Basket Of Bread

Europe

Denmark

Rugbrod is a brown rye bread that is used to make Danish open sandwiches, The bread is sliced thinly, smeared with butter, and topped with various ingredients like smoked fish, shrimp, boiled eggs, liver pate, or cucumbers.

Rugbrod is known for being low in fat and doesn't contain sugar or oil. It is rich in dietary fiber and whole grains. This bread can be purchased at most Danish supermarkets or baked at home. It comes in popular varieties such as light rye bread, dark rye bread, sourdough rye bread, and coarse rye bread.

England

English muffins are small, round, flatbreads that are baked from a soft yeast dough. After the muffins are formed they are baked on a griddle. When ready English muffins are cut in half and toasted then buttered and served for breakfast with sweet or savory toppings.

English muffins are an essential part of Eggs Benedict. Most cooks say that these muffins should not be slit in half with a knife but with a fork instead and then gently pulled apart. This creates a surface on the muffin with craters and peaks that when toasted and made crunchy there are pockets for jam and butter.

Scotland

Bannock is a griddle-baked unleavened flatbread that originated in the Highlands of Scotland. The bread is traditionally made with a single type of grain either barley, beremeal, oats, wheat, rye, or even peasemeal with buttermilk or water added.

Bannock that is made from a mix of different flours is called a mashlum or meslin bannock. This flatbread was once an essential part of everyday life and festivities in the Highlands. Each variety of the flatbread was given a different name depending on which of the old Gaelic festivals it had been made for.

Ireland

Soda bread became commonplace in Ireland in the 19th century. When the potato famine came and there were problems with growing wheat due to the weather and geographical conditions the Irish turned to soda bread as their main source of nutrition.

Soda bread is made from only a few ingredients - flour, salt, baking soda, and buttermilk. There are recipes that can include eggs and olive oil. Not much kneading is needed and the bread is shaped into a round cake or flattened and cut into four pieces that are known as farls.

France

Pain de Campagne or country bread is a traditional, rustic bread that can be found all over the country. Most versions of this bread include a mix of white, whole wheat and rye flour, water, salt and either baker's yeast or a natural leavening agent.

In the past, huge loaves of this bread would be baked in communal ovens that could feed families for days or weeks. In the early 20th century baguettes replaced pain de Campagne in popularity but the bread once again gained popularity with the rise of artisan bread in the 1970s.

Pain d'epices is a classic French honey cake that is described as a cross between bread and a dessert. It is a specialty in Dijon and is said to have originated in China. In France, it first made its appearance in 1711 and was most popular in Reims and Dijon.

Pain d'epices is made with honey, rye or wheat flour and spices like cardamom, anise, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves.

Netherlands

Ontbijtkoek is one of the staples of a traditional Dutch breakfast. It is a rye cake that has been spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, honey, pepper, and cloves. Even though this bread is mostly eaten at breakfast it can be also consumed at lunch or as a midnight snack. The bread is topped with butter or jam and sometimes some cheese.

Ontbijtkoek has been baked in the Netherlands since the 16th century and today there are many regional varieties. In the southern parts of the country, it is known as peperkoek since one of the ingredients used to make it is pepper.

Portugal

Broa de Milho is a Portuguese cornbread that is made with plain flour, cornmeal, yeast, water, milk, sugar, salt, and butter. The bread is known for its moist texture and is often eaten with soups and stews.

This bread is popular in Northern Portugal and the Azores. In the past, it was once considered to be a poor man's bread but today is enjoyed by everyone.

Italy

Casatiello is a traditional Italian Easter bread. It is made with leavened dough consisting of lard or olive oil and then filled with meat and cheese then rolled up and baked in a large ring mold. The stuffing consists of pork salami, Italian-style cured meat, and sliced semi-hard cheese.

The most common varieties of meat used for casatiello are Neapolitan salami, ham, prosciutto, and pancetta. Before baking the bread is decorated with hard-boiled eggs that are placed on top of the bread and adorned with cross-shaped dough strips.

Pane Carasau is also known as carta musica since it resembles an old music sheet parchment. It is a traditional Sardinian flatbread originally from the Nuragic Age, circa 1900-730 BCE. The bread has a long shelf life so it was once a staple food of Sardinian shepherds during their trips to mountain pastures.

Pane Carasau is prepared with durum wheat flour, water, yeast, and salt. It is very thin and baked twice for extra crispness. It is delicious as a cracker and enjoyed with snacks, cheeses, appetizers, and soups.

Greece

Paximadia is a twice-baked rusk that is traditionally prepared with barley but other versions use different flours. The bread can be sweet or savory with the sweet versions flavored with citrus zest, anise, or chocolate.

Paximadia can be enjoyed as a snack or with various dishes. Before serving it is soaked in water, white wine, or olive oil. The bread is enjoyed all over the country but Kritiko Paximadia can only be produced and made on Crete.

Turkey

Mısır ekmeği is a savory Turkish cornbread that is especially popular in the Black Sea region. The texture of the bread is hard and dry since it is not made with a raising agent. It can be shaped into circles, tubes, oblongs, or plaits.

