July 30th 2024.
When Kris Otisons was training to become a pastry chef at Harvey Nichols in London, he had a deep passion for cooking and baking. In fact, he was so dedicated to honing his skills that he would spend his free weekends browsing through second-hand shops in search of unique cookbooks.
Fast forward a few years to 2013, and Kris had moved to Glasgow to open his own bakery, My Home Bakery. And now, there are three locations spread throughout the city. Originally from Latvia, Kris takes great pride in his work and has made it his mission to provide delicious baked goods to the community.
To make a positive impact, Kris also employs 15 people and works closely with Freedom Bakery to support their ex-offenders social enterprise programme. One of the most popular items at My Home Bakery is their vegan mango and passion fruit cake, along with their gluten-free orange cake, strawberry Bakewells, and savory pork and black pudding sausage rolls.
However, when the pandemic hit, things became quite challenging for Kris and his business. Like many others, he is still feeling the effects of the ripple caused by the global crisis. Before Covid, My Home Bakery's Hyndland location in the West End offered a small seating area for customers to enjoy their treats. Unfortunately, due to safety concerns, Kris has not been able to reopen the space and has been struggling to find a new purpose for it.
"Our former seating area has been sitting unused since lockdown," Kris explains. "The team and I have been brainstorming ideas on how we can transform the space into something that would be of great use to our local community." After much consideration, they came up with the idea of a second-hand cookbook shop, which Kris hopes will inspire people to come together and cook for their loved ones.
The shop is home to 600 books, all priced at a reasonable £4.99, making it the first of its kind in the UK. Each book has been generously donated or saved from ending up in a landfill by Kris and his team at My Home Bakery. "When I was training to become a pastry chef in London, I spent my weekends scouring second-hand shops for various cookbooks," Kris shares. "I was constantly seeking to learn new techniques and discover new recipes to share with my friends and family."
Whether it's a treasured recipe from his oma, or trying out a new dish from his all-time favorite chef, Mary Berry, Kris knows the joy and satisfaction that comes from spending time in the kitchen. "No matter the outcome of the dish, the experience of cooking is always worth it," he says. "We are excited to hear about the delicious experiments that our customers will embark on while trying out recipes from these pre-loved cookbooks."
If you're interested in reading more reviews or keeping up with the latest issue of Scottish Field, be sure to subscribe today. My Home Bakery and their new second-hand cookbook shop are looking forward to welcoming you and sharing their love for cooking and baking with the community.
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