What is it about bread that draws us in? What makes us want to grab a slice and slather it with butter? There is nothing that feels quite like home more than the smell of fresh baked bread. In the days when people made their own bread from scratch, there was always a fresh loaf ready to be baked. Or there was always one just out of the oven. Today there are many people who own a bread maker. My daughter is one of them. What a treat to be able to walk in the house. Or wake up in the morning and be met with the smell of warm bread wafting through the air.

We had a tradition on Sunday afternoon in my house when I was growing up. My sister would make a big batch of bread dough and leave it sitting on the hearth of our fireplace. We would watch either golf or football with our dad. When the dough had risen sufficiently she would punch it down, knead it and let it rise a second time. An hour later it was ready to bake and we had warm bread fresh out of the oven with our dinner. What a real treat!

I loved the hard, crispy crust and the soft doughy inside of her bread. I loved how the butter soaked into the middle. It left a delicious taste in my mouth. I wanted another bite right away. Sometimes we had soup or stew. We used the bread to sop up the liquid or dunk it in the bowl. One restaurant I went to had a round loaf of bread. It was hollowed out and served their hardy soups and stews in it. I thought that was genius.

No matter where you go in the world, every culture has their version of bread. Examples include crusty Italian loaves, French baguettes, croissants, naan, pita, and roti. Bread is a staple of life all around the western world. I don’t know about China and Japan though. They are more about rice or noodles as a staple. Correct me if I am wrong.

Some people prefer pastries and sweets over a slice of bread. Not me. I could live on bread. Scriptures refer to the “bread of life”. We often hear about old folks who live on tea and toast, another favourite way to eat bread.

Bread has become a commodity that is sold in great quantities across North America. The production of bread has been taken up by large factory like assembly lines. The bread itself is filled with preservatives to make it last longer. It also contains all kinds of ingredients to supposedly make it taste better. Think of Wonder Bread for instance. It is soft doughy white bread. It contains all sorts of artificial additives to give it some sort of nutritional value. These additives also give it a long shelve life. Yet so many of us think of it as comfort food. It was the staple of our childhood, at least for many of us.

My mother wouldn’t buy Wonder Bread and I for one never understood why. The commercials on TV were so inviting and when I went to my friends houses where they ate Wonder Bread I was thrilled to have a bologna sandwich on white bread with yellow mustard. It was a real treat.

My mother made sandwiches that were really nutritious. They were filled with some sort of meat, mayo, mustard, lettuce, cucumber, and sliced tomatoes. Sometimes, she would add a slice of cheese and Spanish onion. We called them salad sandwiches because my mother was always trying to get us to eat more vegetables. For me, though, it was the bread that made the sandwich. Often we would have crusty kaiser buns or even better soft onion buns. One weekend my mother went to the local bakery and bought a fresh loaf of French stick. She sliced it in half lengthwise and built a sandwich along the whole loaf, adding all kinds of filling. When she was done she put the lid back on the loaf and cut it into thick slices. The slices were placed on a platter and everyone was invited to help themselves. There was always a dish of dill pickles, olives and sweet mixed pickles or baby gherkins.

This past weekend I was visiting a friend of mine whose family is from Lithuania. We talked about bread. In her family she remembers dark Russian rye bread smothered with liverwurst and covered with sliced cucumbers. I can taste it now and my mouth is watering.

Maybe it is the cooler temperatures, causing me to think about bread and all the accompanying treats, I don’t know. What I do know is bread is something that can offer us much food for thought. Nutrition is something that is very important to me. I am known to eat fast foods and food with very little nutritional value. Still I am interested in feeding my body what will give it the best ingredients to fuel my engines. So I look for the best bread possible.

So dear reader what are your memories and thoughts around bread? Are you a bread enthusiast or do you avoid bread? Do you make your own bread or do you have a favourite bakery you like to go to?

Let me know in the comments below what your favourite bread is and how you like to eat it. Till next time…..