Alchemy Bread is a woman owned cottage bakery operating in downtown Modesto, California since 2014.

Freshly milled flours from locally grown grain. Wild yeast sourdough culture. Handcrafted slow fermented artisan bread. Made with a bit of magic in a permitted home bakery.

Curious? Visit the SHOP page to purchase bread locally or the FAQ page to learn more.

Keep in touch! Sign up for the e-mail newsletter for the best way to stay updated on subscriptions, classes, events, and bake sales or follow on instagram for a visual diary of items in the bakery at the bottom of this page.

Alchemy bread is owned and operated by Bonnie Ohara

Bonnie is a self taught baker who has been perfecting her craft since 2010.
With a background in literature and art, she comes to baking with a visual style and runs Alchemy Bread with a heart for a good story.

When she's not baking bread, you can find her wandering the dry creek trail, meandering the farmers market, thumbing through cookbooks and picture books at the local library, or cooking dinner with her three kids and an assortment of fantastic friends.

Bonnie talks about how Alchemy Bread got started in this 2016 Modesto Bee article: Sweet on Sourdough: Self-taught baker finds success

Bonnie wrote an article for the Bread Baker’s Guild Magazine on building community with bread in 2017: Friendship Bake: Building Community

Bonnie was interviewed on The Sourdough Podcast in 2018: Bonnie Ohara of Alchemy Bread

Bonnie’s first book Bread Baking for Beginners was published in 2018 and became an Amazon bestseller: Bread Baking for Beginners

Modesto Bee covered the success of Bonnie’s first book in 2018: Modesto baker’s cookbook finds famous fan…

Bonnie wrote an article on baking with kids for Parents Magazine in August 2019: Loaves with Little Ones

Bonnie’s online video course taught thousands of brand new bread bakers how to make their first loaf during the pandemic in 2020: Bread Baking Techniques for Beginners Online Course

Bonnie’s second book Let's Bake Bread!: A Family Cookbook to Foster Learning, Curiosity, and Skill Building in Your Kids published with Artisan Books in 2023: Let’s Bake Bread!