About Abby |
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Ask people to take a chance on you, ask people to let you hang around them for free, work hard, and soak it up like a sponge. We will not fear gluten. That’s one mantra of this week’s Dish’n Dames feature, Abby Love — passionate Austin bread baker and pastry chef -- and creator of L’Oven, hands-on bread and pastry classes.
Her skills were crafted not as a student of culinary school but instead as an apprentice to artisans who were willing to guide her. She acknowledges “Trial and Error” as her greatest professors, stating the best way to learn is to “just get baking.” She touts the importance of science, saying making good bread is about understanding the building blocks of your loaf, learning baker's math, thinking about the structure of a wheat kernel, and understanding components like "enzyme" and "protein.” And, she teaches this method to her students. L'Oven is focused on bringing the Austin food community together through baking workshops for all levels — whether new to baking at home or just looking to increase aptitude, Abby wants to meet students where they are and for everyone to move forward a step or two. Her classes are not for the gluten-intolerant, as she focuses on using freshly milled heritage grains, employing slow ferments and making the bread that we eat more nutritious versus avoiding wheat altogether. Featuring local resource Barton Springs Mill in Austin, Abby helps offer a different perspective re-training the modern tummy with real food. Her gatherings are places of encouragement, insight, and growth -- and that’s not just the yeast activity. |
Featured DishWhole Wheat Loaf |
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