Brisbane mainstay Brewbakers has announced it will be closing its doors next month. The family-run business has bee operating for more than 30 years, however owners Richard and Caroline Cotton told The Courier Mail that the rising cost of the organic flour they use, in conjunction with the skills shortage across the industry as well as the addition of several other bakeries in the area, meant it was harder for the business to keep up. “We thought we might’ve had [a baker] up until quite recently, but he is leaving to return to his home country,” Caroline told the news outlet. “I think a lot of ..read more

A Brisbane-based hospitality group, that includes seven bakeries, has gone into liquidation with 90 staff affected. BCN Events Group operated seven venues that specialised in bakery goods, but was shut down overnight on May 28. King Street Bakery, wholesale service provider The Kneadery have been closed alongside cooking school Lumiere Culinary Studio and popular cafe Mica. Mark Holland, Jamie Harris and Anthony Connelly of restructuring firm McGrath Nicol were appointed as liquidators. “We intend to work with staff, customers and suppliers during this difficult time,” the liquidators told new ..read more

Much-loved Melbourne cake shop, Monarch Cakes, is celebrating its 90th anniversary throughout 2024 by reproducing throwback recipes from different decades. Nikki Laski, the daughter of Monarch Cakes‘ 85-year-old owner Gideon Markham, told Broadsheet she has spent the past few months sifting through the bakery’s old recipe books and photos in search of inspiration for the cake shop’s 90th anniversary later this year. As part of this, the Monarch Cakes team plan on reviving past recipes that have fallen off the menu. The cake shop was originally founded by Pearl Levine, a Polish and Jewish immig ..read more

May saw the Baking Association of Australia’s Queensland Baking Show take place. Held at TAFEQld, the competition saw competitors battle it out across 24 categories including plain traditional beef pie, gourmet pies, pasties, ciabatta, vanilla slice, banana bread, 680g white loaf condensed square, and 680g white hi-top half married. Ashley Hughes from Coles Park Ridge took home the Champion Loaf of the Show for the wholemeal cob, while The Squealing Pig was awarded the champion cake/ pastry of the show for the second consecutive year for their lasagna pie. Luke Moy from Woolworths Tweed City w ..read more

The Baking Industry Association of WA (BIEWA) had a very successful competition day on the May 15. More than 400 entries made an appearance on the day and the quality was outstanding this year. BIEWA secretary Paula Van Styn said the judges and stewards had a very challenging job on the day, given the high standard of entries. “It was encouraging to see new entrant bakeries, who were successful in becoming a finalist in this year’s awards,” she said. “We are extremely grateful to our fantastic sponsors; EOI/Peerless, Puratos, Millers Foods, Baketec Solutions, Bakers Delight, MBL Foods, Manildr ..read more

“We’ve upped the indulgence factor on this pastry, combining two desserts in one. The crunch of the pastry replaces the biscuit base on a cheesecake, and the tart blueberries echo the tang of the sour cream. Serve this at the end of a meal, or as the sweet highlight of a big brunch spread. You’ll need 16 confoil tins,” Mike Russell writes Makes 16 WHAT YOU NEED For the pastry 1.1kg core croissant dough, chilled 250g fresh blueberries For the Cheesecake filling250g cream cheese, at room temperature 140g raw sugar Finely grated zest of 1 lemon 75g eggs (about 1.5 eggs) 15g strong (baker ..read more

With so many small businesses run by enterprising Aussies who have sunk countless hours and personal finances into their passions, it is obvious that taking care of business means taking care of yourself. When you own a small business, it is just as important to spend time working on your business as it is to spend time working in your business. Yet too often, the daily quest to keep the doors open and manage the many immediate demands prevents time being spent thinking about the health, future and goals of your business. And for that matter, your own health. That’s why it ..read more

The flavours, the textures, the techniques … I cannot prepare you for how enthralling this dessert is. Whole pears poached in moscato that’s gently spiced with ginger, filled and coated in silky ganache, then placed in a nest of thinly piped white chocolate. If you’re after ‘wow’, look no further. Serves 6 WHAT YOU NEED For the ginger chocolate ganache480g good-quality milk chocolate 240ml thickened (whipping) cream 15g liquid glucose 30ml ginger juice (squeezed through a sieve from grated fresh ginger) pinch of ground ginger pinch of sea salt 70g unsalted butter, cubed For the poached ..read more

After immense success in 2023, it has been announced MasterChef Dessert Masters will return to Australian TV screens again in 2024. The first batch of contestants have been announced, with a few previous MasterChef contestants making the list. This year will see season six MasterChef alumna Emilia Jackson return to the kitchen as well as Newcastle-based baker Reece Hignell, who first entered the MasterChef kitchen in the 10th season. British chef, author and television personality Darren Purchese was the third name announced, alongside Sydney’s cake queen Katherine Sabbath. The 2023 line-up sa ..read more

Eau de bakery scent is lending a special “je ne sais qoi” to postage stamps in a celebration of the baguette. The scratch-and-sniff stamps have been described as “250g of magic and perfection” by the French president Emmanuel Macron. According to The Guardian, one Parisian shop that is selling the stamps – Le Carre d’encre – said the stamp has a bakery scent, which has been added to the stamps via microcapsules. The stamps first went on sale on Friday, May 17, 2024, after being launched the preceding Thursday – the day of Saint-Honore, the patron saint of bakers and pastry chefs. “The baguette ..read more