From fresh bread to fine art

The new LaHave

STORY AND PHOTOGRAPHY BY DARCY RHYNO

Ah, the aroma of fresh bread. There’s nothing like it to put a smile on my face and evoke memories of warm kitchens, time with family and delicious comfort food. That’s especially true every time I walk into LaHave Bakery, a Nova Scotian landmark in a historic building located on the LaHave River along Route 331 on the South Shore.

On the outside, the storefront looks much like it did in 1896 when it was built as a ship outfitter and fish plant. The original LaHave Outfitting Co. sign still hangs over the entrance.

Today, the veranda welcomes visitors with a row of yellow Adirondack chairs and wooden barrels of purple petunias set before the floor-to-ceiling plate glass windows. The inside is just as inviting with its warm, wooden wainscoting, tin ceiling, antique glass cases, shelves stuffed with goodies and gifts, and of course the aroma of fresh loaves, baguettes, bagels, muffins, and lunch takeaways such as mini pizzas, paninis, wraps, and salads.

Photo: Darcy Rhyno

From 1985 when the LaHave Bakery moved in, it stood alone as the sole attraction in the neighbourhood near the mouth of the eponymous river. Here, a little cable ferry crosses the river, as it has since 1832, bringing visitors to the bakery. Today, the 24-hour ferry is free and crosses four times hourly, carrying as many as 15 automobiles each trip. The ferry cuts off a lot of kilometres for those approaching from the Riverport side but the main attraction is the fun of driving onto a boat and enjoying the view of LaHave from the water.

The LaHave River ferry.

Photo: Darcy Rhyno

Just 10 kilometres south of the bakery on Route 331, the LaHave Islands have always attracted visitors, as has Crescent Beach, which links the islands to the mainland at Rissers Beach Provincial Park, where there’s a small campground.

In the past few years, shops, artisan studios, and eateries have opened around the bakery. Today, in rooms behind the bakery and in adjacent historic homes, artisans keep busy in their studios. Together, they make for a varied and colourful little neighbourhood. In the bakery’s building, I find the delightful LaHave Craft Co-op and LaHave River Books. Within the craft shop, I browse handmade beeswax candles, watercolours of fishing boats at their moorings, and brightly painted wooden buoys, boats, birds, and mermaids. Inside the bookstore, I look through intriguing second-hand books and the latest bestsellers, including many by local authors.

Walking the street, I come upon a short fence hung with a display of ceramic art, including glazed plant pots painted with riots of orange and yellow nasturtiums. Double-handled vases that resemble ancient Greek amphorae are glazed a vibrant sky blue. This is the enticing teaser for the Westcote Bell Pottery and Artworks shop. There, in a former country store, ceramic artists Vaughan Smith and Jacqueline Cohen work their magic. With everything from funky teapots to stylish place settings, Westcote is a pottery lover’s paradise. My favourite pieces are the carvings on tile that resemble intricate woodcuts.

Westcote is just one of several artist outlets and studios within walking distance of LaHave Bakery. A world of whimsy awaits inside Child at Heart Handcrafted Wooden Models and Woodcraft. This is where Paul Kelley carves and paints brightly coloured miniature sailboats, antique cars, fire trucks, planes, and animals. So animated are these works (children love playing with them, but they’re more than toys), Kelley has created a world of the imagination by photographing his carvings. He used the photos to create a storybook called Wave Babies’ Sailing Adventure. There’s even a miniature version of the LaHave neighbourhood with a tiny version of his own shop.

At Heart to Hand Studio, artists Monica O’Halloran-Schut and Dave Schut offer fine art such as jewellery crafted from silver and copper, plus works in wood and textiles. You can’t miss the studio — it’s in a renovated historic building painted a warm orange with bright yellow trim.

Half a kilometre the other way on Route 331 at the Square Peg Gallery, I marvel at Merydie Fjarlie’s decidedly original and contemporary jewellery, which she makes using an ancient gold-thread technique. Among her fantastical embroidered sculptures are teapots and coffeepots frozen in time, pouring forever into cups.

Back at LaHave Bakery, the original LaHave attraction and the community cornerstone, I grab a baguette and a loaf of seed bread to take home. For lunch, I choose the daily panini. Today, it’s My Big Fat Greek Panini, with spinach, tomato, red onion, black olives, and feta. My order is rung up on a huge, century-old, and elegant brass cash register.

Outside, I walk to the end of the pier that reaches out into the river. There, I settle into one of the bakery’s yellow Adirondack chairs. I munch my panini and watch the LaHave cable ferry pull in with another dozen cars, delivering more visitors who are about to fall, as I have, for the new LaHave.

Westcote Bell Gallery entrance, LaHave.

Photo: Darcy Rhyno

Molly Bars

Gael Watson of the LaHave Bakery supplied this recipe and says, “It’s very popular in our sweets case. I eat it when I need a good charge of energy around 3 p.m. It’s a favourite of mine, as well as easy to make. It does not need to be baked.”

Wet ingredients

1 cup (250 mL) honey

1 cup (250 mL) peanut butter

1 cup (250 mL) brown sugar

¼ cup (75 mL) butter

Dry ingredients

3 cups (750 mL) Rice Krispies

1 cup (250 mL) Special K

1 ½ cups (375 mL) sunflower seeds

Topping

½ cup (125 mL) chocolate chips

Mix wet ingredients together in one bowl. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients. Then mix the contents of the two bowls together. Butter a 9” x 11” (23 cm x 28 cm) pan. Press the contents of the bowl into the pan. Melt chocolate and drizzle over the top. Refrigerate until firm. Cut and serve. Keep leftovers in the fridge.