Noosa Sourdough Co - An interview with Liz Halley

We know small business is hard. Is there an inception story to your brand? What got you started or gave you the push to start your own enterprise?

I live on the beautiful Sunshine Coast of Queensland, with my husband Mike and son William. When Covid 19 hit the world, things changed!

Forced to stay home saw new challenges as I am not one to sit still for very long. I had started making Traditional Sourdough Bread for my family about 12 months prior and had shared it with my friends.

People started asking if they could buy my bread and I was amazed. So, I decided to fill a basket with hot bread and walk around my street and meet my neighbours who were also now working from home.

Everyone loved it and wanted a regular delivery, then they shared it with their friends and so one.

I was getting messages on how people could get their own starter and learn the craft of making sourdough for themselves so I created a recipe sheet, using my tried and tested method and made it as simple as I could.

Everyone had success and messages were coming from afar.  I couldn’t send fresh starter in the mail due to not being able to control temperature, breakage or how long Australia Post would take to get it to the destination.

I decided if I dried it and turned it into a powder, none of these confronting elements would harm it.

So, the testing began……over and over again.  The recipe I came up with was working beautifully so I asked fellow baking friends to test it for me, follow my method and see what results they could get, and thankfully, they all had success too.

Who or what do you draw inspiration from? 

I grew up on a property in Tasmania and my Grandma lived next door to us. She was a major influence in my love of food and taught me a lot. I have always loved cooking from a very early age .   I am now very inspired by all the people that use my Sourdough Starter Kit and see the wonderful Sourdough that they are producing on a daily basis.

Other than yourself of course, who is your favourite artisan producer here in Australia? How come?

I love the deliciousness that is created by Rosie from @biscotto … locally made at Eumundi, they taste just like my Grandma used to make… you really can taste the homemade love.  We really are spoilt for choice on the sunshine coast, it’s a great place to live.

We know Australia is the best place on earth, but what makes it so special to you? What’s your favourite thing about Australia? 

I love living in Australia, especially Queensland, as the weather is perfect. I love to get up early and watch the sun rise and  have an early morning swim in the ocean. Its such a free country and I love that there are many multicultural influences, especially in the foodie scene.

We are in the business of gifting giving here at Mumbleberry? Why do you think your product makes such a beautiful gift?

I love introducing people to my Sourdough Starter Kits, and showing them that it is very easy to create beautiful Traditional Sourdough at home…. Once they taste it, they can’t wait to try it for themselves.  I also love giving a loaf of Sourdough to a friend  for a “love day” gift. My mum taught me it’s better to give than receive. Love Day gifts mean you gift, just because you care.
 

You can try Liz's incredible Sourdough Starter Kit here