Warren Lee Cohen

Here are a few pictures (thanks to Wendy Cook) from our conference and workshop together at Embercombe in Devon. Together we focused on the evolution of human nutrition and its connection with human consciousness. And of course we got our hands in the dough and baked some beautiful loaves in their wood-fired oven.

Thought you might like to know we are baking regularly again, have spread your starter far and wide, and my daughter Mel ran a workshop recently ; unexpectedly Brian Goodwin and Cristel came and Mel taught Brian to bake – he had never done it before and threw himself into the tactile aspect, finding it very satisfying!
I hope you and your family enjoy your travels. Thankyou again for the workshop.
Love, jenny

A group of us came from England to Fabrizio Rossi’s beautiful villa in southern Italy. Each day we baked bread in the old bread oven built into the side of the villa. Then in the afternoons we each worked on one painting for the whole stay. We painted in stages that reflected the process of transformation that the bread goes through from milling, mixing with water, kneading, allowing time to rise, kneading and shaping and at last baking in a fiery oven. Each step is another process of transformation that turns simple substances into life sustaining and enahancing nourishment.

This bread oven was designed and built in the Autumn with the help of three sculptors. The form emerged as we were building it to try to suit its function and environment. It has a privileged location right outside the kitchen window and next to the main entrance. It greets them every time they come home.

There was an  badly cracked, old bread oven in this magical play-garden. With the enthusiastic help of Nuno and Stewart , we recycled the clay from the old oven, added more sand and straw and rebuilt a new oven atop the same cotswold stone base. The shape developed as we worked the cob. After a few days working and contemplating a temple form seemed to emerge, a temple for the transformation of bread. This is now a vital part of the children’s play area

I want to offer special thanks to Shipton Mill who have generously donated organic flour for my workshops, classes and events. Quality ingredients make all the difference.

Just ran a bread workshop at Emerson College in Sussex called, “The Art of Bread.” It is a pleasure to be baking around a wood fired oven with others. We had such fun baking and singing, being both serious and silly in pursuit of a deeper understanding of bread. It reminded me, yet again, just how important joy is in the whole process of preparing and eating food. Without joy food is merely substance. With joy, food is transformed into life giving nourishment that feeds body, soul and spirit.
This is an essential element in creating “Real Food.”

Click here for more pictures of the workshop.

I fired up the bread oven the very next day after building it and baked with it for the next week hundreds, or more likely thousands, of loaves of pita bread. The children were so enthusiastic to roll and bake their loaves that neither driving rain nor swelling mud could dull their energy. They loved watching the magic of these loaves puffing up in the oven, transforming form raw dough to fresh pita bread in less than a minute. These fearless bakers devoured their creations and then made loaves for family and friends.

I just returned from an action packed day in which we sculpted a bread oven for the Hay on Wye Literature Festival. Aided by the very capable hands of Gavin Pond and many eager children, we mixed recycled clay, sand and straw, using first our feet and then our hands. We shaped this into loaf sized clumps that we pressed around a temporary sand form. The oven quickly took shape, leaving plenty of time for a chimney and some collaborative sculpting. Then to cap off the day we lit an inaugral fire to begin the process of drying the oven out.

For the next week I will be baking pita bread with children and sharing bread stories from Baking Bread with Children. What a nice way to work with others!

Come explore the art of baking bread in a wood-fired oven. We’ll bake a variety of breads using a simple sourdough culture. We’ll touch upon the aspects of baking that create healthy and nutritious bread and, of equal importance that allow for joy and meaning in the baking process. You’ll learn how to make and use your own sourdough culture. You’ll take home fresh baked bread, sourdough starter and inspiration for future baking.

We will bake pita bread for lunch. Please bring your filling of choice and an apron. 

Sunday May 04, 2008
9:00 to 16:00
Wynstones wood fired oven
Wynstones School, Church Lane, Whaddon, Gloucestershire, GL4 0UF

Course fee £50 (includes all ingredients)

To register please call Anne Bass at 01452 537700
or send me a message by clicking here

Baking Bread with Children has now been launched into the world with a proper and joy filled celebration. Leavened with bread poetry by Paul Matthews, bread eurythmy by Glenys Waters, a story told by Julie Swithers and lots of bread (Challah and Dragon Loaves) baked by the Early Year Education Students at Emerson College, the book launch filled my heart with warmth. Such good friends and so much cheer!