By Mark Schmerling

 

Saluda residents do not rank Wildflour Bakery as a ‘best-kept secret,’ though that might have been the case a few decades ago. Wildflour, launched 34 years ago, is justly popular, among residents and visitors, with an expanding menu and hours, offering breads, other baked goods and meals that live up to the name.

 

Wildflour’s logo, “All we knead is love,” is more than simply a slogan.

 

So popular is Wildflour, that it’s a regular stopping and fueling point for bicyclists pedaling from as far as Greenville.

 

“The main thing that makes us different than all the other breads out there,” said owner Debi Thomas, “is that we stone grind our own grains.”

 

Why perform the extra work, when flour is readily available?

 

“The reason is that a kernel of (unground) wheat will store forever,” Thomas emphasized. “Once you open that kernel of wheat, it breaks down, and can be rancid within twenty-four hours.”

 

Large commercial baking operations, said Thomas, sift out the wheat germ, with resultant loss of nutrition. She also noted that keeping the kernel whole and original makes the resulting bread easier for some people to digest.

 

Thomas, a native of Indiana where she attended Indiana University, left the area when urban sprawl infringed on what had been a quiet area. She and her husband traveled, eventually deciding to settle in Saluda around the mid-1970s.

 

Thomas, along with Saluda resident Betsy Burdett, began Wildflour 34 years ago. Burdett was familiar with some folks at Mother Earth News, an organic gardening publication. When Mother Earth News opened an eco-pavilion in the area, it was without a food source, except for vending trucks.

 

Burdett, who decided that this would be a good summer project, and Thomas, who was then teaching school, cooked lunches, and delivered them to the eco village.

 

“We did a couple of basic breads,” Thomas added.

 

The young enterprise got a boost when Ken and Ann Hough purchased what had been the Railroad House, and turned it into the Orchard Inn (now under more recent ownership). The Houghs said they would purchase bread if it were made at the inn.

 

“We also started contacting other places, ”Thomas said.

 

How did the business get its name? “We had struggled with the name,” Thomas said, but while out walking in search of wild flowers, she turned that thought into the name. “It just popped into my head,” she said.

 

Wildflour, part of a co-operative formed for the purpose, obtains grain from local farmers. That includes hard wheat for breads, and soft wheat for pastries.

 

“It’s the greatest arrangement,” Thomas smiled. Having no middleman gives the buyers better control over prices, with farmers receiving better prices.

 

Further, “our customers get a much-superior product,” she added.

 

Though the search took two years, Wildflour has found, and utilizes, a source for a non-GMO sunflower oil.

 

Wildflour’s bread selection has grown to some 20 varieties, including 100 percent whole wheat, sunflower whole wheat, light whole wheat, cracked wheat, boogie bread, Swedish rye, oatmeal raisin, Black Russian, and 100 percent spelt (an ancient grain, though not gluten-free).

 

Baguettes include Italian, French and sourdough.

 

Not all breads are available at a given time. Individuals are encouraged to phone ahead and order specific breads. While Wildflour has supplied many of its breads to local retailers, Thomas said that is changing. Many such arrangements are being discontinued, to leave more bread for bakery patrons. Wildflour breads will continue to be available at some local inns and restaurants.

 

Wildflour’s sourdough culture even has a name— Jezebel, birthed some 22 years ago.

 

The bakery also offers muffins, scones, sticky buns, cinnamon rolls, cookies, granola bars and other treats.

 

Breakfasts are served all day. Wildflour also offers soups, salads, sandwiches, vegetarian and gluten-free bean bowls with fresh, locally-grown vegetables.

 

Organic and other certified chemical-free ingredients are part of many of the bakery’s offerings.

 

Also available is Leopard Forest coffee, sustainably and forest-grown, and fair-trade.

 

Two years ago, Wildflour began pizza night on Friday evenings from 5-8 p.m. Its success has spurred the addition the same on Wednesday evenings. Gluten-free crusts are available. Crusts are hand-made, and covered with house-made sauce. The authentic Italian-style pizza, resulting from a tour of Italy by Thomas and her daughter Molly,  features fresh, local ingredients.

 

Being located next door to Meanwhile Back in Saluda, where fine wines and craft beers are available, makes it easy for many pizza night patrons at Wildflour to bring their beverage of choice.

 

Wildflour’s walls are decorated by paintings by local artists. Those offerings are also for sale. The bakery also features a book exchange where you can take a book and/or leave a book.

 

Beginning the first week of October, Wildflour will be open from 8 a.m. – 3 p.m. every day but Tuesdays. Sunday hours will be 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., with brunch served from 10 a.m. In addition, pizza nights will be Wednesdays and Fridays from 5-8 p.m.

 

“We’re excited,” Thomas said of the expansion. “It’s taken us a while to watch the numbers, and make that decision.”

 

On Oct. 10, from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m., Wildflour will turn over the parking area to artists. “Hogtown Squealers,” a Brevard-based musical group, has performed here for several years, and will do so again.

 

“They have as much fun as anybody,” Thomas said.

 

Wildflour is located at 173 East Main Street, Saluda, across Main Street from, and just east of, the Post Office. Call 828-749-3356 to reach Debi Thomas.

 

As do many others in the area, Thomas talks of the “interconnectedness” she sees binding people together here.

 

“It’s a community where we truly get our strength from each other. I’ve been so lucky that I stumbled into something that I love so much,” Thomas added. “I’m always saying, ‘Love what you do, and do what you love.’”