Horsham Gingerbread Bakehouse
Afternoon tea with traditional Sussex biscuits read more: @livewellwithoutgluten
Founded by Lesley Ward in 2013 the Horsham Gingerbread Bakehouse produces distinctively delicious gingerbreads and gluten-free biscuits.
The town of Horsham in West Sussex was once famous for its gingerbread production. It was the notion of reviving this fame and her vast collection of historic, handwritten recipes that inspired Lesley to develop her range of products.
Baked in small batches at a family bakery near Chichester in West Sussex, all of the gingerbreads and biscuits are made with the finest natural and locally sourced ingredients.
Do any of the ingredients have nutritional value we might be interested in knowing about?
Linseed meal is a good source of protein and fibre and is one of the richest plant sources of ALA, a type of omega-3 fatty acid. Black treacle contains iron and other essential minerals. Gluten free oat flour contains fibre.
We use butter in all of our gingerbreads and biscuits. Butter is high in beta-carotene, a compound that the body converts to vitamin A. It also contains calcium and other vitamins. And it tastes delicious!!
What are you most proud of in your products?
Our recipes are unique and focus on purity and simplicity - some of our biscuits contain as little as seven ingredients (a pretty rare thing). On our packaging we say: Simple ingredients - complex flavours, which sums up what I am most proud of.
Tell us about the manufacturing process and why gluten free readers can be reassured of food safety?
The gluten free oat products we use are grown and processed by a British farm that specialises in this, which means that there is no risk of contamination with gluten. In the bakery gluten free products are produced on dedicated gluten free days, after a gluten free clean down and gluten free surface testing. Storage of gluten free products is separate from other ingredients and large equipment used for making our gluten free biscuits is only used for them.
Lesley I know that your brand has a really interesting history, please tell us the story!
I started up and ran the Horsham Cheese Shop, in the Carfax in Horsham for almost 20 years, but during that time I was unaware of the fact that during the 18th & 19th centuries Horsham had been famous for its gingerbread.
In 1803 the famous poet Shelley (whose family lived at Warnham), asked his aunt, who lived in Horsham, to buy him some gingerbread to take on a picnic. Gingerbread was such a popular treat that up until the First World War, gingerbread makers were established in towns and villages throughout East & West Sussex. Horsham was renowned for its gingerbread, and lots of it was always sold at the fairs held in the Carfax, but the industry died with its last gingerbread maker in 1917.
It was only some time later that I learned about this, and encouraged by Jeremy Knight (the then curator of Horsham Museum - he is on the old Escape to the Country film showing on our website), I experimented with an old gingerbread recipe from Shelly's family, alongside my own collection of old gingerbread recipes from manuscripts and recipe books, and eventually came up with a gingerbread recipe that I believe to be true to the old fashioned flavours of the type of gingerbread that was produced by gingerbread makers before we had baking powder to make modern gingerbread cake. From there we diversified into making a range of biscuits, both sweet and suitable for cheese.
What is the ethos and food values behind your brand and why are these important to you?
I am passionate about using pure, old fashioned ingredients like butter and raw cane sugars, to bring a depth of flavour to food products that cannot be found through the use of highly refined ingredients. I feel that so many of the 'healthy' foods we are offered are too processed and often contain cheap, inferior ingredients.
You get what you pay for, and cheaper ingredients do not usually deliver the same depth of flavour as more expensive ones. Two good examples of this are black treacle and muscovado sugar. There are a number of differently priced ones available. If you taste them all you will discover a big variation in their complexity. The more expensive brands definitely deliver more.
This is why we use a high-end, well known producer of black treacle and muscovado sugar in our gingerbreads and biscuits, rather than catering/ baker brands, which are much cheaper. We just don't believe in cutting corners in order to increase profits.
Tell us about your ingredients and any notable relationships with suppliers
Where possible we use local or British made ingredients, to support British farmers. Our honey supplier is a master beekeeper who lives in Loxwood, West Sussex. Our linseed meal producer is a farmer in Barns Green, near Horsham. We have been working with both of them for many years and collect their produce directly from them.
Where can we find out more and buy your products?
We supply all kinds of food retailers and visitor centres, mostly in the South East. We have information about them on our website www.horshamgingerbread.co.uk , where we also have an online shop for customers who are unable to purchase from one of our retailers. Find us on instagram @hgbakehouse