Bread

:For other uses, see Bread (disambiguation).

History

Bread is one of the oldest prepared foods, dating back to the Neolithic era when cereal grains and water were mixed into a paste and cooked.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

In ancient Egypt bread-making became one of the most significant areas of food preparation, along with the making of beer; both had religious significance as well.

Related Topics:
Egypt - Beer

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It is thought that the Egyptians invented the first closed oven for use in baking.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Bread was a primary staple of diet in much of European history, from at least 1000 BC into modern times. Over the past several hundred years, the amount of European household income spent on bread has steadily declined as per capita consumption and production costs have decreased.

Related Topics:
European - 1000 BC

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Otto Frederick Rohwedder is considered to be the father of sliced bread. In 1912 Rohwedder started work on inventing a machine that sliced bread, but bakeries were reluctant to use it since they were concerned the sliced bread would go stale.

Related Topics:
Otto Frederick Rohwedder - 1912

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

It wasn't until 1928, when Rohwedder invented a machine that both sliced and wrapped the bread, that sliced bread caught on.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

A bakery in Chillicothe, Missouri was the first to use this machine to produce sliced bread.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

For generations, white bread was considered the preferred bread of the rich while the poor ate dark bread. However, the connotations reversed in the 20th Century with dark bread becoming preferred as having superior nutritional value while white bread became associated with lower class ignorance of nutrition.

Related Topics:
20th Century - Nutrition

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Recently, domestic breadmakers that automate the process of making bread are becoming popular in the home.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~