OSU Food Innovation Center: Grains & Baking Science Workshop

Date: Wednesday May 14 2025 and Thursday May 15 2025

Time: May 14th between 9AM – 5PM & May 15th between 9AM – 5PM; Final hours TBD

Location: Food Innovation Center & Wheat Marketing Center

Cost: $550 for Early Bird

Enrollment Cap: 15 people

Are you curious about baking with more whole grain flours and exploring other types of grains beyond bread wheat? How about baking using fresh milled whole grain flours? Do you want a better understanding of how flour type and grain influences dough characteristics and final quality?

Join food scientists at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center and the Wheat Marketing Center for the 2nd annual Grains and Baking Science Workshop designed for enthusiastic hobbyists, home bakers, and professionals seeking a deeper scientific understanding of grains, flour, and baking. The baking and cooking portion of the workshop will be held at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center located in Portland’s Pearl District over the course of two days. The lecture component will take place right across the street at the Wheat Marketing Center (WMC) alongside a tour to get an inside look into the role the WMC plays in the commercial baking industry.

The bulk of the course will be dedicated to hands-on baking using various types of grains and flour to evaluate their impact on hydration, appearance, texture, and flavor. We will cover baking science & cereal chemistry 101 for bakers, explore how different flours behave within the same recipe, explore different types of preferments, and practice baking by feel coupled with formulating with baker’s percentages.

Together we will be doing side-by-side comparative baking & tasting artisan sourdough bread, focaccia, 100% whole grain sandwich bread, and pizza. We will conclude the workshop on the second day with a pizza dinner that we prepare together as a group.

While this class has no prerequisites and is friendly to beginners, some prior baking experience and knowledge is recommended. First and foremost, this is a flour and grain focused baking class that highlights a variety of grains popular among artisan bakers. While talking on some level about baking basics like baker’s math, handling dough, shaping, and scoring is necessary this is not the core focus of the class.

We’ll be using a variety of flours sourced from mills such as Cairnsprings, Camas Country Mill, Central Milling, and more. We’ll also be using a variety of baking equipment such as a Rofco oven for baking, Ooni oven for neopolitan-style pizza, and Mockmill for milling whole grains.