It is a magical process with its basic set of ingredients: flour, water, yeast (that came much later it used to be flat before it rose to great heights) and salt that contain complex scientific properties we do not even think about when we munch our way through our scrumptious ploughman's lunch and a pint, or perhaps you enjoy it smothered in nutella or as a flat bread rolled up with a falafel and humous. The ingenious process has come along way since being baked on a hot stone, to the mass produced factory bread that feeds millions in the world every day. It is amazing to think about how many people ate it for breakfast this morning.
Bread plays out in history beyond simply feeding us all. To a Christian, bread is a symbol of Christ’s death and the believer’s renewal. For a baker, it is much the same. He knows that in order for his bread to have its final rise in the oven, the yeast must first give up its life and “die”. When the yeast reaches this thermal death point of 140 degrees celsius it is no longer a living organism. That’s why the word leaven means, “enliven” or “bring to life”.
Bread symbolises transformation. For Jews, who celebrate Passover, or the Feast of Unleavened Bread, eating bread without leavening is a reminder of their ancestors’ quick exodus out of Egypt. The story tells us that the exiled Jews left in such haste that they could not even wait for their bread to rise. Whenever Buddhist monks hold bread in their hands, they believe they are holding on to the cosmos ("he's got the whole world in his hands"...and beyond! "Beam me up Scotty!").
Bread is symbolic of life and sustenance the world over and is often used as a metaphor such as “the bread of life”, “bring home the bread”, or “our daily bread”. Historically bread was used to signify someone’s social status. The darker your bread was, the lower your social status was because white flour was considered more difficult to process than the darker, whole grain flours. Now the white and dark have done a little role reversal and it is significantly trendier and far more sophisticated to indulge in darker breads like the ancient grains of spelt or kamut, or perhaps flavoured with olives, flax seed or even raw bread (well isn't all bread "raw" until we cover it with something?:).
Personally I see bread as something that has been symbolic in bringing people together throughout its history. As a staple and symbol of life, the act of sharing it during meals became a highly social and sometimes ceremonial act. The phrase which came to be associated with this act--"to break bread", came to mean simply to share a meal with others. And isn't that what life is all about?
So bring out the grains, unleash that yeast, throw on the water and bake bread. You too may find yourself in a new and consuming love affair.
I can sure see this new love affair of mine consuming me for a long time to come.
YB
