Selling sliced bread is illegal
Can you believe it? How about a shortage of bread, predicted for this year. What is the best bread? Plus the best gluten-free, low carb yummy bread. Get reading now!
After soaking in the open-air art of Goldwell Open Air Museum it is a hop, skip and jump (and a couple of steps) along the dusty road to the Ghost town of Rhyolite. In 1905 thousands of gold miners, developers, and service providers flocked to the Bullfrog Mining District in Nye County, Nevada. Bob Montgomery started the Shoshone Mine nearby Rhyolite, one of the biggest gold producers of the day and the town of fortune was born. In fact, Rhyolite was dubbed the “Queen City" of the Death Valley mining region. It has been estimated that over 10,000 people lived there during the boom years of 1905 to 1912.
This was one big successful town. According to Rhyolite Ghost town website;
In the city's heyday around the turn of the 20th Century, Rhyolite boasted three water systems, three railroad lines, a telephone and telegraph office, electricity, three newspapers, an opera house, a police and fire department, a symphony, baseball teams, tennis courts, three swimming pools, two undertakers, two hospitals, eight physicians, two dentists, 19 lodging houses, 18 grocery stores, over 53 saloons, over 50 mines within the town site, and a stock exchange. Rhyolite boasted the first Catholic and Presbyterian churches in the Death Valley area. Licensed prostitution attracted ladies from San Francisco after the 1906 great earthquake.
As quickly as this forever town rose from the dust of the Amargosa Valley, it was quicker to become a thing of the past. After the mines went dry, the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and the financial panic of 1907 this once booming town was nonexistent by 1920. The town was left to crumble back into the earth. Over the years it has become a preserved tourist attraction and a backdrop for motion pictures.
It is worth visiting this town and taking some time to drive through the roads. My Honda CRV which identifies as a Jeep had fun off-roading the back roads. There is more to see than just what you see on the main road. If you do have a high-clearance vehicle, grab a map at the Beatty Chamber of commerce and spend some time going through the backroads. In fact, Beatty Nevada’s mayor encourages you to enjoy what this part of the desert has to offer.
There is so much more I could share, but we must move on to our topic, bread! I have some history, fun facts, and the healthiest bread to purchase, and of course, I am sharing my favorite bread recipe and compound butter with you all. Let’s dig in.
My daughter’s Ice Denettes Synchronized Skating Team are raising funds for their competitions for next year. It would mean the world if you could check out this link to some 🎄holiday fresh swag delivered right to your door. OK, mostly fresh wreaths and centerpieces. Just in time for Thanksgiving and the Holidays. Thank you so very much.
Sliced Bread was once illegal
Have you noticed, just in time for the holidays, turkey prices have dramatically risen? Some experts are also predicting there could be a shortage of bread. I am going to let my "Scully side out here and just say it… there is just too much of a coincidence in the things that are in short supply and the holidays. The truth is out there, but so are lies.
With the cooler weather, I like to take advantage of using my oven and not have to run the air conditioner at the same time. One of my favorite bread recipes is so simple to make and is perfect for Thanksgiving and holiday dinners and I am sharing it with you too. Guess what? It is not made in the HotLogic, shocker, I know! But, it does reheat really nicely in there.
But first, let’s talk about all things bread including bread without yeast, what bread is healthy, what bread is gluten-free, the best bread for diabetics, and which bread I share with my clients. I am sure your mouth is watering just with the mention of bread.
Who invented bread?
There is no single person etched into the granite of history taking the credit, however, how bread was invented is more of an evolution over the course of millennia. According to a Washing Post article scientists working in the flooded ruins of an ancient fishing camp in Israel found evidence of the village's residents collected wild grain, pounded it into flour, and possibly baked bread at least 10,000 years before the advent of cultivated crops.
According to Live Science bread grains, the first plants to be domesticated were first harvested in the wild by the Natufians. This Mesolithic group of hunter-gatherers lived in the Jordan River Valley region of the Middle East about 12,500 years ago.
According to Spruce Eats;
Focaccia: Originated by the Etruscans (Northern Italy) in the 6th to 5th centuries B.C.
Pretzels: Invented by European monks in the 6th century A.D.
