Page 42 - WCM Summer 2022

Walking through the front door, the quote Shirley most often hears is, “it smells like my grandmother’s kitchen!” And it really does. “The aroma is in the walls,” says Shirley, as she gestures through the doorway behind the register where a small yet mighty team of cooks
and bakers are bustling about, stirring large, steaming soup pots, and pulling pans of cookies from the oven at regular intervals. After 37 years, that warm bread smell is timeless, perfect, and wonderfully permanent.
Since 1983, Shirley’s belief in good food has driven her offerings. She was well ahead of the curve when it came to special dietary needs and the use of natural foods: Unbleached flours, no trans-fats, and fully or- ganic ingredients are used in most of her baked goods, and she has a solid selection of offerings specifically catering to those with food sensitivities.
Of her many tasty selections is the Anadama pan
loaf, which is made using cornmeal and molasses for a rich, hearty crumb. Folks buy the loaves two at a time, keeping head baker Debby quite busy, churning out rich, dark loaves for demanding customers. The history of this recipe – as Shirley tells it – is from an old sea cap- tain whose wife made nothing but white bread day in and day out. Finally, when at his wits end one evening, he yelled, “Anna, d@mmit! Can’t you make anything but white bread?” And thus, Anadama was born. Shirley
concedes that the authenticity of this tale might have trouble holding up in a fact check, but the story fits perfectly here, and makes the bread (and everything else at Hungry Hollow) taste just a little bit sweeter.
Sweet & Savory Bakehouse, Standish
For centuries families have gathered together to break bread, and in more recent years, to make bread, too. For Nathan and Megan Chasse and their three kids, there couldn’t be a more apt description. For them, baking is truly a family affair.
Seven years ago, Megan started selling cookies and other baked goods at local farmers markets and pro- viding wholesale to local businesses. While making her various products, she started in on a side project to create a beloved family favorite – the English muffin. After bringing a dozen to the farmers market, she realized she might be on to something when she sold out in five minutes. She boosted production, and the English muffins started selling like hot cakes.
Today the Chasse’s have a bakery and retail location in Standish. They make over 1,000 English muffins daily, along with a delicious array of sweet treats, sandwiches, and a variety of vegan options as well, all made from scratch. While there, it’s likely you’ll find one of the Chasse kids shaping dough or helping behind the
Nathan and Megan make up to 1,000 English muffins a day at Swwt & Savory Bakehouse, along with many other delectable treats.
Johanna Sorrell
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