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Slowly doughing a decade on
Chris Young attempts to cast his mind back to the origins of Slow Dough: Real Bread.
Slow Dough: Real Bread was first published on 15th of Sourdough September 2016, but that's not when its story begins...
When I hit the Real Bread Campaign trail as a volunteer in spring 2009, I inherited a (soon-to-be-successful) charitable grant funding application. Our commitments included: ‘a bakers' support pack will be developed and launched during the first year of project and over the duration of the project will be distributed to 100 new or existing bakers that request it.’
By the time I’d finished harvesting from the hive mind and writing the guide, I decided it deserved a wider audience and convinced Sustain to take a punt on publishing it as a proper book. This paid off (phew!) and we sold the initial 500 copies of the original Knead to Know handbook, then a second print run of 500, before the publisher Grub Street added it to their list, where it remained for almost a decade.*
Book two
A few years later, I pondered what sort of book could next help towards our vision of everyone having the chance to choose Real Bread, and help to fund our mission. In line with our work celebrating Real Bread and the people behind its rise, I decided on a scrapbook-style one, filled with stories, snaps and recipes from inspiring bakers. I put a call out and people generously responded with their biogs, bread, photos and offers of recipe testing.
Plan A had been for Sustain to publish the book but then an introduction at Aldeburgh Food Festival to an editor led to one with Anna Power at literary agency Johnson & Alcock, who then secured a meeting with Grace Cheetham, publisher at Nourish Books. Grace didn’t want the book I originally pitched but asked if I could write one on sourdough and other long-proving bread recipes instead. Well, yes!
Plan B
The change of plan meant that many of the recipes that had been donated didn’t fit the new bill, so the race was on to collect more. Once again, fab people in our network stepped up to the plate and I set to work crafting an inbox full of emails into a consistent collection.
The pivot also meant ditching the mobile phone shots, so I said I’d like to work with a photographer called Victoria Harley. The publisher was hesitant, as Vic had mainly worked in fashion but I stuck to my guns because her work is great and her connection with the then Campaign supporter Haxby Bakehouse meant she ‘got it’.
It takes a village to raise a bread book
Another relationship I’ve nurtured is with The School of Artisan Food team, to whom I suggested doing the photoshoot at their place. Wayne Caddy, the School’s then-head of baking (and later Campaign ambassador), seized on this as a project for his diploma students, who recipe tested, tweaked and helped project manage the week-long shoot.
Ben Mackinnon agreed to host the book launch event at e5 Bakehouse in Sourdough September 2016 and Slow Dough: Real Bread has remained on Nourish Books’ list ever since.
Thank you again to everyone who contributed to Slow Dough's birth (I namechecked many more of them on the book's roll of honour page) or has bought a copy: all author royalties go to Sustain towards our charitable bready work.
*In 2021, we published a totally updated, revised and expanded edition, which Grub Street subsequently took on. Knead to Know…more is still available from our website and all good, local, independent booksellers (plus some evil multinational ones – just say no!)
See also
Bake Your Lawn the grow-a-loaf-guidebook
Originally published in True Loaf magazine issue 67, July 2026.
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See: YOUR words in print, My baker’s dozen, My favourite bakery, Who are your Real Bread Heroes? and Sharing your recipes.
Published Thursday 17 September 2026
Real Bread Campaign: Finding and sharing ways to make bread better for us, our communities and planet.