Bagels: Created in Poland by Ashkenazi Jews in the 1400s
Sandwiches: Purportedly invented in the 18th century by John Montagu, 4th Earl of Sandwich
Baguettes: First developed in 18th-century Paris, later refined and first named "baguette" in 1920
Sliced Bread: Mechanized the bread slicer invented in 1917, in widespread use by 1930
Texas Toast: 1940s USA
Bread has been evolving for a very long time. Flash forward to the here and now and the possibility of a bread shortage. I have seen some empty shelves.
Independent Grocer advisor, Lisa DeLima claims, "People don't need to panic buy. There's plenty of product to be had. It's just taking a little longer to get from point A to point B." See, there is no reason to regret chucking your bread machine to the nearest Good Will.
The selling of sliced bread is illegal
Did you know at one time Americans experienced a ban on sliced bread? According to Atlas Obscura (my favorite travel app) during the war there was a nationwide ban on sliced bread. “The ban on sliced bread was just one of many resource-conserving campaigns during World War II.”
It all happened on January 18, 1943 when the secretary of agriculture and head of the War Foods Administration Claude R. Wickard declared the selling of sliced bread illegal.
The idea was to save on waxed paper and mainly alloyed steel which was needed for manufacturing guns, tanks, and ships, According to the Times Magazine “this war was getting pretty awful.”
And, now you more than likely understand where the term “the greatest thing since sliced bread” came from. Could you imagine a world without sliced bread?
Why was banning sliced bread such an upheaval?
The first bread slicer was invented in 1917 but a fire destroyed the prototype. With perseverance by 1928, Otto Frederick Rohwedder had his invention revised and was written about in the Chillicothe Constitution-Tribune with glowing reviews. The bread slicer was a hit. Then, 15 years later a ban, well, on, the best thing ever since sliced bread, surely left an emotional scar on every housewife. In fact, women were running in droves to the bakery to serve their families perfect buns instead.
Since the lifting of the ban on March 8, 1943, bread has been pounded, manipulated, and stretched in every creative way you can think of. Bread is a staple in every culture around the world. With the industrialization era, machines replaced hands and ingredients became altered to make bread cheaper and faster to keep our bellies well-satiated.
Have you taken the time to look at the ingredients in an average loaf of bread? Although it has somewhat gotten better the more we learn about ingredients, there is still room for improvement. How many ingredients do you recognize? How many ingredients can you pronounce? That bad, huh?
When I was in nutrition school many moons ago, we had 4 classes on “enriched wheat.” It is too long to go into here, but, let me tell you this, if you care about your health, you want bread without enriched flour. With genetically modified ingredients and the growing of wheat modified for better crop outcomes, there was a surge of gut symptoms leading to many having to go gluten-free.
Once gluten-free became popular, the same companies were making gluten-free bread ultra-highly processed more so than its highly processed wheat cousin. More health issues have also risen. We have had the vegan, the raw, the paleo and now keto populations all looking for the perfect bread to fill their emotional bellies.
What I have noticed in grocery stores is keto bread made from wheat flour. I was totally shocked. The whole point of keto is to get off the inflammatory foods (which happens to be wheat) and now, wheat flour has seeped into the keto community. I am still in shock! As keto becomes ultra-popular, the food industry is doing what it can to alter ingredients at the cost of the consumer’s health all in the name of profits.
Which bread is the healthiest?
One of the recipes I share with my clients is the one I am sharing with you. But, I also share with them what bread is good for their blood type. Food For Life has some different types of bread and they do a good job of keeping it simple.
I am not a big fan of their sprouted seed or sprouted grains so, I do try to avoid those recommendations, however, sometimes my clients just want bread they can take with them to go camping or a function. In this case, since it is a one-time thing, I would still recommend this company.
Good for Life has bread for gluten-free bread, bread for diabetics, vegan, Ph balanced, and high fiber options for better digestion. Eziekel 4:9 is bread without wheat however, it is made from the sprouted grains used to make flour. Genesis 12:9 is made from ancient grains and seeds. There is also bread with almond flour and much more. If you are looking for this brand, you will typically find it in the freezer specialty section of the grocery store.
I still think, making your own bread whether by hand or in a bread maker is the healthiest bread you are going to find. You get to pick the highest quality ingredients and you are in charge of every step.
What is the best gluten-free bread?
I have yet to find a gluten-free bread on the shelf that doesn’t bloat or cause swelling or the endless running to the loo thanks to my blood type O woes! I can, however, make a good gluten-free, low-carb, keto bread at home and I have some pretty good recipes for Naan that keep me pretty happy.
