Little Seal Sourdough

08/25/2026

If I were trying to learn sourdough today, I think it would feel almost impossible. I felt overwhelmed by conflicting information six or seven years ago, and there is exponentially more of it now. For every “rule” you find, you can find six people telling you not to do it.

Finishing the framework for Little Seal School is at the top of my priority list during this break. I’m building the sourdough school I wish I had when I was learning. Here’s what will make it different:

• A school, not a three hour class.

• One thing I wished I had while learning was access to someone who knew what they were doing. My students will. When you’re wondering “Why does this look like this?” or “What do I do next?” you’ll be able to ask me.

• About four weeks dedicated just to building and understanding your starter.

• No “one right way.” I’ll teach you what works for me and help you find what works for you through careful data collection and observation.

• Once your starter is healthy, we’ll move to bread with online instruction and hands on time in a commercial kitchen.

Interested? There’s a link below to sign up for updates and tell me what you’re interested in:

https://littlesealsourdough.com/little-seal-school/

08/17/2026

Last week, we sent an anonymous survey to the 300+ people subscribed to our texts, and 43 of you responded.

First, THANK YOU. 43 out of 43 rated their experience with Little Seal as outstanding, and 43 out of 43 said they would recommend us. Some of your comments genuinely got me in the feels.

A few things we heard:

• Bread Club: We’re closing signups for now. The Saturday morning drop isn’t a good fit for everyone, and Bread Club gives those customers another way to reliably get bread. But I never want anyone to feel like they need to join just to have a chance at getting bread.

• Availability: You also asked for more pickup and delivery options. I wish we could do more right now, but that would mean more time away from Mason. When we can do more, we will.

• Slicing: We’ve been looking at slicers. We’d likely have to choose between thinner sandwich loaf slices or thicker batard slices. We’re trying to figure it out.

• Inclusion loaves: They’re coming.

• ROLLS: WE HEARD YOU! 😂

One response really stuck with me. Someone mentioned having one loaf last a long time, and worrying about being able to get one when she needs it. If you’re reading this, please reach out to me. We’ll figure something out.

We read every suggestion and will do our best with the ones we can.

Thank you again. It really means a lot.

08/14/2026

This was the biggest week for Little Seal yet.

186 pounds of sourdough baked
54 pounds of crackers baked
46 deliveries
117 miles

This week will also be the last week for crackers for a while, and our last bread bake until the second week of September.

We’re taking a week off for my wife’s birthday and another to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. If you see my wife, give her a big hug. Five years with me is a really long time. LOL🤣

Orders open tomorrow morning at 9 AM at www.littlesealsourdough.com.

08/09/2026

We’re practicing what we preach over here at the Ronan household. This is actually one from the same batch of loaves that went out for Friday’s deliveries.

Eat it exactly as you get it, or if you like your crust a little darker and crispier, make it your own.

Give your loaf a quick run under the faucet, toss it in the oven at 350°, and let it go until the crust is exactly where you like it.

That’s actually why we intentionally bake our loaves a little lighter. Everybody likes their crust a little different, so we leave the last few minutes up to you.

Fresh baked crust, right back to life.

08/09/2026

We decided to bring the crackers back ninja style.
Last year we did a small test run of our sourdough crackers, and ever since then, they’ve been one of the things people ask us about the most.
Bread Club got first dibs, then we quietly added the remaining bags to the website. The people signed up for notifications through our website got a nice little surprise!

If you want to catch things like this before we announce them on social media, make sure you’re signed up for notifications through our website. You never know what might quietly show up next.

We are completely sold out of both bread and crackers.
As always, THANK YOU. We’re incredibly grateful for the support this community continues to show us.

08/05/2026

One of our newly approved recipes called for much higher hydration, so I’ve been working toward it gradually.

Today I took a bigger leap than usual, and I noticed it right away - the dough felt strange enough that I worried I’d made a mistake.

I trusted the process. Strong gluten development was what mattered, and as the dough came together, my confidence came back.

Higher hydration tests your shaping. I could get away with more in a Dutch oven, but baking directly on the deck of my MyForno is a lot less forgiving - I had to step up my shaping game, which made me nervous.

That’s part of the fun. Pushing outside my comfort zone keeps baking interesting, and sometimes that means changing the recipe, changing the process, and taking a little risk. All for a tasty and satisfying payoff.

08/03/2026

Could you take a moment to leave Little Seal a Google review?

When we left Hotplate and moved to our own website, one thing we could not bring with us was almost 100 five star reviews from our customers.

Those reviews represented so many kind words, repeat orders, and support for our little bakery. Now we’re hoping to rebuild that collection on Google.

If you have ordered from Little Seal and enjoyed your bread or your experience with us, we would be incredibly grateful if you shared it. Every review helps new customers feel confident giving us a try and makes a real difference for our small business.

Leave a review here:

https://maps.app.goo.gl/wcQCqQcMd3hmxZVa9?g_st=ic

Thank you!

36 Hastings Rd, Trenton, NJ 08620

08/02/2026

**SOLVED!**Answer in comments**
😁🍞 🦭 We recently tucked a little secret message somewhere on our page.

The first person to find it and DM us what it says, along with exactly where they found it, gets a little surprise from Little Seal 🍞 🦭

08/01/2026

🍞GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS🍞

The BAD NEWS is we’re canceling this week’s drop. We’ll only be baking for Bread Club members this week, so orders will not be opening at 9:00 AM.

The GOOD NEWS is our new specialty pans have arrived, which means I finally get to start experimenting with some of the approved recipes we’ve been waiting to make.

Cottage bakery, big ideas.
Recipes are ready to leave the notebook.
A little organic flour and a lot of curiosity.
Crunch is the assignment.
Keeping everything small batch, as always.
Every test gets us a little closer.
Real ingredients, no shortcuts.
Something new is coming to Little Seal.

LET THE FUN BEGIN.

07/31/2026

Today could have easily been one of those days where all I talked about was how stressful it was.

It’s the first week of Bread Club, I’m juggling two new systems, and more than once today I found myself wondering why I always seem to put so much on my own plate.

But that’s not what I’ll remember about today.

Tonight, while I was wrapping bread, Mason came into the bakery and asked if he could help. I gave him the job of taking each wrapped loaf over to the packing area.

For the next 45 minutes, he ran back and forth, one loaf at a time, with a smile on his face.

And somewhere along the way, it hit me that this was legitimately my dream.

Ever since I was a kid, I wanted to build a family business. I wanted to make something with my own hands, provide it to my community, and somehow make a living doing it.
I never knew exactly what that thing would be. Somehow, I found it in sourdough…which still makes me giggle when I think about it.

Every time someone places an order, you’re not just buying bread. You’re supporting the dream I’ve had for most of my life and helping me build something my family can be part of.

So if you’re getting bread tomorrow, just know a little bit of Mason’s hard work went into getting your order ready.

Now it’s time to get a little sleep, deliveries start in a few hours. ✌🏻