Anna Sobaski, creator of Breads From Anna®, travels all over the country helping people enjoy a gluten-free lifestyle by teaching gluten-free cooking classes and workshops. She speaks at conferences, support groups and a number of health food stores frequently. As the creator and president of Breads From Anna®, she developed the line in 2004 with only one product, the Original Gluten, Soy, Nut and Rice Free Bread Mix. Now five years later, there are ten products total, sold in hundreds of stores all over the world. She has an undergraduate degree from the University of Iowa, a Master of Fine Arts Degree from the Maryland Institute College of Art and completed the Chefs Training Program in New York City at The Natural Gourmet Cookery School Institute for Food and Health. For many years, she dedicated herself to teaching and making art. Photography was her medium; she was always interested in how people connect to the landscape, both natural and urban. The image on the right is a collage she made many years ago using potraits of her parents when they were young.
In her own words, here is why Anna does what she does.
For many years I suffered from, among other feelings of discomfort, a stifling feeling of fatigue. It was not until a rash appeared on my elbows, however, that a dermatologist told me no more gluten. My doctor also told me I would not be able to do the diet, that, in all his years of practice, the only patient he had ever seen stick to the diet was an 83 year old woman from England. I guessed the implication was older people from England do not care about food. That statement did not sit well with me. Having been diagnosed, at that point, for 26 years with type-one diabetes, my first thought was “don’t tell me I cannot do this diet”. Even though I started out accepting the challenge, I soon came to realize I was facing a very big loss. What became clear fairly quickly was that food, eating out and feeding family and friends was more central to my life than I had realized. After trying to make the best of it, which included giving up eating all gluten-free bread, not eating out much and not being invited to eat with family and friends as often as I previously had, I decided my life required an all out change. I attended the Natural Gourmet Institute which held the key philosophy that food and health are connected and that a special diet does not mean deprivation. Bread, being the staple food most people, including myself, went without, I set out to create a gluten-free yet nutritious and tasty bread that others, including myself, could enjoy. I set up shop in the upstairs loft of my brothers business, I got to work collecting the unique ingredients needed for making my first loaf of bread. After many test runs, I eventually pulled out a steamy, fresh smelling loaf of bread. The ultimate taste tester, my brother who is not celiac. His response and I quote, "Whats the big deal? It tastes like bread." Exactly, I thought, that is the big deal! Thats what put me on the path to my current life, which is feeding others by creating delicious, healthy, gluten-free breads as well as recipes that are easy to prepare and offer healthy alternatives to gluten.
-Anna Sobaski
Creator, Breads From Anna
