by Graham Tutthill

Chef Sam Wydymus is reviving the old tradition of bread being baked in St Margaret’s.

“Many moons ago, long before supermarkets took over the world, the little village of St Margaret’s at Cliffe had its own bakery,” she said.

“In my never-ending search for good bread, I have decided to re-establish the tradition.”

Armed with a bucket, some grapes, some Crabble Mill flour and a rolling pin to bash it all up with, she is growing her own wild yeast to make the first sour-dough loaf to be baked in the village for many years.

Sam is head chef at The Coastguard in St Margaret’s Bay, which has been known for the freshly baked bread served in its restaurant since opening nine years ago.

“When snow recently cut the village off from the rest of the world, I was called upon to bake extra and the idea was born. We are making bread the way our Neolithic ancestors would have done,” she said. “We have to feed it twice daily and you are under no doubt you are dealing with a living breathing organism – we’ve even given it a name!’

The first loaves of St Margaret’s Bay Sour Dough will be available in late February with plans for a twice-weekly baking service.

Full story in this week's Mercury.