Chris: I have always been a connoisseur of high quality bread. Before I developed gluten intolerance I would often drive across town to get a baguette from one of the areas better bakeries. When I developed gluten intolerance it was pretty devastating.

Teresa: For me it was less about bread and more about pastries and cookies, especially those of the chocolate variety. Unsatisfied with what GF baked goods were available to us we embarked on a mission to bake our own. We soon realized that what we were making at home was better than what we could buy at the local natural food stores.

Chris: We even made a point of stopping at just about every natural food store on a 10,000 mile cross country trip in 2006 to see what gluten free baked goods were available. This trip confirmed that what we were doing was something special. In 2007 we started selling our baked goods at the Portland Farmers Market and the response from our customers was great.

Teresa: It is an unusual name, but I think it reflects everything that we are. “Cascadia” reflects the area of the country we live in, which is the Pacific Northwest. We feel really fortunate to live here.

Chris: The Willamette River Valley is so rich and bountiful in terms of the agriculture and food that is produced here. And I think Portland has come to distinguish itself as a town with both high culinary standards and an openness to different dietary needs. The “New” reflects our unique perspective in creating artisan gluten free baked goods. Some bread purist might scoff at a gluten free bakery using the term artisan to describe their product, however, many of the grains we use have been used for thousands of years-predating wheat in particularly flatbreads (see injera and bhakri) and even pasta. “Traditional” reflects how we have utilized many of the baking techniques used in artisan bakeries, using only gluten free ingredients.

Chris: Sure. One of the techniques that we utilize is the way we leaven many of our breads. We use a natural wild yeast starter that we’ve cultivated, the total time it takes to leaven our bread can be a multi day process. These techniques help to bring out the natural flavors of the grains we use.

Teresa: One important distinction is that our bakery is a dedicated gluten free bakery. Some bakeries have started offering gluten free items made on the same equipment as their wheat products. To many those who are severely gluten intolerant this is unthinkable given the chance of contamination. We want to be sure that our customers feel totally confident that what they are eating is in fact gluten free.

Chris: A way that we’ve distinguished ourselves from other gluten free bakeries is that we use many grains that are neglected in gluten free baking but produce really nice results and pack a nutritional punch. White rice flour and tapioca flour are important components of gluten free baking but there is so much more out there. Grains such as teff, quinoa and amaranth are remarkably nutritious and tasty. We’ve worked hard at incorporating many of these into our breads, pastries and cookies.

Teresa: We use ivory and dark teff, coconut flour, amaranth, quinoa, millet, white rice, brown rice, tapioca, potato, sweet rice, and hazelnut meal, to name a few. We don’t use any bean or soy flours, however. It’s also important to note that we source our flours and grains from suppliers who can confirm that what they sell is gluten free.

Chris: A question we often get is “Do you use any spelt?” the answer is a resounding NO. Spelt is in fact an ancient form of wheat and is NOT gluten free. Despite popular belief it isn’t even really wheat free. Wheat and spelt both fall under the scientific classification for genus, triticum, which includes various grains that are more or less close relatives.

Our bread is best if consumed within 24 hours of purchase. Store it in a paper bag on the counter-not the refrigerator.
If it won't be consumed within 24 hours, we recommend freezing the bread in a zip-top plastic bag as soon as possible. For the Cranberry Raisin Walnut Bread and the Seeded Bread, we suggest that you slice it before freezing.

The Cranberry Walnut Raisin Bread and Seeded Bread can be thawed out on the counter and eaten as-is or toasted.

For our baguettes, batards, sourdough and rolls you will get the best results if you thaw them on the counter for 30 minutes to an hour and then put them in a preheated oven at 350 degrees. The rolls will refresh in just a few minutes while the larger loaves of bread may take 7-10 minutes to get to that "fresh out of the oven" effect.

Pre-heat the oven to 400-425 degrees. Top the pizza crust with your favorite toppings and bake for about 7-10 minutes, or until the toppings are as you desire. We suggest using a pizza stone and broiling your pizza for the last minute or so.