Nobody can tell how old bread is for sure. It is known that thousands of years ago, in one form or another, bread was one of the main foods for mankind.
In recent years, this ancient food has been the subject of number of disputes between nutritionists. Some say that life is in bread, others find it the cause of many chronic diseases. But who has right indeed? And whether the bread itself has not undergone metamorphoses that make it so contradictory?

To answer these questions, we have to go back to the past and remember how and what our ancestors have been preparing the bread from. At the beginning there was no yeast, no baking powder, no different dough raisers, "white" flour was not known, and they used only crushed grains or roughly ground, really wholegrain and rye flour. The home electric oven was in the category of fantastic inventions at the beginning of the twentieth century. Such bread, as our grandmothers did prepare - delicious, extremely wholesome and aromatic, can no longer be found. Bread has been manually mixed with much love. Our grandmothers have always left a piece of dough that has served as a starter for next kneading. The aroma of freshly baked bread can not be compared to another flavor, and the taste of such bread had been incredible.

In the modern world, women do not have to knead and bake bread at home because bread plants and bakeries offer different types and tastes of bread. The incredible variety and quantity of bread available on the market requires bread's shelf life to be extended. Bread that is sold in the stores should be soft for a long time and it must not mold for at least a week. For this purpose, a variety of stabilizers and extenders are added. It's hard to find something healthy in such a bread!

In recent years we start to talk about damages of bread consumption, and so many people started making their own bread at home for this reason. But is it true that home cooked bread is healthier than that in the store? It is generally believed to be, but there are several nuances.

Flour

We are used to believe on everything written on the packaging of products. For example, if on the flour pack it is written "Extra Quality", we think this is the most healthy and best for us. In fact, this is not true at all. Wholegrain flour contains up to 70% more useful ingredients for our organism. Therefore, when preparing homemade bread is not good to use white flour, but rye or wholegrain one. It is best to have the flour with proven origin, i.e., from a reputable source in order to be sure what the label says is what's inside.

The yeast

There are many different "grandmother" recipes for home-made bread, which also contain yeast. However, it should not be forgotten that the yeast offered in the shops has nothing to do with what our grandmothers used as for yeast. Years ago they called it leaven - a mixture of flour, water and a variety of carbohydrates (sugar, honey, etc.), which rise for a couple of days in warm place. Today's yeast is not a natural product, but a chemical laboratory product. This yeast is specially designed to quickly get up the dough and to make the bread preparing process easier, diminishing the bread's flavor significantly, and not to mention the health-nutrition benefits of bread and other pasta made with such yeast. We will not go into speculative theories about the conspiracy secret weapon, which the yeast was actually made for.

The water

It is extremely important to have good-quality water when making the bread. It is not good to use chlorinated water from the tap. The principle to abide by here is the cleaner the water we have, the better our bread would become.

The technology

In the presence of a home bakery appliance, all the ingredients are poured into the machine and after 2-3 hours you take out ready-made bread. It's quick, but is it healthy?

When you knead the dough with your hands, you pass on it your positive energy, and you are sure about the right proportion of ingredients.

"Healthy" dough should leaven for at least 12 hours. For three hours it can not unlock all its wholesome power.

Prepared bread should not be eaten hot. This is harmful to the stomach and liver. Allow it to cool down to at least room temperature.
In addition, bread should not be combined with certain products such as potatoes, especially when you want to lose weight. Meat and various salami аre also not good to combine with bread.

Bread is a very useful product as long as you prepare and consume it in a proper way. With good, wholegrain flour, and without unnecessary additives and improvers, slowly and positively, bread can be one of the most beneficial foods for man. Enjoy your meal!