bread

[shb]

Is it best to make your own bread?

I saw a recipe that say 1/2 cup jar sterilized with holes on top. How does one make holes in a tip jar cap?

[Roy Collins]

Yes it is best to bake your own bread (as well as all other foods) but home-baked bread is not in my opinion a good health option if your health is not so good. There have been a few discussions on this topic before, as the mechanical process of grinding flour allows for enormous energy to be released into the air and, if the flour is not readily consumed and is exposed to dampness it begins to loose nutrients and can quickly go rancid.

Yeasted breads are very yin as well and interfere with the digestive process and clog the kidneys. New research has discoved that the process of baking (and frying) in high heat release a toxic component called advanced glycation end products (AGEs for short) which can prompt an angry reaction from the immune system that eventually damages blood vessels and arteries (very bad for diatetics). "AGEs attack virtually every part of the body" according to Dr. Helen Vlassara at researcherr at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in NY. "It is as if we have a low grade infection. They tend to aggravate the immune cells", she said. AGEs may also be a contibuting factor in heart disease according to Dr. Eugene Barret, president-elect of the American Diabetes Association. The key to lowering AGEs is to cook for a short time in the presence of high humidity. This means either boiling, steaminhg or quick blanching.

Many people have the tendency to over-do it with putting toppings on bread, like nut butters, cheese, jelly, butter, apple butter, etc. And they eat it too fast without properly chewing it. This hampers the digestive process further. When too many baked products are eaten both the kidneys and intestines suffer
the most. This makes tiredness, skin problems and little hard fatty deposits on the scalp (also dandruff).

Should you decide to eat bread anyway, it is best to gring you own and make it using at least 25% cooked whole grain in with the flour, water, salt and oil. No sweetners or yeast is need. You can make it by long time kneading in your hands or the sponge method that you spoke of before (placing flour and water in a jar with holes in the lid overnight) then adding more flour and other ingredients and kneading. You may want to try asking this question in the macrobiotic cooking forum here. They will know more than me.

In peace, Roy

[shb]

I did get bread from the hfs. It didnt have yeast. I read yeast wasnt part of the macrobiotic plan.

[Bruce Paine]

shb,

Some links to recipes and more information on baking can be found here:

the fall and RISE of our DAILY BREAD
( http://groups.yahoo.com/group/thefal...ourDAILYBREAD/ ).

Jacques de Langre used to recommend a thin slice or two of natural leavened bread with every meal for persons enjoying good health.

As far as the other breads go, especially the white bread, there is a saying that is attributed to a well known brand but is pretty much applicable to the genre and it goes like this:

"Wonder Bread is less nutritious than kleenex, but.........it is more absorbant than toilet paper!" :-)

Thank you, very much.

Bruce Paine

[shb]

LOL!