Saturday, January 31, 2026 — A Story About Bread, Community, and Refusing to Quit
The Night Before: Setting Up While the Snow Moved In
Tracy Havlik posted a photo Friday night that should have been a warning.
White-out conditions in upstate New York. Snow coming down sideways. The kind of weather that makes you cancel plans, hunker down, and maybe bake cookies if you’re feeling ambitious.
Her caption: “My sponge is in the fridge. I’m all in as long as the power stays on.”
By Saturday morning, Linda Glantz was sending photos from Western New York near Lake Ontario showing eight inches of snow on her deck with more falling. “This morning… And it is still snowing!”
Meanwhile, here in Columbia, South Carolina, where we maybe get snow once every five years if we’re lucky, I woke up to icicles hanging from my gutters and spent most of the day bouncing my internet signal off what felt like Russian satellites just to keep the thread going.
Weather wasn’t stopping anybody.
By Friday midnight, sponges were already bubbling in kitchens from South Carolina to New York. Donna Angelo checked in: “Barring any more emergencies, I’ll be there.” Angela Sides-McKay: “I’m planning on it!” Colleen Vergara: “Sponge is made!” Patt Stanaway: “Sponge in the fridge.”
Then Ann Snow decided to shake things up.
“I decided to use active starter. Just made a levain. 20g active starter, 40g AP flour, 40g water. Will update tomorrow!”
Candi replied: “Good idea, I think.”
Ann: “Pray for me! Haha! Hope it turns out good.”
And just like that, before we’d even started baking, we had our first experiment: some people doing the yeasted sponge, others building sourdough levains and adapting on the fly.
That’s what makes Crust & Crumb Academy different. Nobody said “stick to the recipe.” We said “let’s see what happens.”
Saturday Morning: “Does This Look Right?”
By 7 AM, the questions started rolling in.
Karen Castillo: “Is it better to ferment overnight or for 2–3 hours?”
Before I could even respond, Colleen jumped in: “He has another post where he does say the longer ferment in the fridge will build more flavor!”
I clarified: “It really doesn’t matter as long as you get to the point where it’s bubbly and domed. Take a look at the video I posted earlier today.”
That became the first teaching moment of the day: stop watching the clock and start watching the dough.
Then Sania Nicoson asked the question I knew was coming: “Definition of lukewarm water to create the sponge? Thinking between 95–100°F. Preparing the sponge as we speak…”
I explained: “For the sponge, ‘lukewarm’ is anything in the 90–100°F range, slightly warmer than your skin, never hot enough to feel uncomfortable on your wrist. If you don’t own a thermometer, think ‘gently warm bath water,’ not ‘hot tea.’”
By 9 AM, sponge photos started flooding the thread.
Colleen posted a gorgeous shot: “We’re bubbly this morning!”
Linda looked at hers and wondered: “Mine was in the fridge overnight. Wasn’t quite as bubbly as yours. That looks great!”
Colleen explained: “I did sourdough so I fed my starter for the preferment last night about 12 hours ago. It’s about 67° in here so it took all night to bubble up!”
Temperature, timing, environment, everyone’s sponge looked different, and they all worked. That’s the thing about bread. There’s more than one right answer.
Mid-Morning: The Sticky Dough Panic
Around 10 AM, stand mixers started firing up across the country.
And then the panic set in.
Teresa Van Roey: “I’m not feeling confident. Just finished kneading and the dough is very, very loose. Should I add a bit more flour? No way I can form this into a ball. I measured everything by weight and double checked. Help please.”
I could hear the stress in her message.
“Are you kneading it in the stand mixer?” I asked. “If so, take it out and finish it on the counter with a little flour.”
Teresa: “I was (have a sprained wrist). I let it sit for a bit for the flour to hydrate and it got a little better. It’s bulk rising now.”
Crisis averted.
But she wasn’t the only one freaking out. This dough is wet—wetter than most people are used to. It’s supposed to be that way. The high hydration is what gives you that thin, crackly crust and cloud-like interior that makes Banh Mi special.
