ICE alum Tim Healea first came to NYC in pursuit of a dynamic career in journalism and publishing. Yet his love of books took his career in a completely different direction when he encountered Chef Nancy Silverton’s Breads from La Brea Bakery. Today, Tim is among the country’s most celebrated bakers, with numerous honors under his belt—including a spot among Food & Wine’s “35 Tastemakers Under the Age of 35” and a medal from the Coupe du Monde de la Boulangerie. We caught up with Tim to hear more about his company, Little T Baker, and his dynamic 17-year career in the emerging field of bread baking.
How would you describe your "culinary voice"?
Primarily, my culinary voice is in collaboration with and in support of the six bakers at Little T. In my professional experience, teams work better together when each member feels like he or she is contributing. So most of the new ideas and products come directly from the front-line production bakers. Oftentimes, I act more as an editor, refining a concept or providing feedback. The collaborative process makes the bakery—which sometimes resembles a bread laboratory, with buckets of yeasts, malts, starters and soakers bubbling away—a more exciting place to work and to visit. In general, we take basic ideas of fermentation and experiment with incorporating various grains and liquids, trying to push breads further and develop new flavor profiles. Some of our latest breads have been made with earl grey tea, candy cap mushrooms, rhubarb syrup, red popcorn and potato chips (not all at once!). It’s fun for the bakers, and it keeps the bakery’s offerings fresh for our regular customers.