Featured Baker of the Month

Mirvelyn McClay | Sugar Alchemist

@sweetlab_bakeshop

A new winner has been crowned!

Congrats to @sweetlab_bakeshop, our latest #ChallengerCommunityKitchen winner! Your wheat scores are picture-perfect and that crust is simply golden!

Tell us about your Starter.

When I first started, I actually made three different starters using three variations of flour—one with all-purpose, one with whole wheat, and one with a mix of both plus dark rye. I was curious to see which one would really come alive first. After two weeks, the one with the mix of all the flours was doubling (and soon tripling!) in size, while the other two were still very weak. I noticed so many bakers were naming their starters, and I wasn’t sure what to call mine. Then it clicked—my daughter’s middle name is Avery, and since this starter had “every flour” in it, I named her Avery Dough. And that’s how she got her name!

What's a baking lesson you've learned?

One of my biggest mistakes was buying lots of cheaper tools when I first started. Most of them ended up unused, and I realized I should have just invested in quality from the beginning. Good tools, like my Challenger Dutch oven, last a lifetime. My daughter even joked she’ll inherit it one day! My advice: skip the cheap stuff and go straight for the tools you’ll actually use and treasure.

What's a tip or technique you'd like to share?

My biggest tip for baking in a Challenger pan is to take care of it… don’t let it rust. After washing, scrub and season it right away so it lasts. For baking, instead of adding ice cubes (which can wash away rice flour designs), I recommend freezing your shaped dough before baking. The cold dough releases its own steam in the oven, which helps with oven spring and makes scoring easier, all while preserving intricate flour patterns.

The Ultimate Bread Pan®

Discover the Challenger Bread Pan and fall in love with its perfectly placed handles (large enough for your oven mitts), its thick cast iron construction that ensures steady high heat, a tightly sealed environment for optimal steam creation, and its versatile design that accommodates numerous bread shapes and sizes.