But when you’re elbow-deep in sticky dough that won’t hold a shape, it’s hard to believe that’s normal.
I posted a quick explainer: “If your dough looks a little wet in the stand mixer and isn’t coming together like you expected, that’s normal for this style of dough. After you’ve been mixing for a few minutes, pause and scrape the bottom of the mixer bowl so that sticky dough on the bottom gets pulled up and worked in with the rest. The hook can’t grab what’s glued to the bowl.”
Dave Whitney chimed in with his trick: “I found good luck with squeezing the dough with my hands to get the dry ingredients incorporated into the dough before using the mixer.”
That’s what I mean about this community. People share what works. No gatekeeping. Just help.
The Disasters (Or: Why We Celebrate Mistakes)
Then came the moments everyone remembers.
Ann Snow, mid-morning: “Oh my! I forgot to add sugar when I started mixing the dough, so I added the honey (instead) while I add the salt. Then squeezed it into the dough. Hope it helps 🤣”
I told her: “That amount of sugar basically is there to feed the yeast and to help the crust. You’ll be fine.”
Four hours later, Ann posted photos of her finished loaves.
“Way over-proofed 😳 Almost destroyed my dinner 🥹”
But here’s the thing—they still looked good. Linda told her so: “They look good. Nice crust.”
Ann laughed: “Thank you, but it did not hold the shape. Hopefully the taste is good. Haha.. My family expected to have a nice sandwich for dinner 😂”
Then there was Candi Brown-McGriff.
She nailed the sponge. Mixed her dough beautifully. Shaped confidently. And then—
“I assume that I have over proofed my baguettes. As I scored them they deflated.”
I told her: “Yep you did. Bake them anyway.”
Candi (mid-panic): “My Lord. I had to stop and fix my husband’s lunch….Oven is preheating and water for steam is getting hot…pray for me 😭😭”
She baked them. They were flat.
But she posted the full video anyway, the process, the crumb shot, her reflection: “Well, I can only hope they taste good. If they don’t…. No Shrimp Po Boys for my husband’s dinner tonight 🤣🤣🤣”
These weren’t failures. They were lessons. And in Crust & Crumb Academy, we don’t hide our mistakes. We share them so everyone learns.
That’s the difference between this community and Instagram.
Donna’s Experiment: When a Home Baker Becomes a Scientist
While some people were troubleshooting basics, Donna Angelo went full research mode.
She made two batches side-by-side:
- Batch 1: AP flour + 10–15% rice flour (traditional Vietnamese method)
- Batch 2: 100% AP flour at 13% protein
By late afternoon, she posted comparison photos: “These are the crumb shots for the two types. AP + rice flour, and just 13% AP.”
The results?
Both batches had gorgeous open crumb, crispy crust, soft interior. But the rice flour batch had a slightly more delicate, crackly crust. The 100% AP batch was chewier and held structure a bit better for sandwiches.
Ann Snow: “Wow! They look soft, and nice.”
Donna: “Thank you! They were crusty outside, and chewy and soft inside.”
That single comment thread generated 11 replies. People wanted to know about hydration, kneading time, how the rice flour affected handling.
This is what makes Crust & Crumb Academy different. Donna didn’t just bake, she tested a variable, documented it, and shared the results so the whole group could learn.
Nobody told her to do that. She just did it because that’s the culture we’ve built.
The Wins: When It All Comes Together
By mid-afternoon, finished loaves started appearing.
Dave Whitney posted around 11 AM: “Well, I strayed a bit as I like to do, and made 6 light as a feather mini bahn mi’s. Happy with first run!”
Sania Nicoson: “Just came out of oven. Thinking they were overproofed as the lame was dragging across the dough with scoring, but they look nice. Already got a new batch of sponge going to try again.”
Six hours later, Sania posted the crumb shot that got 10 likes:
“These are deeelicious, tore it open vs cut. Crust was not super crackly but visually can see it’s crackly. Nice soft crumb. Already working on another batch for today!”
Terri Pevsner: “Light and airy. Looking forward to making a sandwich!” Her crumb shot was textbook perfect—open, irregular holes, thin crust.
