…

Okotoks, Alberta is a small community south of Calgary that boasts an old-fashioned main street, beautiful views of the Rocky Mountain foothills and, for the past few years, a top notch bakery and cafe. In this episode, Mark talks to Brad Labrenz and Marie-Luce Denis, owners of French50 Bakery, who are attracting hungry folk from well beyond the to…

With the cost of living continuing to rise, bakers and other food service workers are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. The Living Wage for Families Campaign is focused on identifying the real costs of living in Canadian cities and works with businesses to move toward paying employees a real living wage. In this episode, Mark talks wi…

Tabitha Langel wanted to serve her community in Winnipeg first and foremost. After much prayer and deliberation, she decided that baking was the way to do it. Now, over 35 years later, Tall Grass Prairie Bakery is at the heart of two core neighbourhoods in Winnipeg, Manitoba. In this episode, Tabitha and Ryan Stoesz talk about the origins of Tall G…

Black Market Bakers is taking off like a rocket ship in Annapolis, Maryland. Steve O'Leary, his dad and his brother have grown the business from a home kitchen (with Steve's mom selling the loaves door to door) to a food truck, to a full bakery/cafe to recently launching a second location. But through it all, the business has had a singular focus o…

Stefan Spicknell knows who his bakery is for. All he has to do is look out his door on Great Western Road in Glasgow and look at the flats, the schools and the people walking by. And his deep focus those people, and his craft, is what keeps Cottonrake Bakery grounded in his community. In this episode, Mark and Stefan talk about Stefan's journey to …

Maurizio Leo has been writing the excellent Perfect Loaf blog for a decade now, teaching thousands and thousands of people to bake amazing sourdough bread. His writing and teaching style, paired with top-notch photography, makes his site one of the most important resources in the baking community and his new book is helping him reach an even larger…

Ron Bokenfohr is looking for a new (old) way to grow grain and feed the soil at the same time. His farming and milling operation north of Edmonton, Alberta is focused on regenerative agriculture: farming with a focus on building a complex, healthy soil. In this episode, Mark and Ron talk about the process of shifting to a regenerative farming model…

Charlie and Hilde Muller were bakers before they moved to the middle of the forest in western Michigan and began carving a home, a bakery and a life from the woods. Laughing Tree Bakery has been going strong for the past 14 years, feeding the people via the Muskegon Farmers Market and several stores and cafes in the region. In this episode, Mark, H…

Moving to an island in the Pacific Northwest is not easy. Moving intentionally, with a view of contributing to the community is even more difficult. But Sage Dilts and Nathan Hodges have done just that with their farm and bakery on Lopez Island, Washington. In this episode, Mark learns how Sage and Nathan met in grad school in the Bay Area, where S…

Tom Giancola caught the bread bug watching Netflix seven years ago, and his friends and neighbours have never been happier. His generous spirit feeds an ever larger group of people in Annapolis, Maryland, through his exceptional basement bakery, Makeathe. In this episode, Mark and Tom talk about the intricacies of building a professional bakery und…

Fry's Bakery has been a stalwart of Craigflower Road in Victoria for a decade, a shining as an example of how a baker with an old mixer and a brick oven can feed a neighbourhood. In this episode, Mark and Byron sit down at the bakery (well, directly above it) to talk about how the world needs a bakery in every neighbourhood, about starting business…

All it took was a well made hollandaise sauce for Daniel Saez to switch from life as a lawyer to a life in food. Starting as a culinary chef in his native Venezuela, Daniel eventually made his way to Canada and shifted from culinary to pastry and finally to bread. Now his bakery, Noctua Bread Project in the Junction in Toronto is focused on serving…

Haley Landa and Curtis Helm met in pastry school and have been steadily building their skills and experiences in hotels and restaurants in Canada and beyond. All this work has culminated in opening Goodside Pastry House in Victoria last month, opening to huge lineups and extremely happy customers. In this episode, Mark takes a trip to the bakery to…

David Aplin was a rock guitarist who apprenticed as a baker at Loblaws. Camelia Proulx was building a career in the food industry front-of-house. Together, they spent the past 12 years rocking the baking world in Scarborough, Ontario at their bakery Cliffside Hearth. In this episode, Mark, David and Camelia sit down to talk bread, wood fired ovens …

