Bread

I used to think bread was the best thing ever. In fact, the more I eat in my new way, the less I like bread. Or should that be - the less I CRAVE bread.

Strangely enough, I have been eating some wonderful filling foods. If I make a salad I will always have a small portion of potatoes to go with it now. Once upon a time that would have been bread - then more bread. After I looked up the calories in bread together with the spread that goes on it, I was shocked just how many were lurking in just a small portion. I decided to watch this intake and find something else to satisfy me.

If I eat bread now, it is generally freshly baked (not by me, as I haven't strayed into bread baking territory yet). The stuff you get in the pre-packed loaves does not taste quite as good although once upon a time I wouldn't have noticed. Now when I choose to have some bread, I am picking out different kinds and as I am having a smaller amount, I like to think this is going to be good to taste. So I am still eating it, but aware of what I am eating and how much.

As I've just been away for a few days, we were stuck one evening with only being able to buy bread rolls that were pre-packed and not freshly baked. The bread felt soft and fluffy, so it was quite fresh, and it had a sell by date some days in advance. I didn't think there would be a problem with it. We wanted to have a bacon and egg roll for breakfast, as we had to be on the move early.

I awoke with anticipation to the smell of bacon. My partner is very kind and had already delivered me a cuppa and all I had to do was wake up and have a shower and stroll into the kitchen.

We dug into our bacon and egg rolls with finess. Hungry bears again, probably a left over weary body craving something from all that walking the day before. I managed to get half way through the roll, and found my appetite stalling. I couldn't finish the roll and had to leave some. The food itself tasted lovely, but I just could not eat any more. For about the next 4 hours our stomachs were aching. I felt bloated, uncomfortably so. It wasn't as if we were eating huge rolls either. The only difference was that they were processed bread rolls. We weren't hungry for ages, so that helped the appetite, but the physical effects were such that we wished we hadn't eaten them at all.

Some of you may think this is a wheat intolerance. However, I can eat fresh bread with no problem at all, and I eat wheat based cereals etc. So what is it about processed bread? I don't know the answer, other than my experience has taught me something - and that's to leave processed bread alone.