Today we’d like to introduce you to Emily Harryman
Hi Emily, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I’ve met many bakers who attribute their love of baking to a loved one, and I am no expectation.
With a mom who worked full-time, I often found myself parked on my grandma’s kitchen counter with a hunk of sourdough bread and thick layer of butter.
She was a dynamo in that small kitchen, cooking up complex dishes & executing them well – Julia Child, Betty Crocker & grandma all rolled into one.
My grandma inspired me to experiment in the kitchen without fear of failure. A gift I will forever be grateful for.
As an 8th grader, I found myself drawn to the dessert section of our family’s cookbook – surprise, surprise. I began trying my hand at cheesecakes, brownies, cakes, & even homemade ice cream (we bought an old fashioned churn).
By senior year of high school, I was baking cakes for birthday party’s and landed my first wedding cake. A three-tiered Alice in Wonderland themed cake that was nearly 3 feet tall – something you might see on a Food Network show. It was a feat & such an honor that they trusted me with their cake as such a young age.
I did a few more wedding cakes in college as well as themed birthday cakes and had built quite a photo resume. Always eager for a challenge, I signed up for Food Network’s Cake Wars competition and somehow needed up being chosen to compete!
I had no formal training, besides a Wilton Cake Decorating Class, and was a senior in college going up against seasoned bakers who ran their own bakeries. All I could think of was the story of David vs. Goliath. Would I be able to maneuver my sling as well as he?
God blessed me with that incredible opportunity and, as a bonus, I won the competition with my best friend by my side.
After getting married and having kids, cake decorating took a backseat & more practical baking took priority.
Pretty soon, I found myself on the sourdough bandwagon.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
My first sourdough loaf was a hockey puck. Dry, flat & nearly inedible. I didn’t understand how a sourdough starter worked, what “discard” meant, and how I was supposed to “feed” it and keep it “alive”. I was tempted to quit and actually “killed” two different starters that were given to me.
Third time was a charm, though. We moved from PA to TX and I inherited a mature, organic starter with an intuitive beginner’s recipe.
After a year of tweaking my process, I began selling sourdough starter from home & soon got requests for homemade organic sourdough bread.
My first 6 loaves sold in January of 2024 and by the first week of February I had an order for 60 loaves! The demand was high for organic sourdough bread & God opened the door for our little family business to grow.
Since February, I have sold well over 1,000 loaves & hundreds of sourdough scones, our dining room had been converted into a micro-bakery & Simply Bread Co’s bread oven is a welcome tenant.
It hasn’t been easy and there were (and still are!) many growing pains, but it’s been a privilege to partner with small businesses & it has given me a whole new respect for business owners in America.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I now specialize in organic sourdough bread, scones, & French macarons.
Is there any advice you’d like to share with our readers who might just be starting out?
Take your time in scaling your business and do your homework!
Contact Info:
Image Credits
Heidi Sears Photography
