Bakers Bread

( Originally Published 1922 )

To those of you who must buy your bread, the bread will be the hardest problem. The so called "whole wheat bread" made by the average baker is not worthy of the name. The soft, puffy stuff is next to worthless. The dark breads masquerading under various names (Health Bread, etc.) are in the same class. None of them are whole wheat, and because of their tasteless, unappetizing qualities they serve only to disgust the consumer. Eating of these miserable substitutes he thinks he doesn't like whole wheat bread and he has never tasted it.

I believe that some few bakers have made an honest effort to make genuine whole wheat bread, but on the whole they have succeeded poorly. The methods used to handle white flour will not work out with whole wheat hence all bakers "set the sponge" with white flour. To this is added some 8o per cent flour—and there you are. I even know of one baker who grinds his own flour, yet he mixes white flour with his bread.

In almost every city in the United States there is a McFadden's Physical Culture Restaurant. Most of these make a genuine whole wheat bread and most of them will sell it for outside consumption. Some of 'these even have added a generous mixture of white flour—but the bread is a vast improvement and is worth going after.

Everyone who has a home can supplement the bakers' bread with frequent home made muffins and biscuits. The flour should be 100 per cent. If you use the 80 per cent which is on the market, add to it a little bran.