Ask any person of any age of any culture about bread and one unanimous thought will emerge: bread is delicious, desirable, and almost has a medicinal quality. The thing about bread–loaves, rolls, muffins, and the like–is that everyone eats it. A fresh-baked baguette is integral to a French person’s way of life daily. Bread is used in Indian and Ethiopian cultures as an edible, tasty utensil. In most restaurants across the States, bread is served as catalyst to the appetite and upcoming meal. How do we eat bread here in Annapolis? Great Harvest Bread Co. is the answer and source. We caught up with one of the owners, Pam Storm, to learn about Great Harvest, about how they serve the Annapolis area, about an invasion of “pirates” with a hankering for carbs, and what baked goods should be on your grocery list this fall.
– Great Harvest Bread Co. serves a big population from the store on Ridgely Avenue. How did you get started?
“Great Harvest Bread Co. is a freedom franchise with headquarters in Dillon, MT,” Pam Storm explains, with “approximately 200 in the United States. Great Harvest never targets an area in which to grow; they wait for a passionate owner/operator to come along and show an interest and then the process begins. We love the concept of a freedom franchise; we have the support of the amazing folks in Dillon, but we can sell whatever works for us here in Annapolis.”
Before opening Great Harvest in Annapolis, Pam and her husband/co-owner Thomas, owned Storm Brothers Ice Cream Factory right on Dock Street in Annapolis. The Storms (hence the name of the ice cream company) maintained long lines of ice cream hopefuls for over 25 years.
– You went from producing one decadent indulgence to the next! What do you hope Great Harvest will do for the community?
“Our philosophy that underlies each day and every decision is one of being loose and having fun, giving generously to others, creating a strong and exciting bakery, baking phenomenal bread, and running fast to serve customers. As a freedom franchise, Thomas and I are able to put those philosophies in practice however we see fit.”
This fun and bread-loving couple also does good for the Annapolis community. “We donate approximately 120 loaves a week to Food Link and to Homeless Shelters in the area. We also do a fundraiser each Christmas,” Storm explains.
“The first couple years we were a Toys for Tots collection site. For each toy that a customer would donate, the customer would receive a free loaf of Honey Whole Wheat or Old Fashioned White Bread. This past Christmas, we raised money for the Alzheimer’s Association,
“Throughout the year, we donate baskets to various local fund raisers–schools, churches, 10Ks, etc. We pride ourselves in always running fast to serve customers, but once we’ve ‘gotcha,’ we take our time with each customer,” she concludes.
– You do good for the community by giving back and giving great bread. What are some of the most popular items at Great Harvest?
“Our Dakota Bread (on right) is one of our most popular whole grain breads with sunflower, sesame, millet and pumpkin seeds. We make it every day. Annapolis has a sweet tooth, though, and our Challah based breads such as Sinful Cinnamon, Pecan Swirl and Vanilla Almond Swirl typically sell out every day,” Storm says. 
Aside from breads, Storm explains the Cappaccino Muffin is a favorite. It’s a coffee muffin with three rich elements: cream cheese, chocolate chips, and coffee frosting.
“On the other end of the spectrum, our moist Lowfat Oatbran Fruit Muffin made with a different fruit each day is always a crowd pleaser,” she says.
Besides these favorites, Great Harvest makes plenty breads and muffins from which to choose. Storm provides, “Our bread selection contains eight every day options as well as an additional five to seven specialty breads depending on the day. We aim to have a great selection of whole grain, sweet and savory breads. We also make between eleven and fifteen different varieties of muffins, scones and sweet rolls each day as well as two different type of cookies along with a few bar options such as brownies, blondies, savannah and pumpkin bars.”
– Now all our stomaches are growling. Do you bake any Annapolis-inspired goods?
“We have several recipes that originated here at the bakery: Mimi’s Hot Buns, Cinnamon Coffeecakes, Vanilla Almond Swirl, Sinful Cinnamon, and Pecan Swirl. The beauty of a freedom franchise is that the 200 nationwide bakeries share recipes, but we are free to make, bake, create and sell what works in hometown Annapolis.”
