We’re delighted to welcome Denby Dale Pies into the Country Style Family.

In the 1980’s a manufacturer of tinned rice pudding ran advertisements that just went on about the wonders of Devon milk.

As the cheering subsides and everyone goes back to grumbling, the Royal Wedding does seem to have made us all a little more optimistic.

With the Nation gripped by Corrie’s Fiftieth Anniversary you have to wonder what Ena Sharples would make of the increasing number of cake crazes that are now all the rage.

Like so many old-established and delicious breads the humble bagel (in all its many different spellings) is surrounded by a host of myths and legends.

The other great baking tradition in Edinburgh is the Italian Bakery. Like many port cities Edinburgh has a sizeable Italian community and this has led to the establishment of several Italian bakeries. 

There’s nothing better than a well-made rhubarb pie and at Country Style we make many thousand a week during the early spring.

October saw me travelling to Lucerne and the The Worshipful Company of Bakers’ Richemont Course. The Richemont Craft Bakery School sets standards for the rest of the world and covers everything from craft baking to chocolate work.

The bakery business is very competitive in Edinburgh, and well-refreshed customers will be knocking on the backdoor of decent bakery shops in the small hours for something hot from the oven to sustain them.

As we look back on the first decade of the new millennium the noughties may be remembered as the decade of the Farmers’ Market.