Baker's Bread Brings Home the Blue

The hobby began with the goal of contributing to the dinner table.

James Lind, of Minnetonka, said his wife is a great cook and makes all of their meals. He began baking bread--not his wife’s forte—and then entered a loaf of white bread in the 2000 Minnesota State Fair.

He won a ribbon that year and was motivated to continue.

This year, Lind received his first blue ribbon—actually two of them—for his multi-grain and onion-rye breads. He won a total of six ribbons—four of them in the Honey and Bee Division and two in Creative Activities.

“My recipes are always evolving,” he said. “Each time, I change something that needs improving, and overtime they just change.”

Buying bread from the store is no longer necessary, as Lind bakes whatever bread they eat. He believes local ingredients taste the best and purchases his honey from the Hopkins’ famers’ market.

And no, Lind has never used a bread maker.

“I think it makes decent bread, but it does all the kneading for you,” he said. “I like to get in there and do that.”