Thursday, January 20, 2011

My Week



At the beginning of the week, baking this much bread felt like carrying a rock up a mountain.  It was hard work, but I seem to like it.  I love the look I get from my customers when I deliver my bread.  

“Bread is the king of the table and all else is merely the court that surrounds the king."
Louis Bromfield, American novelist

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Bread is Universal




Last night my little sister wanted something to do.  I gave her a little piece of dough and said, "Stare at it.  Whoever blinks first is the the loser. "  She got tired of that after awhile.  According to Em, it was too hard.  So I said to Em, "Poke the bread. "  Every time she did, it sprang back and made her smile.


I wonder if an ancient Egyptian boy told his sister to do the same thing that I told my sister to do.  That's the thing about bread.  It's been around for a long time and it is everywhere.  No matter where you travel in this world, you will always find bread.  In Ethiopia, bread is called injera.  Injera is flat, spongy, and sour.  In India, bread is called naan.  This is a Persian word.  Indian naan is also round and flat, but it tastes nothing like injera.

I'm reading a book right now called Six Thousand Years of Bread.  The author tells the history of bread.  It is the story of happy tummies.  I will be reporting on what I am reading so that you can learn along with me.  When you put a slice of Mr. Mustache bread in your mouth, you are doing something common to people all over the world and throughout history.  I'm not saying Mr. Mustache is humdrum, but only that bread is universal.  I'm glad about that.


My sister and I ate ice cream together after I finished working.