Linda DeCaprio went full traditional: liver pâté on the bottom, roasted pork tenderloin, homemade pickles, pickled daikon and carrots, fresh parsley, and sriracha mayo on top. “Bahn baguettes and they made the best Bahn mi sandwiches!”
Elisa H: “A super big thank you Henry for all of your help today and for this group. The Bánh Mì bake was so much fun. The smaller breads minus one were the overnight sponge, a bit wetter and took 14 hrs to develop. The sponge for the larger 3 breads was mixed this morning. Sprayed those loaves with water just before baking and again at 8 minutes. Smaller loaves were sprayed at 8 min. Used lava rocks. Crumb is delightful in both. Played around with scoring in both. Grateful to be here.”
Tracy Havlik—who started the day wondering if her power would stay on through the snowstorm—posted around dinner: “My Bahn Mi bake is finally complete! I’m happy with everything other than the scoring, but it isn’t horrible. Enjoying a shrimp, spinach and pesto sandwich now.”
She made it. Through a blizzard. With questionable electricity. And finished with a sandwich.
That’s commitment.
The Chaos Moments (Because Every Bake Has Them)
Patt Stanaway told one of my favorite stories of the day:
“I think everyone did a great job! I have a story for mine. I was doing greatish with keeping an eye on the dough, kneading till I had a windowpane, doing my best to shape it as close as I could to desired shape, was off but looked okay, preheated my oven, froze buns, got all ready scored them, then opened oven to quickly insert tray and the steam hit my glasses and I couldn’t really see. So when I went to put the bread in I hit the rack and there they went. Parchment paper and all…”
She salvaged them. Baked them anyway. They turned out great.
I replied: “Sounds like you and I had some similar stuff going on. I noticed all this liquid on top of my stove. That’s when I realized I had left a stick of butter out on a 475°F stove top for the duration of the bake.”
Completely melted. Everywhere.
Sandy Chong: “Sorry for some reason I was unable to post my pictures. Just got done baking and got a bit burnt. I forgot to spray the water and only did this after 20 mins. I don’t have a lame and had to cut it with a steak knife. I did follow the class and learnt a lot. Thanks for your assistance and explaining what you were doing, Henry. I enjoyed it, but everything was rising so slow as so cold here.”
Ann Snow told her: “They still look pretty.”
Sandy: “Oh! Thank-you so much as first time I baked this. Smells great and going to have it now with a hot cup of tea.”
First time baking Banh Mi. In freezing weather. With a steak knife for scoring. And she finished.
That’s what this community does. We show up. We adapt. We don’t quit.
The Late-Night Push
By 8 PM, most people had finished.
But not everyone.
Susie Kendall posted at 8:30 PM: “It’s getting late and I just shaped my bread. Can I put it in the fridge and take it out in the morning, let it rise, then bake it?”
I asked: “Can you not push through? If you’re shaping, you’re only an hour away from being finished.”
She did. By 9:30 PM, she’d posted her finished loaves.
Colleen Vergara was still troubleshooting bulk fermentation at 6 PM: “What do we think? I did the sourdough version. Dough was at and has remained 70°F. It’s been 6 hours since mixing. Starting to see signs of bubbles but not very large. Dough is not sticky at all but also not very jiggly.”
Sania jumped in: “Following on this one! Maybe place in oven with light on? Sourdough starter issue at all? Just guessing….but definitely not ready to proceed in my opinion.”
Colleen: “I agree doesn’t feel ready but I really want to get this right so I will be checking in often for opinions 🤣 really want to get my fermentation right!!”
That thread went 14 comments deep, with multiple people weighing in on dough temp, starter strength, visual and tactile cues for readiness.
By 9 PM, Colleen posted: “Just shaped 🤞🏻😬” with a photo of beautifully tensioned baguettes ready for final proof.
What Actually Happened: The Numbers
Let’s step back and look at what we accomplished:
✔ ProveWorth Certified • Rated 5.0 by our members
449 comments in one thread over roughly 22 hours.
20+ active bakers posting progress, questions, or finished loaves.
15+ finished bakes documented with photos.
