Arctic Talent: Wild yeast named ‘Moira’ is the secret to baker’s success

Moira is not a family member, friend or neighbour. The cornerstone of Anny Freda’s at-home baking business is, however, a mother — of sorts.

“Moira is a living culture of wild yeast and lactic acid bacteria that naturally ferments the dough, helping it rise while developing its signature flavour and texture,” said Freda, a baker of sourdough and the Iqaluit entrepreneur behind Little Mylah’s Bread Co.

The wild yeast is light beige, thick, bubbly, and smells tangy and sweet.

“Like beer,” Freda said.

She learned how to make sourdough last winter.

“I followed several recipes I found online and on TikTok,” Freda said. “After a lot of trial and error with different methods, ratios and techniques, I developed a recipe and process that works well for me.”

Moira usually doubles in size within six hours after Freda adds 15 grams each of flour and water to the jar, which she does daily.

“Moira is definitely spoiled,” she said.

While Little Mylah’s Bread Co. earned its monikor from Freda’s two-year-old daughter, Moira is named after Moira Rose, the eccentric matriarch from the hit CBC sitcom Schitt’s Creek. Moira the yeast is slightly older than Moira the character.

The side hustle generates a small profit that goes toward Mylah’s education fund, Freda said.

She recently stepped away from her baking endeavours to describe how she ended up making bread by baking bread, so to speak.

Summers 1996-2011: Little Freda watches her late grandmother bake during annual family trips to the tiny village of Chevery, in rural Quebec.

“From as long back as I can remember,” Freda said, “fresh bread with Nutella reminds me of her.”

Later, in Iqaluit, Freda bakes cookies and banana bread with her two older sisters, Nadine and Melanie.

Sourdough comes many years later.

January 2025: Freda is on maternity leave from her position as a project officer with Kakivak Association.

She scrolls through her friends’ Facebook reels about sourdough. Curious, she begins to research.

“It just snowballed,” she said. “I fell in love with the process.”

Enter Moira.

March 2025: Freda bakes her first loaf of sourdough.

“It was really flat,” Freda said.

On the third attempt: success.

April-June 2025: Freda comes up with flavoured sourdough: cinnamon-raisin swirl, jalapeno and cheddar, lemon blueberry and French onion.

July 2025: Freda launches Little Mylah’s Bread Co.

Through word of mouth, she sells eight to 16 loaves each week. Repeat customers typically snatch up half of every batch.

September 2025: Freda makes gluten-free sourdough.

November 2025: Freda leads a baking workshop for students at Inuksuk High School.

December 2025: Freda sells 25 loaves of chocolate chip-flavoured and cheese-flavoured sourdough at her first craft sale, at Inuksuk High School.

March 2025: Freda posts her first of eight how-to videos to TikTok and Facebook. Her most popular post attracts 8,000 views.

April 2026: Freda sells 30 classic loaves at the Toonik Tyme Craft Fair.

July 2026: Freda posts classic loaves and sometimes bagels for sale once a week.

“I’d love to expand my menu with more sourdough treats, like cookies and other sweet baked goods,” she said.

Talent Tip: “Mylah has taught me a lot of patience,” Freda said. “With sourdough, you need a lot of patience, too.”