What is a Micro Bakery and Why I Built One 🧱
A lot of people baking at home eventually start scaling things up. Not because they have some grand business plan, but because baking more bread is… kind of addictive. You bake for yourself, then for friends, then suddenly you’re baking “just a few extra loaves” every week because people keep asking.
That’s more or less how it started for me.
Years ago, when I was baking at Rundles in Stratford, I was part of a CSA-style bread program. Members would pick up a vegetable box, and we added bread. That turned into farmers' markets, and then I spent a stretch of time abroad cooking in fine-dining kitchens. When I came back to Toronto to help open Four Seasons Toronto, baking became my weekend side hustle. Markets, pop-ups, word of mouth.
Over time, we moved everything to WhatsApp. Today there are about 350 local members who support the bakes. It’s very community-driven. The income helps cover ingredients so I can test more formulas, and yes, it helps pay for real life things like groceries, kids' swimming lessons, and keeping the lights on. While plenty of people make a full living from micro bakeries, for us it’s always been a serious side hustle built around passion, consistency and skill development.
So what is a micro bakery?
Honestly, it can be a lot of things. At its core, it’s small-scale baking done intentionally. Home-based or studio-based. Limited runs. Direct to the customer. Depending on where you live, you can get your kitchen certified and sell at markets, shops, or directly to the public. There’s no single model, and that’s part of the appeal.
Because I get asked about this all the time, I put together a video walking through how I set my micro bakery up, from layout and workflow to the tools that make scaling manageable at home. If you’re curious what this looks like in practice, that video is a good place to start.
Brioche French Toast on a Snow Day 🍞🍁
This one happens a lot in our house, especially on snow days. We had a loaf of brioche sitting on the counter, and the kids immediately asked for French toast. Fair enough.
This is simple, forgiving, and honestly hard to mess up if your bread is a little stale. That’s the goal here.
What we use
- 5 eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 tsp vanilla
- Pinch of salt
- Cinnamon to taste
- Brioche or challah, sliced and slightly stale
Let the bread sit in the custard for a minute or two, so it actually absorbs instead of just getting wet on the outside. Just don’t let it sit too long or you’ll end up with something closer to bread pudding than French toast… unless you’re into that.
Heat a heavy pan over medium heat. I use cast iron. A small knob of butter and a splash of olive oil is plenty. You don’t want it swimming.
Cook slowly until deeply golden on both sides. If the pan is too hot, the outside will burn before the centre sets. Low and steady wins here.
We serve it with fresh berries when we have them, and frozen berries in the winter, warmed slightly so they release their juice. Always finished with real maple syrup, no exceptions.
It’s one of those breakfasts that feels special but takes almost no effort, especially when you already have good bread on hand.
If you want to make the bread yourself, I’ve linked my challah recipe below, which works beautifully for French toast.
Jalapeño Cheddar Sourdough 🌶️🧀
This one never misses.
Jalapeño cheddar sourdough is easily the most requested loaf in the micro bakery. It sells out every single time, no matter the season. Jalapeños might not be anywhere near in season right now, but that doesn’t seem to matter. People want it, and honestly, I get why.
The combination just works. Tangy sourdough, sharp cheddar melting into the crumb, and little pockets of heat from the jalapeños that balance everything out. I like using cubed cheese so you get those proper molten bites, but grated works too if that’s your preference. You can also roast or pickle the jalapeños, though I usually use them raw, so they soften and steam right inside the loaf (plus it is WAY easier/faster).
I baked a big batch this week and, as usual, it was gone in seconds.
If you want to bake this one at home, the full recipe is on the site with all the details on flour choices, inclusions, and timing.
Snow Day Sourdough Banana Nut Bread 🍌
We had a snow day here this week and a very serious pile of overripe bananas on the counter. The girls spotted them immediately and asked for banana bread, so naturally, I put them to work. They scaled the ingredients, mixed the batter, and took their roles very seriously. It ended up being a great way to spend a cold day at home together.
This whole-grain sourdough banana nut bread is one of those recipes I always come back to. It uses sourdough discard, leans on spelt and whole wheat, and stays incredibly moist without being heavy. It’s forgiving, simple, and perfect for baking with kids or when you want something comforting without overthinking it.
If you’ve got bananas that are past their prime and a cold day to fill, this one’s worth baking.
This Week in the Micro Bakery 🕺 Brioche on the Bench 🧈
I baked brioche this weekend in the studio and finally got to put the new strap pans from Simply Bread through their paces. These are launching soon, but early orders are already live, and honestly, they’re a really smart piece of kit.
Simply Bread partnered again with USA Pan on these, and like the rest of their gear, they were designed specifically to fit the Simply Bread Oven. Two strap pans fit on each deck, six pans total in a full oven load, which means twenty four loaves at a time. For brioche or pan loaves, that kind of consistency and efficiency is huge. They also fit most home ovens (check your oven first, though!).
They use the same proprietary USA Pan non-stick coating, which is excellent. Clean release, no drama, no panic moments when you flip a loaf. And these strap pans are only available through Simply Bread.
The nice bonus is that they also fit in a standard home oven. So if you are baking at home, running a cottage bakery, or just thinking ahead, you still get the benefits without needing a full commercial setup.
Right now, they are available at a ten percent discount for early orders. Once shipping starts, that discount goes away.
And if you are thinking bigger picture and looking at starting or scaling a micro bakery, my code SIMPLYDUFFY25 takes 250 USD off the Simply Bread Oven itself. If you have been on the fence, this is one of those moments where the timing actually makes sense.
I’ll drop a brioche photo here so you can see how clean the bake was.
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Happy Baking,
MJD
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Want to learn more from me? Check out my online video resources 👇
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