I’ve never been greeted by the sweet smell of breads or pastries being pulled from the oven. It’s an experience that always seemed unreal, something you might see in a Norman Rockwell painting. Nobody in my family baked when I was younger; at most, my sister made Rice Krispie Treats or brownies, which seemed to me unattainably complicated.

The strange thing is that I actually love bread, possibly even obsessed with it. Perhaps the stranger fact is that the first bread with which I remember falling in love was Home Pride: mass-manufactured and preservative-filled but soft and oh-so-tasty. I would go to the supermarket and squeeze those yellow bags of carbohydrate happiness to see which one was the softest and therefore the best (my apologies if you were one of those unwitting folks who bought a pre-squeezed loaf). As I grew older, I expanded my horizons. I’d always loved Chinese dinner rolls; soon I was trying English country breads, challah, and ciabatta. Bread became exciting and bakeries, by extension, havens of bliss.

When I was deciding on a topic for my documentary photo class a few years ago, I knew I had to take this opportunity to uncover the secrets contained in the behind-the-scenes of a bakery. I wanted a place that made baked goods from scratch, somewhere that matched my mental image of splattering flour over your face and hands and strewing eggshells and butter wrappings around you as you whip up something delectable. I also wanted to see some baker’s hats.

So off I went to Petsi Pies, a cozy bakery & pastry shop a short walk from the Porter Square T stop in Somerville, Massachusetts. No baker’s hats, but plenty to look at, smell, and savor – greasy cookie sheets and stacks of muffins and crumbs and special pie-making machines and oh my!

I would have loved to see the place as it opened, but bakers get up when it’s dark outside and when I’m busy REM-cycling. Nevertheless, I loved the thrill of going behind the counter and peering at shelves, watching a sale, even passing by the dishes being washed. Seeing that the process of baking was messy (but still hygienic, of course) – as opposed to the neat and orderly displays that I often see in large supermarkets – comforted me. I responded to the flourishes of flour, the art of it all.

The entire experience made me feel closer to the food. Overly reverential? Perhaps. But cherishing the process helps me cherish the food. Though I still haven’t tried baking myself…

Ok so in the U.S. we are pretty much familiar with pancakes, scones, and “English” muffins.  I should add that muffins in the UK kind of look like the U.S. “English Muffin” but the texture and taste is quite different.  In addition what we call a muffin in the U.S. is what the Brits/Irish call an American muffin on this side of the pond

So here are some other bread which you have probably heard about but perhaps never tasted, and they are my favorites!

• Crumpets: they look a bit like a cross between a pancake and a muffin. The butter just melts down inside the little holes along with the jam. Another yummy way to eat them is to melt cheese on the top.
• Soda bread: well as the name implies, sodium bicarbonate is the raising agent used in this bread. This is just good toasted with melted Irish butter. Oh and it can be fried up to be included in an Ulster Fry (which basically includes every breakfast food you can think of only fried!!!)
• Potato bread: well, I should specify Irish Potato farl as there are other types of potato bread out in the world. This is one that most people who leave Ireland say they miss the most. It’s a very simple recipe involving mashed potatoes, butter, flour, and a pinch of salt.  I have to admit that potato bread is rather delicious when fried, but it’s also great just toasted and covered in Irish butter.

For bread recipes and other traditional Irish recipes, check out: Irish Recipes and Baking

Rameses is in the Ten Commandments with Rameses every Easter, and Easter is time for eggs and large family brunches….

Sandy Duncan was in The Hogan Family, the 80s family sitcom, but I don’t think she is part of the Duncan Hines family….

And the Hulk is in The Hogan Family. Big muscles, big protein….

No. I’m talking the fabulous Hogan Family of Carrboro, NC. THIS Hogan Family has farmed Hogan’s Magnolia View Farm for over 240 years. It started in 1757 (yes, before there was even a United States of America).

Rob Hogan is a 9th generation farmer (read that, 9 generations!!) and his wife Ann Leonard operate this farm which raises cattle for grass-fed beef and locally raised wheat without the use of herbicides or pesticides.

