LEWISTON — Dara Reimers, Olympic baker and head baker and owner of the Bread Shack in Auburn, donated her time to offer an intensive course on artisan bread baking to a crowd on May 13 at the St. Mary’s Nutrition Center.

“Artisan Bread: Ancient Techniques Remembered” was the second installment of the Nutrition Center’s Cliff Notes to Culinary School Series, which brings in local experts in the culinary field to lead hands-on cooking classes boiling down their years of experience into a clear and cohesive learning environment for seasoned and passionate cooks alike.

Participants who signed up for the course took it as a stand-alone course or as a follow-up course to the beginning bread making class offered by the Nutrition Center’s Community Cooking Educator, Denise Dill, in partnership with Lewiston Adult Education. During the artisan bread class, Reimers offered participants the opportunity to jump into bread making right from the get-go.

Each student was given their own station and got to be actively involved in each step of the 48-hour baking process. Reimers prepped ingredients so that she could fit it all into one three-hour course. Every one of the 19 students were able to mix, shape, bake, test and taste an artisan dough and loaf using a sourdough starter given to Reimers by one of her teachers over 20 years ago.

Each student went home with a piece of the starter, their own ready-to-bake loaf, as well as a baked loaf to enjoy with their friends and family when they got home. Reimers covered not only the techniques, but also the history of sourdough and offered space for those with or without baking experience an opportunity to problem solve with an expert.