Multiple experiments: rice flour vs. AP, sourdough levain vs. yeast sponge, bread flour substitution, lava rocks for steam.
12 new members joined the Academy during the bake-along.
9 members online at 10 PM on a Saturday night.
Now here’s the context that matters:
Research on Skool communities shows that a “healthy” small community (under 1,000 members) averages about 2.1% engagement. Large communities (10,000+ members) drop to 0.23%.
We’re running at 18–25% engagement depending on the thread.
That’s not just good. That’s exceptional.
And it’s not because we’re doing anything fancy. We’re just showing up, answering questions in real time, celebrating wins and disasters, and creating a space where people can experiment without fear of judgment.
Why This Worked
Here’s what made Saturday different from every other online baking group you’ve ever joined:
1. Real-Time Support
When Teresa panicked about sticky dough at 10 AM, she got help within minutes. Not hours. Not days. Minutes.
When Sania asked for feedback on her first proof, I posted a YouTube short demonstrating exactly what she needed to look for.
When Colleen was troubleshooting fermentation at 6 PM, five people jumped in with advice.
That’s what happens when the founder is actually there, in the thread, all day long.
2. Honest Feedback (Not Just “Looks Good!”)
We don’t do participation trophies here.
When Candi’s loaves overproofed, I told her they overproofed. Then I told her to bake them anyway so she could see what overproofed bread looks like and taste the difference.
When Ann forgot the sugar, I explained what it does so she’d understand why it matters (or doesn’t).
When Cheryl said her scoring needed work, I agreed and pointed her toward resources to improve.
Coaching, not cheerleading. That’s the motto.
3. Learning in Public
Ann shared her overproofed loaves and got 5 likes.
Patt told the story about steam fogging her glasses and dumping her baguettes on the oven rack.
Sandy posted her burnt bread from forgetting to spray water.
Nobody hid their mistakes. Everyone shared the messy middle. And that’s what makes this community safe.
4. Side Experiments Encouraged
Donna’s rice flour comparison wasn’t in the recipe. She just decided to test something and document it.
Ann switched to sourdough levain instead of yeast.
Dave made mini baguettes instead of full-size.
Cheryl substituted bread flour when she ran out of AP.
Nobody said “that’s not how you’re supposed to do it.” We said “let’s see what happens.”
5. Weather Couldn’t Stop Us
Tracy baked through a snowstorm with questionable power.
Linda sent photos of eight inches of snow while her sponge bubbled.
I spent the day fighting sketchy internet.
And everybody showed up anyway.
That’s what happens when people actually want to be part of something.
What Comes Next
If you’re reading this and thinking “I wish I’d been there”—good news.
We’re doing it again next Saturday.
Different bread. Same energy. Same real-time support. Same no-gatekeeping, no-perfectionism culture.
Here’s what you’ll get when you join Crust & Crumb Academy:
✅ Real-time troubleshooting from bakers who actually know what they’re talking about
✅ Step-by-step guidance without the intimidation
✅ A community that celebrates learning, not just perfect Instagram photos
✅ The confidence to try techniques you’ve been scared of
✅ Access to the Recipe Pantry with 50+ tested recipes and interactive timers
✅ Weekly bake-alongs where we all learn together
What to bring:
✅ Your questions (there’s no such thing as a dumb one)
✅ Your progress photos (yes, even the ugly dough shots)
✅ Your willingness to learn alongside other bakers who are figuring it out too
Ready to join us?
No gatekeeping. No perfectionism. Just great bread and even better community. New to bread making? Start with Henry’s straightforward guide to sourdough.
See you Saturday.
~ Henry Hunter
Founder, Crust & Crumb Academy
Author of Sourdough for the Rest of Us and From Oven to Market
P.S. — Tracy’s power stayed on. Linda’s bread rose despite the snow. Ann’s family got their sandwiches. Patt’s fogged glasses are now a legendary story. And my stovetop is still a little sticky from melted butter.
That’s what community looks like.
Welcome to Crust & Crumb Academy ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
✔ ProveWorth Certified • Rated 5.0 by our members
