Baking Bread with Canadian Bakin in Huntville, AL
Matt, the bagel guy, is the owner of Canadian Bakin, a locally owned bakery and cafe located in Huntsville, AL. They specialize in hand-rolled bagels and artisan breads, baked fresh daily.
How did your love for baking start?
I had quit my full-time job because I wanted to pursue a more creative, hands-on line of work. I started making bread as a way to save money. Turns out it's also fun.
What emotions provoke you when you bake?
Calmness.
What are your favorite things to bake?
My favorite is baguettes. Usually, the fewer ingredients, the more I enjoy it. Baguettes, sourdough loaves, etc...
What’s been inspiring you lately?
Specialty flours have been my recent interests, but they're hard to find around here. Fresh rye, einkorn, flours like those.
What does bread symbolize for you?
It really does bring people together in several ways. Eating, of course, but also working with others to make it. It's a time-intensive endeavor, so you really get to know the people you're working with.
What is the most challenging part of baking bread?
For me, it's teaching people how to troubleshoot bread dough by feeling. It's a very "you have to do it a lot to be good at it" skill.
What’s the most important thing to you when baking?
That I create something, someone can enjoy. Now, having employees make bread, it's important to me that they enjoy creating it.
What are some things you’ve learned about bread?
You can be a lot less precise the better you are at it. Which is good for me because my brain is an unorganized mess.
How do you like to eat your bread?
Well, if I'm working a shift at the shop, you'll find me huddled over a trash can in the dish pit, shoving bread into my face like a rat. If I'm not at work, I like toasted sourdough with soup.
Their holiday orders open on Friday, December 9th, and close on December 19th. You can place your orders on canadianbakinbread.com and click on "Christmas Pre-Orders" in the navigation bar! They typically offer a our customer favorites like sourdough (traditional and cranberry-walnut), our seasonal sugar plum buns, bagels for family gatherings, our popular cinnamon-brioche loaves, and dinner rolls.
Canadian Bakin is located at 501A Church St. NW Huntsville, AL 35801
