bake - May 2016 - 18

breaking the norm
Chicago's Baker Miller Bakery & Millhouse is
a rising success story and a lesson for all.
BY ANNA WIBER
PHOTOGRAPHY BY VANESSA MCKENZIE
Equipped with a small grain mill and an oat roller,

with brokers and suppliers, while still trying to use

Above: Baker Miller

husband-wife super duo Megan and Dave Miller

local grains as often as possible.

Bakery & Millhouse

set out to create a Chicago bakery that challenged

is redeﬁning how

status quo. Their vision was simple: they would

As they began experimenting with different formulas,

bread is produced

source, mill and bake with their own grains. The

they realized a challenge. Conﬁguring which ﬂours

in the retail bakery

bakery and restaurant would be less about volume,

worked best with each product proved to be difficult.

environment.

and more about using high quality ingredients.

In the early stages of experimentation they enthusias-

Co-owner Dave Miller explains, "There are plenty of

tically brought in hard red wheat to make bread with.

baked goods out there, but a lot are the same. Our

"When we tried to make bread with it, it was terrible.

thought was if we start from a different place, we

We thought we need to get back to the drawing

would end up different product."

board and ﬁgure out why is this terrible and study the
grain more," says Miller.

When their bakery, Baker Miller Bakery & Millhouse,
began searching for grain suppliers, it was an easy

At the outset, the ﬂour the bakery worked with resulted

process. Finding the grains that were up to their

in Fannie Farmer-style pastries and breads that were

standards was a little tougher. Initially they decided

very dense and heavy. This was a style of baking that

to work with farmers who grew organically, but as the

the Millers respected and inspired them, but their

demand for their products grew, they started working

customers were not as pleased. Patrons of the bakery

18 < MAY 2016 | bakemag.com

http://www.bakemag.com

bake - May 2016

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of bake - May 2016

bake - May 2016
Editor's Note - A Growth Opportunity
Table of Contents
News Bites - Beth Fahey New President of RBA
Create Your Cupcake Opens in Atlanta
Dawn Food Unveils New Leadership Model
Personality Spotlight - Bronwen Weber
Management - IBIE Expands Program
Labor Front - Wage Hikes in California
Ingredients - Blueberries
Equipment - The Versatile Combi
Breaking the Norm
Play in the Whitespace
Community Outreach
NY Bagels Come to KC
PHO-free Shortening Solutions
Ice Cream & Gelato
Cake Extravaganza
Cafe - Eggs, Cheese Take Center Stage
Smoothies Blossom
Products
Product Showcase
Classifieds
Ad Index
Online - BakeMag.com
bake - May 2016 - bake - May 2016
bake - May 2016 - 2
bake - May 2016 - Editor's Note - A Growth Opportunity
bake - May 2016 - 4
bake - May 2016 - Table of Contents
bake - May 2016 - Dawn Food Unveils New Leadership Model
bake - May 2016 - 7
bake - May 2016 - Personality Spotlight - Bronwen Weber
bake - May 2016 - 9
bake - May 2016 - Management - IBIE Expands Program
bake - May 2016 - 11
bake - May 2016 - Labor Front - Wage Hikes in California
bake - May 2016 - 13
bake - May 2016 - Ingredients - Blueberries
bake - May 2016 - 15
bake - May 2016 - Equipment - The Versatile Combi
bake - May 2016 - 17
bake - May 2016 - Breaking the Norm
bake - May 2016 - 19
bake - May 2016 - 20
bake - May 2016 - 21
bake - May 2016 - 22
bake - May 2016 - 23
bake - May 2016 - 24
bake - May 2016 - 25
bake - May 2016 - Play in the Whitespace
bake - May 2016 - 27
bake - May 2016 - 28
bake - May 2016 - 29
bake - May 2016 - Community Outreach
bake - May 2016 - 31
bake - May 2016 - 32
bake - May 2016 - 33
bake - May 2016 - NY Bagels Come to KC
bake - May 2016 - 35
bake - May 2016 - 36
bake - May 2016 - 37
bake - May 2016 - PHO-free Shortening Solutions
bake - May 2016 - AB1
bake - May 2016 - AB2
bake - May 2016 - AB3
bake - May 2016 - AB4
bake - May 2016 - 39
bake - May 2016 - Ice Cream & Gelato
bake - May 2016 - 41
bake - May 2016 - Cake Extravaganza
bake - May 2016 - 43
bake - May 2016 - Cafe - Eggs, Cheese Take Center Stage
bake - May 2016 - 45
bake - May 2016 - Smoothies Blossom
bake - May 2016 - 47
bake - May 2016 - Products
bake - May 2016 - 49
bake - May 2016 - Product Showcase
bake - May 2016 - Classifieds
bake - May 2016 - 52
bake - May 2016 - 53
bake - May 2016 - 54
bake - May 2016 - 55
bake - May 2016 - 56
bake - May 2016 - Ad Index
bake - May 2016 - Online - BakeMag.com
bake - May 2016 - 59
bake - May 2016 - 60
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