[CROWD NOISE]
[MUSIC PLAYING]
APOLLONIA POILANE: Growing up, I spent most of my Wednesdays
and Saturdays in the bakehouse.
When I saw the wood-fired oven burning, I took it for granted
that this was the way we heat up an oven.
When I started seeing the way we work through our sourdough,
I thought that every bread was made that way.
I learned how to count in the bakehouse.
And all of those fostered my understanding
of what would become my craft, my job,
and, essentially, my destiny.
In 1932, my grandfather, Pierre Poilane,
started his very first bakery on 8 Rue du Cherche-Midi
in the heart of St. Germain des Pres.
Although the fashion at the time was for whiter breads,
my grandfather stuck to what his gut instinct was.
He sought to making these old, traditional sourdough
loaves he would've known as a child in Normandy.
Because, for centuries, people used
to eat these country-style sourdough
loaves, these big hugs of bread.
And this style was counterculture.
But it proved him right.
After 50 years, whereas there was half a dozen bakeries
in the immediate vicinity of ours,
we are the only ones still standing.
My father grew up in the bakery, from one day to the next.
School was over and down he was in the bakehouse,
working with an old master baker to teach his craft.
When my father took over in the '70s Poilane
was a burgeoning family bakery.
He developed a network of restaurants and retailers.
And we started shipping bread around the world.
My father grew this company into an international business
and tried to show the world that baking really
is an essential and beautiful craft.
When I was 16, my mother suggested
that I start my apprenticeship.
So instead of going on holidays, I basically
was working in the bakehouse at Poilane
with my master baker, Felix.
While I was finishing up my apprenticeship,
my parents passed away in a helicopter accident.
[MUSIC PLAYING]
The next day, instead of going down to the bakehouse
and working with Felix, I went up to my father's desk.
And here I was, in charge of Poilane.
I was 18 when I took over the family business.
I had little business experience.
But I also had the grooming of my father,
growing up in an environment where he shared his love
and passion with me daily.
And that education is priceless--
18 years understanding the beauty and wealth,
the knowledge, the richness of my craft.
The business I took over grew into a half a dozen shops
between Paris and London, baking between 3,000 and 5,000 loaves
a day.
For over 88 years, my grandfather, my father, and I
have nurtured a very specific sourdough
to create large quantities of bread
in a purely artisanal, handmade way.
And that is an object of pride.
We have not changed the way we bake breads to grow.
And that is something that sets Poilane apart.
[UPBEAT MUSIC]
In this class, I will be teaching
you breads that we do at the bakery.
You're going to learn how to bake breads using
sourdough, wheat, rye, learning how
to start your very own starter.
We will be baking breads of the East, pain de mie, corn breads,
brioche, and also what to do with breads,
not only how to bake bread, but how
to use bread as an ingredient, from its freshest
to its stalest, from crust to the very last crumb.
The recipes I will teach you are recipes that
are adapted to a home kitchen.
At the bakery, we bake in wood-fired ovens, 30
to 50 to 100 loaves at a time.
We bake batches to cater to a community.
I want to give you a sense and feel
for what it is to bake in our style and with our spirits.
The most important lesson I will teach you
is how to attune your five senses to what it
is that makes the perfect loaf.
Baking at home, putting your hands in flour,
getting a feel for the dough, seeing your bread rise
in a basket, and bake in the oven
is a one of a kind experience, one you must do in a lifetime.