Here there Bread

Handmade and sourced with care

Here there Bread

From our family starter
to your kitchen.

Start baking Our story
Our story

A hundred years
in one family.

This sourdough starter has been part of my family for over a hundred years, passed down through four generations.

It began with my great-grandmother Anna, who lived in Kharkiv. She loved baking bread and pastries, and then carrying a basket of them outside to share with her neighbors and the children on her street. Her kitchen was always warm and welcoming, and it always smelled of fresh bread.

I was named after her. My family has always believed I inherited her love of baking and her talent for it, so every loaf I bake is my way of honoring her.

This same starter has traveled with me from Ukraine to Poland, and now to the United States. Through every move it stayed a symbol of home, family and resilience.

Today I am honored to share it with you. When you bake with it you are not only making bread. You are carrying on a tradition that has crossed generations and continents.

I hope it fills your home with the same warmth, comfort and joy that it has brought to mine.

With love, from my family's kitchen to yours, Anna
Two hands cupped around a glass jar of pale, risen sourdough starter.
The same starter, this morning.
A studio portrait of an older woman in a dark dress with medals.
Great-grandmother Anna, in Kharkiv.
Anna and Maryna in black bakers' jackets, leaning on a wooden counter.
Anna and Maryna, today.
An open handwritten notebook, its first page inscribed in ink.
Her notebook, inscribed in 1974.
What's inside
An engraving of a jar of starter under a cloth cover.

Dried starter

A spoonful of our own culture, dried into flakes. It keeps for years.

Activation guide

A printed card that takes you through the first week, one day at a time.

Video tutorial

I filmed the whole thing, from the sealed packet to a living jar.

Lifetime support

If something looks wrong, write to me. I answer every message myself.

Recipes

Where to start once your jar is alive and doubling every day.

How it works
1
Dried starter flakes being tipped from the packet into a glass jar.

Add water

Ten grams of flakes and twenty grams of warm water. Let them soak until soft.

2
A hand stirring the jar, with a brass measure of bread flour beside it.

Feed it

Twenty grams of flour and twenty of water, once a day, for about a week.

3
Hands holding the finished jar, thick and full of bubbles.

Bake your first loaf

It doubles within hours and smells faintly tangy. After that it is yours.

Watch and learn

See it done
start to finish.

This is the same film that comes with every packet. Two and a half minutes, filmed from above my kitchen counter, with nobody talking over it.

A jar of active sourdough starter on a wooden board, seen from above. Watch the guide
Recipes

Once your jar
is alive.

Four to begin with. I am photographing them at the moment, and they will appear here as they are finished.

No. 1

Beginner sourdough

One loaf, four ingredients, and an overnight rise.

Coming soon
No. 2

Cinnamon rolls

What to do with the starter you would otherwise throw out.

Coming soon
No. 3

Pizza dough

Cold fermented for three days. Worth the wait.

Coming soon
No. 4

Focaccia

The forgiving one. Good olive oil, coarse salt, dimpled by hand.

Coming soon
Questions

Before you start

How long does the dried starter keep?

Sealed, dry and out of the sun, a long time. Years rather than months. Drying does not kill the culture, it only puts it to sleep, so open the packet whenever you are ready to start.

How long before I can bake with it?

About a week. Day one is soaking and the first feed, then days two to seven are one feed a day. You will know it is ready when it doubles reliably within four to eight hours of being fed.

What flour should I feed it?

Plain bread flour is all you need, and it is what the printed guide is written around. Whole wheat or rye will speed things up if your kitchen is cold, but you do not have to use them.

Nothing is happening. Have I killed it?

Almost certainly not. The first two days usually look like nothing at all, and a cool kitchen can stretch that to three or four.

Keep it at 75–78°F (24–26°C) if you can, keep feeding on schedule, and give it time. If it still looks flat after a week, write to me and we will work through it together.

Do I need a kitchen scale?

Yes. Sourdough is measured by weight and not by volume, because a cup of flour can vary by a third depending on how it was scooped. Any scale that reads in single grams is fine.

I missed a feed. What now?

Feed it as soon as you remember and carry on. A starter that has gone hungry may smell sharp, or grow a layer of grey liquid on top. Pour that off, feed it, and it will come back.

The shop

Start your own tradition.

Be part of ours.

I am putting three sets together and photographing them now. The starter on its own, a full baker's set, and one made for giving. Leave your email and I will write to you the day they go up. Nothing else, ever.

The starter

Coming soon

Baker's set

Coming soon

The gift box

Coming soon