Halloran - The new bread basket: how the new crop of grain growers, plant breeders, millers, maltsters, bakers, brewers, and local food activists are redefining our daily loaf

PRAISE FOR The New Bread Basket

Amy Halloran is right on target. In The New Bread Basket , she not only brings all of us up to date on the most exciting new development in the world of grainlocal and regionally specific farming, milling, and bakingbut also introduces us to a whole new generation of budding, dedicated superstars who are making it happen. This is living tradition at its finest, reinvented in an exciting, contemporary manner. An idea whose time has comeagain.

PETER REINHART , author, Bread Revolution

In The New Bread Basket , Amy Halloran immerses herself in the burgeoning local grain movement, finding the farmers, wheat breeders, millers, bakers, and brewers who are creating a new food culture. No one has explored this landscape with the depth and passion she brings to the subject. If youre curious about the future of bread, beer, or even the locavore movement itself, this is the place to start.

SAMUEL FROMARTZ , author, In Search of the Perfect Loaf

Halloran profiles a group of thoughtful, committed citizens who are helping to change the world... of grains. Beautifully capturing the descriptions of their mannerisms and ways, this book gives us reason to be hopeful that everyday people will heal the planet and our food system.

AMBER LAMBKE , executive director, Maine Grain Alliance

The New Bread Basket is a love story about grain and the people captivated within its embrace. It is about community, connections, and conversations. From the history to the science to the passionate individuals and organizations involved, Amys book will open your eyes to the revelations taking place every day in the name of grains. Expressive and eloquent, her writing reveals a personal journey that both informs and inspires. As a baker, I give Amys book my highest recommendation. Reading it is truly a pleasure!

CIRIL HITZ , master bread baker and author, Baking Artisan Bread

Amy Halloran has created a baby book of the local grain movement and included snapshots of its older siblings: farming, milling, baking, brewing, and oven building. What an amazing family, capable of hard work, persistence, and a generous exchange of information that has helped bring these ancient arts back onto our contemporary food scene. Amy explains how these symbiotic relationships have transformed the flavor, nutrition, resilience, and economies of the local grain movement.

RICHARD MISCOVICH , baking instructor and author, From the Wood-Fired Oven

Copyright 2015 by Amy Halloran.

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be transmitted or reproduced in any form by any means without permission in writing from the publisher.

Project Manager: Bill Bokermann

Project Editor: Benjamin Watson

Copy Editor: Laura Jorstad

Proofreader: Helen Walden

Indexer: Lee Lawton

Designer: Melissa Jacobson

Printed in the United States of America.

First printing July, 2015.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 15 16 17 18

Our Commitment to Green Publishing

Chelsea Green sees publishing as a tool for cultural change and ecological stewardship. We strive to align our book manufacturing practices with our editorial mission and to reduce the impact of our business enterprise in the environment. We print our books and catalogs on chlorine-free recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks whenever possible. This book may cost slightly more because it was printed on paper that contains recycled fiber, and we hope youll agree that its worth it. Chelsea Green is a member of the Green Press Initiative ( www.greenpressinitiative.org ), a nonprofit coalition of publishers, manufacturers, and authors working to protect the worlds endangered forests and conserve natural resources. The New Bread Basket was printed on paper supplied by Thomson-Shore that contains 100% postconsumer recycled fiber.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Halloran, Amy, author.

The new bread basket : how the new crop of grain growers, plant breeders, millers, maltsters, bakers, brewers, and local food activists are redefining our daily loaf / Amy Halloran.

pages cm

Includes index.

ISBN 978-1-60358-567-5 (pbk.) ISBN 978-1-60358-568-2 (ebook)

1. Bread. 2. BreadHistory. 3. Grain. 4. GrainHistory. I. Title. II. Title: How the new crop of grain growers, plant breeders, millers, maltsters, bakers, brewers, and local food activists are redefining our daily loaf.

TX769.H233 2015

641.81'5dc23

2015009574

Chelsea Green Publishing

85 North Main Street, Suite 120

White River Junction, VT 05001

(802) 295-6300

www.chelseagreen.com

To the long line of people and plants who collaborate to feed us, and to one collaborator in particular, my son Francis. His curiosity about the intersections of humans and the land is one place this book began.

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

The story of wheat is the story of everything. How we get our staple crops defines who we are. Potatoes, wheat, and rice: The things that feed us can show our connection to land and machines and to one another, or lack thereof. A bag of potato chips offers a lot of crunch, but that noise is mum about the Great Famine. A million Irish died and more than a million emigrated because the island nation planted only two varieties of the potato. Abandoning the genetic diversity found in South and Central America, where the crop originated, spelled disaster. Despite the link to starvation, colcannon and other potato-based dishes still define much of Irish cuisine.

How we feed ourselves feeds our imagination. If I were a country, pancakes would be my national dish. I fell for flour as soon as my mother began to teach me fractions on measuring cups. The power of flour was in its alchemical nature. Take this magic powder, mix it with water and other simple ingredients, bake it, and it becomes delicious. As an adult I endeared myself to people by baking them birthday cakes because I wanted them to taste my affection. I bought good ingredients, but I didnt think much about flour until I was in my forties, when I tasted a certain cookie made with oats and wheat that had been grown, rolled, and milled near where I live in New York State.

My husband brought me an oatmeal ganache bar on his way home from a business trip. I was skeptical about the gift. Little did I know how many worlds that cookie would open. Even against a backdrop of good butter and chocolate, I could really taste the grains. Their flavor and freshness introduced me to the regional grain revival that was happening right under my nose, and sent me on an investigation, one that has culminated in the book youre now reading.