OSU Food Innovation Center: Grains & Baking Science Workshop

Date: Wednesday May 14 2025 and Thursday May 15 2025

Time: May 14th between 8AM - 5PM & May 15th between 9AM - 4PM

Location: Food Innovation Center & Wheat Marketing Center

Cost: $550 for Early Bird

Enrollment Cap: 15 people

Are you curious about baking with more whole grain flours and exploring other types of grains beyond bread wheat? How about baking using fresh milled whole grain flours? Do you want a better understanding of how flour type and grain influences dough characteristics and final quality?

Join food scientists at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center and the Wheat Marketing Center for the 2nd annual Grains and Baking Science Workshop designed for enthusiastic hobbyists, home bakers, and professionals seeking a deeper scientific understanding of grains, flour, and baking. The baking and cooking portion of the workshop will be held at Oregon State University’s Food Innovation Center (FIC) located in Portland's Pearl District over the course of two days. The lecture components will take place at the FIC and right across the street at the Wheat Marketing Center (WMC) alongside a tour to get an inside look into the role the WMC plays in the commercial baking industry. 

The bulk of the course will be dedicated to hands-on baking using various types of grains and flour to evaluate their impact on hydration, appearance, texture, and flavor. We will cover baking science & cereal chemistry 101 for bakers, explore how different flours behave within the same recipe, explore different types of preferments, and practice baking by feel coupled with formulating with baker’s percentages.

Together we will be doing side-by-side comparative baking & tasting artisan sourdough bread, focaccia, 100% whole grain sandwich bread, and pizza. We will conclude the first day of the workshop with a pizza dinner that we prepare together as a group. 

While this class has no prerequisites and is friendly to beginners, some prior baking experience and knowledge is recommended. First and foremost, this is a flour and grain focused baking class that highlights a variety of grains and flour types popular among artisan bakers. Baking fundamentals like baker’s math, desired dough temperature calculations, handling dough, shaping, and scoring will be covered in this workshop, but it is not the core focus of the class.

We'll be using a variety of flours sourced from mills such as Cairnsprings, Camas Country Mill, Central Milling, and more. We'll also be using a variety of baking equipment such as a Rofco oven for baking, Ooni oven for neopolitan-style pizza, and Mockmill for milling whole grains.

About the Instructors:

Jordyn Bunting - OSU Food Innovation Center

Jordyn Bunting is a Faculty Research Assistant at the Oregon State University Food Innovation Center (FIC). His background was in cooking prior to pursuing food science and has since worked in wine chemistry, fermentation science, and cereal chemistry laboratories. Jordyn has a M.S. in Food Science and Technology from Oregon State University where he worked on evaluating barley breeding lines for culinary and baking applications in Cereal Chemist & Baker Dr. Andrew Ross’s Lab. It was during his time in graduate school where Jordyn developed a passion for artisan baking and utilizing local whole grains. Jordyn now works on the Product and Process Development Team at the FIC as a food scientist where he is actively engaged with food product development for industry across many product categories, educational workshop development, and research support.

Jayne Bock, PhD - Wheat Marketing Center

Jayne Bock has been the Technical Director at the Wheat Marketing Center since 2018 and is an industry expert in flour and dough quality testing. Previously, she was an adjunct professor at the University of Guelph and held leadership roles at C.W. Brabender Instruments and Chopin Technologies. Jayne has published extensively on wheat and flour quality, dough rheology, gluten structure, and whole grain products, collaborating with wheat breeders, agronomists, millers, and food processors to address market challenges. She holds a B.S. and M.S. from Kansas State University and a Ph.D. in Food Science from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

About the Venues:

OSU Food Innovation Center

The Oregon State University Food Innovation Center (FIC) is a leader in food ingredient research, culinary innovation, and product development, offering >25 years of experience in supporting the food industry across technical, creative, and educational initiatives. FIC has worked on many high-visibility projects and collaborated with a diverse range of food companies, agricultural producers, food processors, commodity commissions, and industry associations to develop food products, characterize ingredients and their applications for new markets, build scientific capacity, lead international culinary missions, produce educational materials and workshops, enhance market competitiveness, and establish international presence for its clients.

Wheat Marketing Center

The Wheat Marketing Center (WMC), located in Portland, Oregon, connects wheat growers, millers, manufacturers, and consumers. It offers technical training, grower workshops, innovative research, product development, and crop quality testing. The WMC demonstrates how U.S. wheat meets evolving consumer demands with nutritious, cost-competitive products like Asian noodles, flatbreads, and baked goods. With pilot-scale production lines, advanced testing equipment, and expert technical support, WMC promotes U.S. wheat quality and functionality globally to benefit wheat commissions, industry stakeholders, and food manufacturers.

Any questions about the workshop?

They can be emailed to FIC.PD@oregonstate.edu