South East London-based Ed Baker is celebrating scooping a host of Great Taste Awards including 3 stars for their White Sourdough made with Matthews Cotswold Flour's premium organic white flour as well as 2 stars for their Wholemeal Sourdough made with Matthews Cotswold Flour's premium organic white, organic premium wholegrain and organic dark rye, and Baba au Rum made with Matthews Cotswold Flour's T55.
As owner of artisan bakery, Ed Baker, he comments: “I am thrilled to have won Great Taste awards for all five products that I entered into this prestigious competition. I am on a mission to deliver authentic flavours using real, organic ingredients and these accolades are a fantastic reward for the hard work and passion that I put into each and every recipe.
“It is also recognition for the outstanding ingredients that I use. I can honestly say that the quality of my loaves changed dramatically when I started working with Matthews Cotswold Flour and I strongly believe that I wouldn't have collected the awards without their flour, as both the bread and the pastry wouldn't have been the same.”
Bertie Matthews, managing director of Matthews Cotswold Flour adds:” We are so delighted to see the fruits of Ed's labours being celebrated by these awards. He has dedicated a huge amount of time and effort, combined with science, to create these fabulous products which demonstrate how great ingredients in the hands of outstanding artisans can be turned into award-winning products.”
14,195 products were put through the competition's rigorous blind judging process with only 1,568 being awarded a Great Taste 2-star – 'above and beyond delicious', and 248 received a Great Taste 3-star – 'extraordinarily tasty food and drink'. 4,088 products were awarded a Great Taste 1-star – 'food and drink that delivers fantastic flavour'.
White Sourdough made with Cotswold Premium Organic White Flour won 3 stars and was described by the judges as 'a beautifully crafted loaf with a crisp crust, perfect rise and a soft, open crumb' with a 'delightful' sourdough flavour. Wholemeal Sourdough made with Cotswold Premium Organic White, Cotswold Organic Premium Wholemeal and Organic Dark Rye won 2 stars and was described by the judges as 'a gorgeous looking loaf with good colour on the crust and a lovely and moist crumb with good aeration'.
Baba au Rum made with Cotswold T55 won 2 stars and the judges commented that 'it's very clear that a skilful baker is responsible for this wonderful yeast bake. It was a delicious dessert'. Ed Baker also won 1 star for their Mushroom Quiche with white wine and cheddar and their Onion Quiche with Lancashire cheese and jalapeno.
It is a new artisan bakery situated between Hither Green and Ladywell, in South East London. The baker (Ed) is a sourdough purist and bakes his bread on site daily. He is self-taught and develops all his own recipes. Driven by the love and passion Eddy has for good food, recipes are influenced by the richness and diversity of the East Mediterranean and European cuisines. Ed Baker was founded with the promise to always; provide healthy choices, deliver authentic flavours, and use real, organic ingredients.
Matthews Cotswold Flour is a family business that has been trading grain and milling flour in the heart of the Cotswolds since the 1800s. Matthews Cotswold Flour is committed to supporting regenerative food sources, developing an unparalleled range of top quality, award-winning, products and inspiring, educating and partnering with the nation's artisan and home bakers.
Established in 1994, Great Taste is organised by the Guild of Fine Food and is the world's largest, longest standing and most respected food accreditation scheme for artisan and speciality food producers. This year, judging took place over 89 days in Dorset and London, with a panel of more than 500 judges putting the products to the test. The line-up saw food and drink products submitted from an extraordinary 109 different countries across the world.
