Kathryn Phelan

I am Kathryn Phelan, a baker and artist with a love of the natural world, craftsmanship and community collaboration.  My training began as a pastry chef in Paris, France (Le Cordon Bleu, The Rose Bakery, Jean-Charles Rochoux) before discovering a deep love of sourdough bread, cocktails and butchery while working in NYC (Gramercy Tavern, Marlow & Daughters, The Finch, Del Posto, Daniel, The Dead Rabbit, Goldenrod - Delhi, NY). From 2025-2026 I baked sourdough in a wood-fired oven at Elmore Mountain Bread and crafted commercial stone mills at New American Stone Mills in northern Vermont.

As a freelance consultant, I guide restaurants in developing sourdough bread programs, aiding with timing logistics and adjustments required to work with stone milled flours, alongside recipe testing, editing and writing. Clients include Rancho Santana Resort (Nicaragua), Bywater Bakeshop (Warren, RI) and Oliveto (Berkeley, CA). In addition, I research grains to further knowledge on best practices in working with different varieties of wheat, grains and seeds.

I create commissioned illustrations, diagrams and manuals using watercolour handmade from carbonized sourdough bread. It is my goal to educate and translate complex processes through a visual landscape.

Two of my paintings are hanging in the Museum of Free Derry, Derry, North of Ireland as a contribution to their exhibit commemorating the 50th anniversary of Bloody Sunday.

My current home base is South Kortright, NY - a hamlet in the Western Catskill mountains.

For a peek at my CV, this is my LinkedIn profile.

For a social media photo stream,  this is me on Instagram.

Languages: French (C-1), Spanish (B-1), Irish Gaelic (A-2)