Michał Lepich's passion dates back to the times when he lived and worked in the Netherlands. He rented a flat with a group of young people. There were times when they had to cook something. "Everything started when we began improving recipes by the famous Dr O," recounts Michał. "I was quite good at this. And I soon took to baking bread as well."
Robin Hood from Sępolno
Michał, whose friends call him "Mike", makes light of his skills and capabilities. He says that all you need is flour, yeast, water, salt and leavening to bake bread. But it turns out that his creativity is unrelenting as a baker. An IT specialist and a double graduate in manufacturing engineering and psychology, Michał can bake almost any type of bread. He has never learnt the skill as a professional, even though he once attended a baking course in Sherwood Forest. After his return he would drive round the city to share his creations with his friends, just like Robin Hood.
I can bake leavened rye bread with sun-dried tomatoes, white bread with walnuts, wheat bread with roasted sesame seeds, sunflower and linseeds as well as wholemeal bread with dried plums," he recounts. "I add fresh herbs, roasted onion, olives, raisins, black caraway seeds and pumpkin seeds. The truth is, you can add almost anything to your bread. But you need to know how to hit the right flavour. I am simply riveted by the sight of a white roll with colourful additives. "This is a brioche with salmon and green olives," "Mike" explains immediately. "Wanna try?" The brioche is just amazing: the slightly sweet flavour of dough is broken with savoury salmon and olives.
Eeatery with bread
While Michał's family come from the mountains he himself grew up in the Saint Anne Mountain area near Opole. But he decided to settle in Wroclaw. He has been baking bread for four years now. He uses a special baking stone to lay bread on. He also orders special celluloid baking forms on the Internet. "I'm experimenting," he replies. "I'm active at various chat rooms abroad. I connect with people from Brazil, the US and Peru. We share our ideas."
"Mike" has already been successful as a baker. He has managed to sell several baker's dozens so far. For the time being he mainly breaks his bread with friends, neighbours and acquaintances. "It's real fun to find the recipe, bake and share," he says. "The real prize is when people call you to ask for more."
When it turned out that one of his neighbours makes he own cold meats, they started to exchange their produce. His bread for her fresh terrine or sausages. "Mike" can bake both bread and a variety of pastries. He makes pizza, tarts and pasta. He is dreaming of setting up his own eatery to serve various types of bread. "Poland is changing a lot these days," he remarks. "People have had enough of industrial and not necessarily natural produce. They want to go back to their roots and prepare their food from scratch, using fresh and trusted ingredients. People choose cooking to consciously improve their lifestyle."
