Charred crumbs of a flatbread made by Natufian hunter-gatherers from wild wheat, wild barley and plant roots between 14,600 and 11,600 years ago have been found at the archaeological site of Shubayqa 1 in the Black Desert in Jordan, predating the earliest known making of bread from cultivated wheat by thousands of years. 

Grinding stones dated at 30,000 years old, possibly used for grinding grains and seeds into flour, have in recent years been unearthed in Australia and Europe, but there is no definitive evidence that these tools or their products were used for making breads.

In medieval Europe, bread served not only as a staple food but also as part of the table service. In the standard table setting of the day the trencher, a piece of stale bread roughly 6 inches by 4 inches (15 cm by 10 cm), was served as an absorbent plate. When food was scarce, an all-too-common occurrence in medieval Europe, the trencher when served would typically be eaten with or at the completion of a meal. In times of relative abundance, trenchers could be given to the poor or fed to the dogs. It was not until the 15th century that trenchers made of wood started to replace the bread variety.

Bread-baking was industrialized at the start of the 20th century. Otto Frederick Rohwedder developed a prototype bread-slicing machine in 1912, and a practical machine that both sliced and wrapped bread in 1928.

It was discovered early on that while a bran- and wheatgerm-discarding milling process can help improve white flour's shelf life, it does remove nutrients like some dietary fiber, iron, B vitamins, micronutrients and essential fatty acids. 

The US government has mandated since 1941 fortification of white flour-based foods with some of the nutrients lost in milling, like thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and iron. This mandate came about in response to the vast nutrient deficiencies seen in US military recruits at the start of World War II.

What is the Chorleywood Baking Process? The Chorleywood Baking Process (CBP) is a no-time dough system combined with an enclosed high-speed mixer that is used in large-scale production of yeast-leavened bakery products such as white pan bread and buns. 

Yeast is a living organism that acts as a leavener--that is, it makes baked goods rise.  Breads that use yeast are called Yeast Breads.  Yeast breads are divided into two categories: Lean Doughs and Rich Doughs.  

In their simplest forms, doughs are a mixture of flour, a liquid and a leavener.  Other ingredients can be used when creating a dough to add color, flavor, and texture.  Some examples would include nuts, grains, fruits, vegetables, honey, molasses, or herbs and spices.

The texture of a properly made yeast dough is stiff but still pliable, meaning that it can still be folded and shaped.

Lean doughs are made with flour, yeast, water, and salt.  They have very little or no sugar or fat.  Breads made from lean dough tend to have a chewy texture and a crisp crust.  

French bread and hard rolls are examples of lean doughs.

Other leans doughs include: Baguettes, Batards, Pain d'epi, Kaiser rolls, and Italian breads

Rich doughs are made with the same ingredients as lean doughs, but with the addition of shortening, or tenderizing ingredients such as sugars, syrups, butter, eggs, milk, and cream.

Introducing these ingredients changes the bread's overall texture, as well as the way the dough is handled.  

Rich doughs have cake-like texture after baking.  Parker House rolls, Cloverleaf rolls, soft rolls, Cinnamon rolls and Danish are examples of rich doughs.

Sourdough is another type of bread made with yeast batter.  However, sourdough breads are leavened, because of the fermentation of the yeast and gases being produced.

The doughs use something called a starter, which is a mixture of water, yeast, and all-purpose flour that has been fermented (usually overnight) until it has a sour smell.

This starter serves as the yeast, rather than the dry yeast that is used in other doughs.

Examples of sourdoughs include: Country loaves, Rye loaves, San Francisco sourdough, and German pumpernickel. 

Sourdough is more than just a recipe; it’s an understanding. So before we dive in, let’s define. Simply put: a sourdough starter is a live fermented culture of fresh flour and water. With adequate time, temperature and care, the culture will begin to ferment and cultivate the natural yeasts found in our environment. A small portion of sourdough starter is added to your bread dough to make it rise. Commercial yeast IS NOT required. 

Your starter is ready to use when it has doubled in size, with plenty of bubbles on the surface and throughout the culture. 

NOTE: It’s not uncommon for it to take up to two weeks or more for the starter to become active. It all depends. I know this timeframe sounds a bit vague, but growing yeast in a jar (that’s basically what you’re doing) can be unpredictable at times. Please be patient if the process takes time for you- it’s normal. 

 While following a feeding ratio is helpful, use it as a guide only. It doesn’t have to be exact. Why? Because your starter will look different on different days. 

And because of that, it will need different things. This is due to the type/brand of flour used, temperature and the amount of time that has elapsed in between feedings. 

So, if you’ve followed the feeding ratio and your starter is too thick, add more water to thin it out. If it’s too thin, add more flour. The texture should look like thick pancake batter. 

A bakery that lives in harmony with nature. Almost no electricity is used, and the bread dough is hand-kneaded and allowed to ferment naturally. The bread is baked in a homemade wood-fired oven. Koki Ota, a baker, travels to France to learn the way of life of a "Paysin Boulanger" (a farmer's bakery). He returned to Japan and now runs a one-of-a-kind bakery with his wife in an old folk house deep in the mountains. 

As I get more comfortable with baking homemade bread, each recipe just seems to get better and better.  While the measurements are incredibly important, I’ll talk more on this later, technique and time are just as important if not more important.  Regardless, I’ve been LOVING baking homemade bread just like this artisan country loaf recipe and I can’t see myself slowing down any time soon.  

Once you get your first really good loaf of homemade bread then it just pushes you to keep exploring and trying new things.  Can you tell I’m excited about baking homemade bread yet lol?

Bread should be light and fluffy on the inside with a beautiful hard crust on the outside.  Learn How to Make a Homemade Artisan Country Loaf Bread Recipe! 

At Virginia’s Sub Rosa Bakery, sibling bakers Evin and Evrim Dogu mill their own flour and source their ingredients locally. Together, they make many types of croissants, including seasonal variations like the pear and ricotta croissant. 

Bon Appétit Test Kitchen Manager Brad Leone is back for Episode 26 of "It's Alive," and this time he's tackling the fermentation classic: sourdough bread. Brad is joined by Bon Appétit's own Claire Saffitz, Senior Food Editor and baker extraordinaire to guide him on this journey.

In this episode of 'Handcrafted,' co-founder of Tartine Bakery Chad Robertson walks us through the process of making three different types of bread from scratch, including country sourdough, porridge bread and sprouted rye bread. 

Uzbekistan is home to an iconic disk-shaped bread known locally as Samarkand bread. Named after the city of Samarkand, this bread is enjoyed year-round and typically eaten at the start of every meal. 

Learn how to make a Cuban Bread Recipe! 

Making bread is a time-consuming but magical process.