I volunteered one spring day during the Piedmont Farm Tour and met these gracious, down-to-earth people and their lovely children. The Hogan Family is truly a part of the community–neighbors, friends, family dropped by all day, chatting, sharing, laughing. It was obvious that people are drawn to the Hogans for their warmth and for their genuine concern and stewardship of the land and protecting the rights of family farms. Beyond selling their beef and wheat, they also take care in supporting healthy eating. On their website are recipes and articles on the health benefits of grass-fed meat and grains.

They also support local businesses, such as partnering with and sourcing locally-sourced wheat for a new bakery, Box Turtle Bakery. I met Abraham Palmer, the founder and owner and baker of Box Turtle, a kind-hearted entrepreneur who works in IT by day and out of his passion for baking, understanding the science behind wheat and supporting local movements, has started to build an in-ground wood-fired oven in his backyard to bake his venture. Box Turtle specializes in wheat products and Abe has a nuanced understanding of what wheat works with what product (hard red winter wheat for honey-wheat yeast bread versus hard red spring wheat for sourdough pretzels). I tried his unleavened flatbread made of the Hogan’s soft-wheat and…oh…wow…I didn’t know unleavened flatbread could taste so good.

Wherever you live, support your local farmers and bakers! If only we could have more generations of people like the Hogans and Abe Palmer.

Oh, and Rameses? Since 1924, the UNC mascot, Rameses has lived with the Hogan Family. (Rameses is in blue; on the right is his wife, Tulip).

Everything DOES have to do with food.

I guess you could also call it curiousity – I just want to know, can I make this? This spring I told myself that I was going to conquer my number one kitchen fear – yeast. The fact that there are active cultures involved just paralyzed me – what if I killed them!? I did, in fact, do just that last week and (foolishly) made the bread anyway, hoping beyond hope that perhaps the yeast would have pity on me and come back to life. While the bread turned out quite tasty, it had the consistancy of a hockey puck and was quickly distributed to the rabbits and squirrels in the park across the street. Not to be easily disuaded I tried again this weekend – success! And for those of you looking for the recipe for this fantastic looking and tasting bread, check out this link: http://www.cookingbread.com/recipes/classics_bread/fabulous_french_bread_recipe.html

My Bread has Risen!

I know that many of you that visit this website are as curious about food as I am and probably far more experimental. Let’s make a pact: share with us your “DIY” adventures, and I promise to keep you posted on mine!

Next up: Brewing Beer in the Bathroom!

Indian breads are numerous and they also vary by region and culture. Dosas (top right and left) are more crepe-like and come in various forms, such as the paper dosa (top right), known for its thinness. Dosas are typically from south Indian. Parathas are another flatbread – an unleavened one made from whole wheat. They originated from the Punjab region and now popular all over the south. They are sometimes served with ghee or stuffed such as the gobi paratha (cauliflower, bottom left). Papads (bottom right) are crispy Indian crackers or wafer. Another popular flatbread is chapati, a thin unleavened flatbread (bottom right).

When chapati is held over an open flame to allow it to puff up, it becomes the Gujarati phulka or roti. The best ones I ate were never in fancy restaurants or the university mess – they were made by hand with care, each one rolled out carefully by my friend’s grandaunt and aunt. They were delicately flavored and absolutely amazing. The bad thing was that they spoiled all other chapatis and rotis for me.

Another wonderful bread item is the bread pakoda, fluffy and stuffed with potatoes, served with a samba (top). Pav bhaji (bottom left) is from Maharasthra region and the pav is borrowed from the Portuguese pao and the bhaji is a potato-based curry. Vada pav (bottom right) is another variation with potato in between the pav.

Puris are often served for breakfast and are puffed up and golden. They are accompanied by a variation of dishes, and the sev puri (left) is topped with sev (fried snack made of gram flour) potatoes, and chutney. An interesting take is the American pancake (right), which when rolled up, makes an excellent thicker crepe.

This is just a sampling of all the variations of bread that brings people together.