A GREENFIELD decorator is a dab hand with a paint brush but it’s Mark Bedford’s pastry brush skills that are helping launch a new career.
In business for less than a year, Mark’s move into producing Italian biscuits and sweet treats has already found favour with the palates of discerning celebrity chefs.
Hairy Biker Si King, former MasterChef winner Simon Wood and last year’s Great British Bake-Off champion Giuseppe Dell’Anno have become fans of Mark’s homemade Prendi il Biscotto (Italian for ‘take the biscuit’) range.
And they don’t come much more homemade than from the 49-year-old, one-time art school graduate’s kitchen at the family house on Carr Lane.
Such is the growing success of a venture launched at last year’s village Christmas market at the King William IV pub, Mark is contemplating a complete career shift.
“This is a passion of mine and I want to make a go of it,” he told the Independent. “I have baked biscuits for family, friends and neighbours for years.
“They all said why didn’t I try and turn it into something more. So I thought I’d give the market at the King Bill a go.
“When I sold out in about 90 minutes I thought I might be onto something. So I registered the business and set it up separately.
“I am as busy as ever with the painting and decorating but six months ago I had to reduce it from full-time to three days a week.
“It is getting to the stage if it continues to develop and grow, I will have to hire some premises or hire space with kitchen.
‘If decorating becomes the minimal amount of work hang up I can hang-up the paint brush and pick up the pastry brush full-time.”
With such positive recent feedback from the likes of King, Wood and Italian Dell’Anno, sharing their approval to thousands via social media, Mark’s products are coming known to a wider audience.
As well as supplying to Saddleworth outlets, he cooks up products for businesses in Marsden, Slaithwaite, Royton and Prestwich. A Manchester city bar has also expressed interest in taking future deliveries.
As another side-line, he planned and cooked a three-course Italian meal for 30 diners and took part in a photo shoot for a Tuscan themed wedding. Mark is also to be featured in a new BBC food programme due to air next March.
“I have no Italian heritage and can only speak a minimal amount of the language,” explained Mark, supported in his venture by wife Jules.
“But my dad was a train driver. And one way my parents could reasonably afford to go away each year was to travel in Europe on a train because dad got a discounted rate.
“They loved to go to Italy and I have memories from being a kid at stopping off at different cities.
And we would always buy a biscuit or something to take with us on the onward journey.
“I guess what I am trying to do is re-create an authentic biscuits and sweet treat that I remember as a child and as an adult having been back many times since.”
Mark’s offerings include cherry and almond biscotto, biscottos infused with Limoncello and Amaretto, a chocolate espresso biscotto and an orange and almond star biscotto.
For more details visit Mark’s website at www.prendiilbiscotto.co.uk
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