3 July 2023

This is the weekly newsletter from Loaf in Stirchley, keeping you abreast of our bakery and cookery school, and other news we think you might be interested in.

This week we're announcing the charity we're raising money for from now to the end of 2023: Birmingham LGBT.

Scroll down for this week’s lunch menu and cookery school spaces.

🍞 Pre-order your bread and pastries 🥐

We’ll have plenty on the shelves all week, with lunches served from noon on weekdays.

Our bakery opening hours are:
Tue - Fri: 12 - 6
Saturday: 8 - 1

Birmingham LGBT is our charity for the rest of 2023

We're delighted to announce that Loaf is fundraising for Birmingham LGBT from July through to the end of the year.

This is an important cause for us, both as individuals and as a co-operative, and when looking for an organisation to support we were drawn to the work Birmingham LGBT does in counselling and mental health.

This is apparently a hard area to fundraise for from the usual sources so individual donations and sponsorships are key to providing services. Here's James, their development manager:

As Birmingham’s leading charity advocating for and supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans communities in Birmingham and the West Midlands, we offer a range of services focused on improving the health and wellbeing of individuals, including:
- sexual health promotion services
- older people’s services
- a domestic violence service
- volunteering
- befriending and peer mentoring
- arts and cultural programmes
- counselling and wellbeing support

A small £12 donation provides a safe meeting space for an hour for an LGBTQ+ community group to socialise, share ideas and have fun without fear of discrimination. We have over 20 groups who meet regularly at the centre, ranging from film clubs to support groups.

Just £25 provides a one-hour session with a counsellor or a domestic violence advocate, helping LGBTQ+ people to live an authentic life free from abuse and self-doubt.

And £120 pays for a three-hour trans youth group, fostering a fun, welcoming and inclusive environment for trans young people. Our support makes it possible for them to make new friends who share their experiences, and explore their identity in a safe space. A survey of the members of the group showed 100% had made new friends as a result, almost 90% said it had boosted their confidence and almost 75% said it had helped improve their self-esteem.

You can make a donation online with your order or in store at the counter.

As well as raising money we hope to work with Birmingham LGBT to raise awareness of their work through this newsletter and our shop, so watch for more!

Lunches this week

Tuesday

• Curry: Tarka daal with sourdough (Ve)

Wednesday

• Focaccia Sandwich: Pickled beetroot, hummus, toasted hazelnuts, crispy kale, rocket salad (Ve) Optional Feta (V)

Thursday

• Salad Box: Roasted garlic hummus, roast carrots, sweet potato, toasted seeds, dressed salad and olives, with a chunk of focaccia (Ve)

Friday

• Curry: New potato, kale and butterbean with sourdough (Ve)
• Salt beef on challah

Tue – Fri

• Sourdough pizza: Olive, chilli, artichoke, lemon, pepper, rocket and mozzarella (V)

Wed – Fri

• Ham and cheese croissant
• Pine nut pesto and cheese croissant (V)

Tue – Sat:

• Sausage rolls
• Vegetable rolls (V)

Lunches are made fresh weekdays for 12 noon.

Our menu for the week — with ingredients and allergens — is on the website.

Cookery school classes

The following classes have spaces as of this newsletter being posted.

Loaf’s all-day classes:

• Bread — Back to Basics: returns in the autumn
• Simply Sourdough: Sat 22 July
• Sweet Breads and Viennoiserie: Sat 15 July
• Baking with Heritage Grains: Sat 8 July
• Wholegrain Baking with Tom Baker: returns in the autumn

Loaf’s evening classes:

• Handmade Pasta: returns in the autumn

Haseen’s evening classes:

• Dosa: Wed 12 July
• Thaali: Wed 26 July

Lap’s all-day classes:

• Sausage & Charcuterie: returns in the autumn
• Seafood Masterclass: returns in the autumn

Lap’s evening classes:

• Thai Cooking: returns in the autumn
• Sushi: returns in the autumn
• Ramen: returns in the autumn
• Dumplings: returns in the autumn
• Macarons: Tue 4 July
• Knife Skills: returns in the autumn

The next tranche of dates will be released in the summer. You can sign up to alert lists for specific classes here.

Thanks for all your continued support. See you next week!

Team Loaf: Nancy, Martha, Neil, Sarah, Dave, Dorit, Ian, Molly, Rach & Pete

Website: loaf.coop
Socials: Instagram / Mastodon / Twitter / Facebook