What I love about this low-carb, gluten-free bread is how versatile it is. I can switch up the herbs, swap them out for spices, or, I can make a pretty good cinnamon raisin bread which is also excellent for French toast.
This bread is great for any type of meal, but especially good if you are following a low-carb, keto diet. This bread of course is also gluten-free. It is also the perfect bread for diabetics. Bake some up and bring it with you to Thanksgiving. I say bring two loaves, one for you and the other for everyone else. It is that good!
Any leftovers can easily be reheated in the HotLogic. Grilled cheese is also yummy. Let’s ramp it up with some compound butter. Be sure to use butter from pasture-raised cows for the added immune-enhancing vitamin A and butyrate and for a better-tasting butter. The options are endless. Enjoy
Garlicky Rosemary and thyme Compound butter
Ingredients
1 stick of butter, softened, room temperature, but not melted
2 garlic cloves, grated
1tb fresh parsley, chopped fine
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped fine
1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped fine
1 tsp Celtic sea salt
Soft butter is easier to mash and will ensure that the ingredients can incorporate smoothly.
Add softened unsalted butter to a bowl. For the garlic, use a small holed cheese grater and grate the garlic, you want it to look like mush. Transfer the garlic mush to the bowl with the butter. Using a fork, thoroughly mash in the garlic until well combined.
Add 1 tablespoon of fresh chopped parsley, 1 teaspoon of fresh chopped thyme, 1 teaspoon of fresh chopped rosemary, and 1 teaspoon of Celtic sea salt and mash again until everything is well incorporated.
If the butter compound is too soft to mold, place the butter in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Scoop the compound butter mixture onto a piece of non-bleached waxed paper and roll it into a log shape twist the ends of the paper to create a seal. Refrigerate until firm.
To use, slice a round of butter and spread it on bread or anything else you can think of that needs some good-tasting compound butter. Keep the butter refrigerated when not in use.
The image below is two different pieces of bread but, almost the same recipe. The Purple coloured bread is with black olives, thus the colour. True confession here, I forgot to add the onion to the top of the bread! I swapped out the black olives for walnuts in the brown bread-just so darn good!
Onion, Olive Rosemary Bread Recipe
Ingredients
½ cup coconut flour
1 tsp baking powder, aluminum-free
2 tb psyllium seed husk powder
1 tsp Celtic sea salt
½ cup ghee melted
4 large eggs
2-4 cloves of garlic, grated
2 tsp fresh rosemary + extra for the topping
¼ cup pitted black olives, chopped
1/4 cup of onion, sliced semi-thin rings
Non-bleach parchment paper
Melt the 1/2 cup of ghee over very low heat, take off of burner when melted to let it cool.
In a medium bowl, add the 1/2 cup of coconut flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 2 tablespoons psyllium seed husk powder, and 1 teaspoon Celtic sea salt, whisk to combine and set aside.
In a large bowl, whisk the 4 eggs; add the 1/2 cup of melted ghee and whisk again, add the grated garlic and whisk once more. Add the dry ingredients and blend by hand or with a hand mixer; mix well. Stir in the 2 teaspoons of fresh rosemary and the 1/4 cup of chopped olives.
Turn the heat on the oven to 350°F
On a cookie sheet or pizza pan (a pizza pan works best), cover with non-bleached parchment paper.
Place bread batter on parchment paper almost in the middle. You want the paper to cover the top of the bread. Using the paper, roll and shape the bread either into a loaf or a French bread roll. Uncover the dough and lay the paper flat.
Chop about 2 tablespoons of rosemary and sprinkle over top. Add the sliced onions and lightly tap into the dough. Sprinkle with about a teaspoon of Celtic sea salt.
Place the pan into the oven. Bake for 30 minutes. Check with a knife inserted into the center comes out clean. If it is not clean bake for another 10 minutes and check again. You do not want to overbake the bread or it will be dry. If the top is turning brown too fast, use parchment paper to cover the top. Remove from oven and cool on a cooling rack. Then enjoy!
Wrap unused bread in non-bleach waxed paper uncut, then wrap it in plastic wrap. Keep refrigerated. Should last 5-7 days if it actually lasts that long!
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Thanks for reading. Have a great week and for my American family and friends Happy Thanksgiving.