Anna Gordon started selling her amazing cookies at the Brooklyn Flea in 2010 and has since created a delicious destination bakery in Clinton Hill, Brooklyn. In this episode, we kick off 2023 with a vibrant conversation about Anna's love of creating layers of flavours and textures, visualizing the perfect day of a bakery owner, and what it's like to…

Karen Bornarth has been an active part of the American bread scene for over two decades. This past July, she was named Executive Director of the Bread Bakers Guild of America and is fully engaged moving the baking profession forward. In this episode, Karen shares her baking story, from late nights at Amy's Breads to her baking and education work at…

When Kitty Tait was 14, she went through a very rough time, and baking bread was key to her recovery. She baked, and baked, and baked some more, until her friends and neighbours were well fed, and she kept on baking. Soon Kitty and her dad Alex were baking by subscription, then at a retail shop and are now running The Orange Bakery in Watlington, U…

When Josh Houston started teaching cooking at his local high school, the incumbent chef put him in charge of the baking program. It didn't take long before Josh was baking so much bread and pastries in order to 'crack the code' of yeast and gluten that he needed to start selling his extras. Stark Raving Bread was born. In this episode, Mark and Jos…

Teisha Huff is back! She and Mark catch up on her new project as head pastry chef at the new, chic, contemporary Latin-fusion restaurant Fortuna's Row in downtown Calgary, Alberta. After ten years honing her craft as a bread and pastry baker around Saskatchewan, what's it like to create composed desserts? How do Mom and Dad like having their daught…

Nels Leader is the second-generation CEO of the iconic Bread Alone Bakery in Boiceville, New York and is continuing to move their vision to Feed The World forward. In this episode, Mark and Nels talk about how you're never "done", even as the business expands, how Bread Alone shifted to being a carbon-neutral bakery and what the future holds for th…

Asking why a communion wafer might make her friend sick started Elizabeth DeRuff on twenty year journey of farming, baking and teaching. As the President of Honore Farm and Mill in Marin County, California, Elizabeth both teaches city folk where their bread comes from and how to bake with flavour and health in the forefront. Recently, the farm has …

Let's end this summer season of Second Rise episodes with a bang. It's time for the OG, my friend and mentor, Tracey Muzzolini, from the very first conversation on Rise Up! in 2018. (Rise Up! #2) Tracey is the co-owner of Christies Mayfair Bakery in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. It's a full on artisan bread and pastry shop, with classic italian specialt…

Randy George was one of my mentors when we had Orange Boot Bakery, although we never spoke 1:1 until this talk in September 2018. (Rise Up! #24) When I was planning the podcast, Randy was one of the people at the top of my list of folks to talk to, because he was really focussed on putting his employees front and centre in the bakery. He was the gu…

Cindy and I are travelling in England and Scotland this summer. I expect to be heading to a lot of bakeries on this trip, eating the good stuff and learning more about the #realbread scene there. #realbread is a proper movement in the UK and Chris Young is the guy who keeps the energy high and the momentum growing. So it's only fitting that we brin…

We're getting some Orange Boot Bakery nostalgia this week. Because for this Second Rise episode, I'm sharing the talk I had with Teisha Huff in March, 2019. (Rise Up! #48) Teisha was a big part of the Golden Years at Orange Boot. She was our first ever student intern. Our Head Baker for three years. And after she left us for greener pastures, she k…

When I talked with Josey Baker back in 2019 (Rise Up! #55) I wasn't sure what to expect. He was already super famous, with a best selling book, talks at Google, and his irrepressible grin all over YouTube and Instagram. In my mind, he was one of the early wave of 'bread celebrities.' The Josey I spoke to was one of most thoughtful men I've ever met…

Charlie Emers is an old friend of mine, although only via email, until we got together for a conversation back in early 2021. (Rise Up! #118) Since he was on the show, we've struck up a fun correspondence, with Charlie writing me long emails from his front porch. I imagine him hitting send and then either heading to the bake shop or sneaking out th…

While Mark and Cindy head out on a summer adventure, we're taking a second look at some of Mark's favourite conversations from the podcast archives. In this episode, we travel back to a conversation with Nate Houge of Brake Bread in St. Paul, Minnesota. It's a peek into the start of a budding friendship that thrives to this day. (This conversation …

Sometimes you just see a need and feel compelled to fill it. After working together in the corporate world and being underwhelmed by the quality of their box lunches, Joan Kanner and Michelle Bond decided to bring the great bagels of their native New Jersey to Baltimore. Starting with pop-ups and market bakes in 2015, by 2020 they opened Bottoms Up…