We love the fact that Great Harvest treats make for easy tailgating food at Navy football games! For instance, on Saturday, Great Harvest prepared a “Blue & Gold Bread” in honor of Navy’s game against Delaware.
– Annapolis loves tasting the products of your hard labor in the bakery. Tell us what a typical day in Great Harvest look like.
“My husband, Thomas, as well as another baker, go in at 2:30 a.m. six days a week to start making and scooping over 35 dozen muffins and scones as well as over 15 dozen cookies. Our next staff comes on at 4:30 a.m. […] to start the bread making process. Our first order of the day needs to be boxed and ready to leave the bakery by 6 a.m.,” Storm tells us. Thirty minutes later, the bakery opens to receive customers.
– Suddenly, the typical 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. job looks luxurious! How long does it take to produce a loaf of bread?
“Anything worth waiting for, takes time. A loaf of homemade bread is no different,” she concedes. “A loaf of bread takes between four and five hours from start to finish. We never make any less than twelve loaves of each type of bread. As I mentioned, we start our bread at 4:30 a.m. mixing the salt, yeast and honey. We then let that proof and then we made more delicious ingredients, mix them together and let the dough rest. Our first dough hits the table around 6:45 a.m.–usually it is Challah. Then we shape the dough into loaves, rolls, sweet breads, etc. We then let the shaped bread rise. When it is perfect, we place it in the oven. Each bread has a perfect internal temperature that needs to be reached in order for it to be done to perfection.”
On top of this lengthy process, Great Harvest adds to the works that needs to be done by milling their own wheat. Storm explains, “We get our wheat berries from the Golden Triangle in Montana, and then we mill/grind the wheat every day onsite at the bakery to ensure the freshest products.”
The signature Honey Whole Wheat Bread (showed below) reaps the benefits of this milling process, showing off with only five ingredients: freshly milled whole grain wheat, honey, salt, yeast, and water.
Now that you know Great Harvest (hopefully you already knew their impossibly yummy products), you should know what cool events are coming up on their calendar. Most notably, the celebration, “International Talk Like a Pirate Day” is coming to Great Harvest this Thursday, September 19. This day-long event only asks you to dress and talk like a pirate for reward of a free cookie. “We have our pirate garb ready!” Storm exclaims. Special treats like “Bluebeard Muffins,” “Blackbeard’s Sword,” and “Captain Arg-di-choke Bread” are on the menu for the day. You can read more about the good available this month and the Pirate Day menu on Great Harvest’s newsletter. More events and daily specials can be found on Great Harvest Annapolis’s site.
As baking includes lots of measurements and exact numbers, we thought we would provide Great Harvest by the number.
Weekly, Great Harvest goes through:
White flour – 1200 lbs.
Whole Grain Freshly Milled Wheat Flour – 600 lbs.
Honey – 240 lbs.
Butter – 200 lbs.
Chocolate Chips – 100 lbs.
Fresh Yeast – 60 lbs
Daily, Thomas scoops:
Muffins – 20 dozen
Scones 12 dozen
Chocolate Chip Cookies – 15 dozen
The Storms have been in Annapolis for:
Nearly 40 years
Storm family staff at Great Harvest includes:
1 Storm daughter, as Chief Baker
1 Storm daughter, as Director of Marketing
2 Storm parents, as owners and bakers
2 Storm sons (before they pursued careers in Navy and retail)
Contact numbers and hours for Great Harvest:
208 Ridgely Avenue
(410) 268-4662
Monday-Friday, 6:30 a.m.-6 p.m. ; Saturday 6:30 a.m.-5 p.m.
So, what’s the recipe for a successful, local bakery? Early mornings, fresh ingredients, family help, and passion for carbs and the community. Take time to enjoy the fruits of the Storms’ labor. We guarantee it will be delicious.
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