It’s a simple thing, but it gives me pleasure.
What you see up there is not a sliced loaf. Well .. it IS a sliced loaf, but not an automatically sliced load. I sliced it all by myself, by hand.
There aren’t many breads I can tolerate these days, because I seem to have a problem with commercial yeast. I’ve been buying long-fermentation loaves on the basis that they need a lot less yeast and some of the structure of the wheat will be broken down in the process and they’re much more digestible. Up there is a loaf of Cranks’ wholemeal, long-fermentation bread. It comes unsliced, but I slice it because I don’t eat much at a time and I can freeze and thaw it easier that way.
Why does it give me pleasure? Well, one of the enduring memories I have of my mother is of her slicing a ‘long tin’ (her favourite loaf shape) for our tea with an old-fashioned bread knife, and hearing the rhythmic saw-saw-saw-saw-saw of the blade as it cut through the crust, and watching the slices falling evenly on to the breadboard. Yep, it took about five ‘saws’ for my Mum to sever a slice, and she was just so good at it, I used to stand watching her with my nose just level with the work surface and wonder if I would ever be able to slice bread so perfectly like that.
And look! I can!
I’m not very good at baking bread. i do my own soda bread sometimes, but it’s not really like real bread. And of course, I’m going to be attempting sourdough some time very soon. Just as soon as I can get hold of some rye flour, which is proving a tad difficult. I’m going to have to go into town and find a health food shop.
Meanwhile, I’m slicin’. Just like my dear old Mum.
‘How to be HAPPY!’ is a new meme. It’s about finding the little things in life which bring a smile or a glow of warmth to our hearts and souls during our daily lives. Why? Because it’s the way all these little things add up which truly determines if we are happy people, not the big stuff like a lottery win.
To enter, write a post about one thing which has made you happy in some small way recently – it could be birdsong, a favourite smell, a particularly good loaf of bread, a blue sky, anything! Then scroll to the bottom, click the Mr Linky graphic and add your blog post details to the Linky which will appear in a new window, and you’re in.
If you’d like, copy the badge (up at the top of this post) and paste it into your own.
Oh, and it would be nice if you popped round to visit and comment on a few of the others, too!
Wholegrain rye flour = Sainsburys (and, for all I know, all the other supermarkets, too).
Yes, Mum was a super-slicer!
Al – We were in Sainsbury’s yesterday and they had no rye flour!! No ticket on the shelf, either. I guess they’re not into healthy food in that area of the city.
We tried Morrisons and Tesco too. Haven’t been to Waitrose yet, but that’s next. I bet they have some.
I’m very impressed by your bread-slicing skill. I start out with even cuts at the top but by the time I have cut through to the bottom of the loaf, some slices are 1/2-inch some are 1/4-inch and some are 3/4-inch! No matter how hard I try, the slices never come out even on the bottom. No worries, though. They all taste good.
Crossing my fingers that you will soon find rye flour –
Those Brindle Kids´s last [type] ..Walking with the Hounds, Part 2
Jay, just in looking at the photo of the bread, I can tell that it must have tasted HEAVENLY!
And as Those Brindle Kids shared, I am SO impressed by your bread slicing skills. WOW…it looks like it was cut with a professional bread slicer.
You GO, girl!
X
Ron´s last [type] ..A Really Cool Thing Happened
You did a terrific job, Jay. Those slices look perfect.
And what a lovely memory about your mother. It’s amazing how something so simple can mean so much.
Whenever something important happened around our house, my mom used to say “it’s the biggest thing since sliced bread!”
Way to go. I’m sure your mom is very proud of you.
Rob Lenihan´s last [type] ..From Fear to Trust
[...] picture and write about one thing that makes you happy in some small way. Then, head on over to The Depp Effect and link your [...]
Everyone has said it, and I’m going to repeat it…those are some mad bread slicing skills.
Lori – What Remains Now´s last [type] ..Every Day Ugly
Being a cack-handed-Kate as my mum calls me (a lefty to others) mum could always tell when I had sliced the bread! Now after 40 years of practice I am an expert and OH asks me to slice the bread as his slices are always too thick at one end for the toaster
Those Brindle Kids – I think most people have the same problem. I know my boys did, when they were young. Many’s the time I went to get the loaf out and instead of a nice straight cut end, it sloped at a steep angle!
Ron – Flatterer!
Seriously … thanks. It is a very small accomplishment, but it makes me happy to be able to do it, which is what this meme is all about.
Rob – Ah yes … ‘It’s the best thing since sliced bread’ is the version we hear most around here, but it’s a great expression, isn’t it?
Thank you, yes, it’s the ‘small’ memories which are often the strongest or warmest, isn’t it? Like this, and like the sound of Mum’s knitting and sewing machines.
Lori – Thanks! And thanks for joining in!
Taffy’s Mum – See? You weren’t really cack-handed at all! Just needed a bit of practice!
I’m good at slicing bread but Jenny has a lot of trouble. Some of her slices are pretty peculiar shapes! But we do prefer to buy unsliced bread so we can each have just the thickness we want.
nick´s last [type] ..No shorthand
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww! I loved this story!
And I’m so happy you can slice bread, just like your mother used too!
meleah rebeccah´s last [type] ..Happy 20th Anniversary, Mom and Dad!
very neat job
I remember my mum doing the same. We often buy bread and slice it ourselves. I must admit to sometimes getting a slice that is thinner on one side though.
Babs´s last [type] ..I wish we could Photoshop real people.
That is *awesome*! It’s funny what makes up happy. Usually it’s the little things that everyone else seems to overlook. I bow to your superior bread-cutting skills. I can see you’ve had quite a bit of practice…which would mean that you’re a very happy person!
HermanTurnip´s last [type] ..Some Days…