Yeast.

Last week, Paul and I defrosted the animal freezer, and decluttered it, so that we had a spare shelf. Then a few days later we did the same for the human freezer, leaving a free shelf for our children, they already had a shelf each for themselves. They now had a shelf they could both share.

About two months ago, it came up on my phone, that there might be a bread shortage in the future. I decided to buy bread flour and yeast. There was SO much choice! I didn’t want to go over the top, I just wanted the basics, I bought two different types of bread flour, making sure the date was long. I also bought two different types of yeast that I would need. I also tried to find something that would make water clean, so that we would be able to safely drink it. I asked at the chemist at my local superstore but they didn’t have what I was looking for. I have bought lots of bottled waters of various sizes; I have 4 bottles of water, they are 5 litres, they are not reduced. I have lots of packs of 2 litres, bottles of water, they were originally 6 packs, but one bottle must have smashed, so the remaining 5 were taped up and reduced, all in date. They are all kept together for emergencies.  I have a large boxed water that comes with its own tap! This is 10 litres, and when it is opened, it claims it will stay fresh for four weeks, the box was dented, and thus greatly reduced.  I also have a large torch, with the batteries not put in, but is on top of it ready to put it should we need it. There is also a small torch in the living room hanging up and one in the bedroom, they are small but powerful. They are never used, but I test them once a year. Also, in the bedroom and lounge there are large thick candles, with boxes of matches next to them. There is tined food in a large box also in our bedroom, about once a year Paul and I go through the box, to check the dates and remove if anything is out of date. They then are put in the dog pot, like sardines, or baked beans etc.

My local superstore, has fantastic reduced sections, I go to each section. The fresh bread section, they have unsliced bread, of all different flavours. They started of with unsliced bread with cheese and over the years the prices has gone up, these beautiful bread, they sell for over £2.50 when they are reduced is when I buy them for 50p these are mainly eaten by Paul and Daniel, the one with cheese, I will sometimes cut a thick slice, and put it under the grill and add slices of cheese on it. Sometimes I will toast it and add lots of goat’s butter, this is lovely and filling when added with sausages, eggs, and spaghetti. That will be me set up for the day, and the next meal that I have, will be my second of the day, a third meal will not be needed.

The bread that is unsliced, as had over the years other ingredients added so that some are now sourdough, I have never tried sourdough bread, I have a feeling I would not like it, sliced or unsliced. I get the impression from the telly that it is healthy.

The fresh bread section has now added, this beautiful bread, some have sliced olives in, olive oil, chopped up dates, and the latest one, has coffee in! that last one sounds horrible, I have bought it for Paul and he loves it, it is not for me, so I will not be trying it.

The day after we had cleaned out and decluttered the animal freezer, the top shelf was for us, and most of the freezer was for the 6 cats and 2 dogs, with one shelf for us, to fill as I needed to. I had dropped lucky and the speciality unsliced bread, there was a wide selection that were all reduced, so I bought 6 different ones! Knowing that I had space to put them in the animal freezer.

Nothing goes to waste in our home, we have a dog pot, and all food that is leftover from our meals is put into this pot, this includes potato peelings, cabbages, whole onions and garlic, to make it nice for them, in the evening what is next to the dog pot, that is put there throughout the day, Paul then adds it to the dog pot and every thing is cooked. The next day the dogs will have a tin of dog food each and the delicious food that is in the dog pot too. It all helps to fill them up, and various meat that is reduced that we don’t want, as we have too much, it is frozen and each day is added to the dog pot. They have a varied diet. Both huge dishes, they are quickly polished off!

The speciality unsliced bread too, before we had this extra space, if they were not eaten within 2 to 3 days, then they too were added to the dog pot.

I was chuffed to bits, with that extra freed up space, in the animal freezer, for when I had bought them that day, I had also bought Paul and Daniel’s favourite, cheese cobs, crusty cobs and tiger cobs, these were reduced to 20p! These come in a pack of 4. I had frozen the unsliced breads.

Yesterday, knowing that they had eaten the crusty cobs, I took out one of the unsliced loaves of bread, and left it on the kitchen table to defrost, so that it would ready for them to eat throughout the day and tomorrow.

This morning it had defrosted nicely. I took it to Daniel to show him, in the lounge, I squeezed it gently, it was SO fresh, it was like it was baked today. I said to Daniel, “Look this was in the freezer, yesterday and I took it out and defrosted it, so that it can be eaten today,” I added, “Something for you to know for yourself in the future,” His reply shocked me, “I will never freeze bread.” I said, “I suppose not, you live in a different world to the one I grew up in.” It opened my eyes to the difference, but that is what makes one generation different to the other, where some can learn from each other, and others just do things, their way. So, then I thought, maybe he won’t have a freezer, just a fridge? But he does have a shelf in the human freezer, for his frozen berries for his smoothies. Whereas I have beautiful, frozen pizza’s that I have bought reduced, he will buy the expensive pizza and have it delivered! To be fair, it is delicious, and we all have a slice or two, Yum. If there is a slice left over, I will pop it in the microwave and have it for breakfast. If someone has left the crust, say Darius, then the dogs with have it for their treat in the morning, before their breakfast.

When I was young, my Mum, she was a brilliant cook, she made, beautiful fresh bread, the smell in the home was lovely. And yet like Daniel, who won’t be freezing bread, a different generation, to me, I have never made bread, I don’t need to, it is cheap enough in the shops, and a very wide choice!

I wonder what it will be like when our little grandson Dairus will be older. They probably won’t be eating bread!

Maybe everything will be takeaways and dinners in a box to be prepared quickly at home, for those that don’t want to have a takeaway.