Baking Bread: Specialty Breads

Ready to take your bread-baking skills to the next level? Join expert baker Ellen Gibb for a hands-on exploration of specialty yeast breads from around the world. In this class, you’ll learn new techniques and flavor combinations to create delicious loaves perfect for any occasion.

You’ll be making:

• Pane Bianco – An Italian-inspired bread filled with fragrant basil, tomatoes, roasted garlic, and melted cheese
• Milk Bread – A soft, slightly sweet bread that uses a roux-style starter to create a pillowy texture
• Chocolate Babka – A rich, twisted bread layered with ribbons of chocolate, cinnamon, and nuts, topped with a streusel crumble
• Harvest Apple Challah – A round challah bread, symbolizing the cycle of the year, enriched with honey and fresh apples

You will get to taste all four breads, learn essential tips for working with yeast doughs, receive copies of the recipes, and make one of the four to take home and finish baking.

No prior baking experience is required – just bring your enthusiasm and a love for fresh-baked bread!

For all classes: please wear closed-toe shoes, tie hair back or wear a hat, and bring an apron if you have one. Space is limited due to the small size of our kitchen, so register today while spots remain! 

About the instructor:

Ellen Gibb is a longtime friend of the Horn Farm, serving in various roles as a volunteer, class instructor, and board member between 2010 and 2020. In 2018, she oversaw the renovation of the Horn Farm's Summer Kitchen, designing the space to serve as both a commercial kitchen and welcoming classroom space. She grew up on a dairy farm in southern Minnesota where she learned to bake breads and desserts. After 43 years in the food industry, she started studying 19th-century cooking traditions and honed her skills at using a wood-fired brick oven, soon becoming a regional expert on the German-style Squirrel Tail bake oven. This rare style of oven is an original fixture of the Horn Farm's Summer Kitchen, and Ellen has fired it up to facilitate many classes over the years. In this way, she hopes her teaching will inspire people to reconnect with their roots. In her classes, she enjoys “watching people become passionate about food, the land and each other!”

Program Notes:
This class will take place in the summer kitchen.  

All programs are subject to change due to unforeseen circumstances including inclement weather. Participants will receive an email in the days preceding the program for any changes or cancellations. You can review our current Cancellation and Refund Policy here. 

Parking takes place in the field above the farmhouse. Plan to arrive 10 minutes early so we can begin the class on time.