Think you have a wheat allergy/intolerance? Read this. Want to come and trot out some food-related excuses? Read this...

[hunkermunker]

This article should be read by anyone who eats shop-bought bread.

To quote:

"But most troubling of all, recent research suggests that one enzyme, transglutaminase, used in food manufacturing and baking, may actually turn some of the gliadin protein in wheat flour into a form that can be toxic to some people. Even the organic loaves made by the industrial bakers can contain this stuff."

I know how we all love a food thread(!), but I have been pondering the "everything in moderation" line a lot today.

Whilst I believe this is true, to a certain extent (a bit of decent chocolate won't hurt), I really, really believe that if we just allow our food producers to put ever-increasing amounts of weird non-food ingredients into our food we will see ever-increasing behavioural and health-related problems in the general population.

It is precisely the "turn-a-blind-eye" parents who don't really seem to give a toss what their children eat (and I'm so not talking about mums of SN children, so please don't bang that drum on this thread, I beseech you!) - they just pull out the "everything in moderation" line and cheerfully continue giving artificial sweeteners, trans-fat laden, GM enzyme processed stuff to their children and eating it themselves who perpetuate the cycle of this food being produced.

Until we stop buying this crap, food manufacturers will continue to churn out cheap, chemical shit (in the sense of "not found in your average store cupboard" as I know all things are chemicals - heavens, but I'm covering my bases here, aren't I?!).

And, if I may mention food miles here (since it's a bit of a mixture thread - wtf are apples from Australia doing at my local Sainsburys? Honestly, we grub up orchards in this country to fly in apples from the other side of the world, a world which seems to have gone stark-staring bonkers.

Aye thenk yow.

Hunker " We have bred wheat to produce high yields in intensive growing conditions with scant regard for its nutritional quality; modern varieties have 30-50 per cent fewer minerals than traditional ones. Fast roller milling separates grain into its constituent parts so effectively that white flour has up to 88 per cent less of a range of minerals and vitamins than whole wheat. A recent study showed that organic stoneground flour had 50 per cent more magnesium and 46 per cent more zinc than chemically grown roller-milled flour. "

I buy my flour from Shipton Mill... they ahve a fab variety!

ok im at risk of being shot but i wont stop buying bread from asda, we dont eat that much in our house anyway 1 loaf will go mouldy round here before it gets finished.

i cook about 75% of what we eat myself but sometimes im too tired or cant be bothered and rely on microwave meals or take aways

if i cant be arsed to cook dinner sometimes then i dont think i will be making any bread!

also have never bought anything organic intentionally! and whats more i dont really care what country it originated in!

none of this makes me a bad parent!! now not feeding dd at all would! its better she eats crap occasionally than starves!!

I do make bread with my kids (not every day).
Tones the upper arms wonderfully.

Have had some interesting experiences with sour dough and creating my own 'mother'.
By God,it was like something Captain Cooks sailors would have had for breakfast,six months into the voyage. Even the birds wouldn't touch it,merely circling uneasily overhead.

So...recommendations for good breadmaker please?

PMSL at sourdough "mother" being a scarecrow

Panasonic. It has to be. Anything else and you'll regret it.

Why would you be shot down nulnulcat?... you seem to make an informed decision... your choice, your life, your kids... who are we to judge?

Rightyo
Thanks for that.

You're not additive-free when you make your own bread though.

If you look at the label on the yeast you'll find all sorts of "improvers" and "enzymes" and other vague things - at least, that's the case here in NZ.

The real problem is that what we think of as "bread" is a very light, fluffy sort of thing which our ancestors probably wouldn't recognise at all. It can't be achieved using just pure natural ingredients. Proper, natural, organic bread is very dense and sits in your stomach like a rock and just isn't very nice actually .

That said, I'm not stressing about yeast improvers... yet.

Can I just boast shamelessly about the flour we use? Grown in Anglesey (aka 'bread basket' of Wales) and milled at its only working mill.

Ten thousand lentil weaver special credentials for moi I think......

Panasonic (with seed dispenser) - cheapest was on Amazon last time I checked a whol £25 cheaper!

I use to make bread with my "arms" too Moondog but too often I thought of it too late and would need to go to bed before it had sufficiently risen... at least with the machine I can just do it in 2mins before bed time... I would prefer to make it completely manually but the reality was that at best I made it once a week.... of course that bread was heavier so it lasted 2 days but I do not regret my breadmaker one bit!

HELLLOOOO Am I invisable??? Soda bread, it's easy, no need for a machine and no dodgy additives from processed yeast.

o dear, making my own bread, soapnuts, sewing my own slings, mooncups...... i'm having a very guilt ridden day of it.

dps going to think i've lost it when i ask him for a sewing machine and a breadmaker for xmas and start putting nutshells in the washing machine

seriously though thanks hunker, cheerios were dutifully thrown in bin this morning and home made bread shall become the way of the future!

I buy my flour from Shipton Mills (Gpucestershire) and it is stoneground.
Welliemum... there is yeast and there is yeast and also there is sour dough!

I make soda bread but not for everyday - sorry
Kids don't like it when I make packed lunches.

carmenere, are you irish? soda bread was the first thing i learnt to bake and it is dead easy.... tasty too for yeast free bread

Yes I am Irish, are you PT? Mum used to make brown soda bread most mornings so it's normal for me. It is really good for you, you should all try it

Sorry, Carmenere! I wandered off in the middle of typing my post, came back and pressed "send" and lo! there you were (and your soda bread).

Another vote for Panasonic although knocking down your own loaf is brilliant therapy and could save nation a fortune in tranquillisers.

Yes Carmenere ('Calm down dear!) it is great and dead easy. My Irish bf's mother used to make it every day.
Used to make a lot of Aussie damper when we were kids and eat with lashings of butter and golden syrup.Alas,figure would never tolerate such an assault these days,more's the pity.

at you all for having so much choice in the shops.

Used to live not far from Shipton Mills but nowadays transporting flour several thousand miles to my kitchen would cost me a lot of smug lentil weaver points.

OK, if I get a Panasonic - which yeast is the one to use? Meantime, does anyone know Vogel's bread? I think it's great but am I wrong?

yup, i'm in galway. lol, my mom used to make our bread too.... so much tastier than shop bought.

Guaranteed someone will pop up who grows wheat soon....

Hey,are you girls into spelt?
This is an interesting grain.Less gluten than wheat.The Romans ate a lot of it.

Hang on... don't tell me you can't find decent flour where you are... I had to loook for mine - it's not that readily available (i.e. not at Tescos, etc!) I do have to buy it by mail order 20kg+ at the time... though at the rate I make bread it's not an issue !

I am into spelt and Kamut.

Wellie mum : www.breadman.co.nz/products.htm

Kamut??

Whooaah,steady on.This is moving too fast.
Am in waaaaaay (makes frantic slicing gesture) over my head!