For flavor enhancement cheese, dill, sesame, poppy, and nigella seeds can all be added. A regional specialty is cornbread with sardines that are traditionally baked into the dough. If the bread is prepared this way it is usually eaten with yogurt as a full meal.

Etli Ekmek is a delicious Turkish pizza-like dish that originated in the city of Konya. The name of the dish translates to bread with meat. It is a thin, flatbread that is prepared with flour, sugar, salt, yeast, and oil. Then topped with ground beef and finely chopped onions, tomatoes, and peppers.

Sometimes Etli Ekmek is also topped with cheese before baking. When the dish is golden-brown is it cut into pieces while still warm.

Asia

Japan

Melonpan (also known as melon bun and melon bread) is a Japanese sweet bread. The bread is made with sweetened dough and topped with a layer of cookie dough. The bread was named Melonpan because the top crust has a criss-cross pattern that looks like a melon rind.

Melonpan is also popular in China and Taiwan. It is believed that the bread was shaped to look like a melon which held the status of luxury fruit in 20th century Japan.

China

Mandarin roll is a steamed bun with Chinese origins. It is prepared with wheat flour, sugar, water, soybean oil, milk powder, yeast and salt. Steamed Mandarin rolls can be accompanied by sweetened condensed milk.

Mandarin rolls can be salted and filled with finely chopped spring onions. Their shape resembles flower blossoms.

India

Pita is a large group of breads and cakes that are popular throughout Bangladesh and India. It is prepared with rice flour but wheat or corn flour can also be used. Most varieties are formed as small cookies or dumplings and filled with spices, nuts, or various vegetables, It can be savory or sweet.

The simplest versions are filled with jaggery and coconut while other more complex ones can include cheese, lentils, and vegetables for the filling. In Bangladesh, pitas are prepared for special occasions, family celebrations, weddings, and harvest festivals.

Aloo paratha is one of the most popular breakfast foods in northern India is a flatbread stuffed with a spicy potato mixture. Its name is derived from aloo, denoting a potato, parat, denoting layers, and atta, denoting flour.

The flatbread is made from wholemeal flour, salt, and ghee, forming flaky, soft, and crispy layers that are golden-brown in color. The filling consists of mashed potatoes, ginger, green chillies, coriander, dried pomegranate seeds, chilli powder, and salt.

Iran

Sheermal is a traditional Iranian flatbread that is prepared with maida flour, milk, saffron, and yeast. The bread is characterized by its strong saffron flavor and yellow color. The bread is traditionally baked in a tandoor oven and served warm as an accompaniment for soups or meat dishes.

The name of the bread Sheermal means milk bread. Some cooks like to include dried fruit into the dough.

Afghanistan

Bolani is an Afghan pan-fried flatbread that is made with unleavened dough. It is usually filled with mashed potatoes and other ingredients like spinach, spring onions, pumpkin, or green or red lentils. It is a popular street snack and can be prepared at home as a side dish.

Bolani is traditionally served warm and accompanied by coriander chutney and a creamy mint flavored Afghan yogurt dip called chakkah.

Africa

Morocco

Msemen is a traditional Moroccan flatbread prepared with flour, semolina, sugar, salt, yeast, warm water, oil, and clarified butter. Then the dough is kneaded until it is smooth, then flattened and shaped into squares.

After the dough has been folded and shaped it is cooked on a griddle or fried in a pan until it is crispy outside and chewy inside. The bread can be eaten by itself or stuffed with different meats and vegetables.

South Africa

Roosterkoek, literally meaning grill cake, is a traditional South African bread baked on a grid over coals. The bread is prepared with flour, yeast, salt, sugar and water. It is then rolled into small balls, brushed with butter, and grilled until slightly charred.

Roosterkoek is enjoyed hot right off the grill and smeared with butter. It is eaten as part of a barbecue or as a snack with jam or cheese.

The USA

Frybread has been named as the official state bread of South Dakota. It is flat dough that is fried or deep-fried in oil or lard. This was originally a Native Indian Navajo tradition. The government supplied them with lard, flour, salt, sugar, yeast and powdered milk.

Frybread is eaten on its own or with various toppings and accompaniments like honey, jam, or beef.

California

Sourdough bread has been an iconic bread and staple of Western cuisine since the gold rush days in California around 1840. It is unleavened bread and the oldest recorded use of sourdough dates back to the ancient Egyptians.

During the gold rush days, the Boudin family, who were well-known bakers in France arrived in San Francisco and became popular for their sourdough bread.

South America

Pan de yuca is a traditional bread that is prepared with yuca flour, eggs, and cheese, It is shaped into small, round balls. The bread is popular all over Columbia and Ecuador.

The bread makes a great warm appetizer or afternoon snack and is often accompanied by hot chocolate, tea, or coffee.

Pan de queso is a cheese bread from Columbia's Paisa region. The ingredients include tapioca flour and grated cheese. Fermented cassava starch gives the rolls their volume and lightness.

The rolls are eaten for breakfast or as a snack just plain or filled with cream cheese or jelly.

Chile

Marraqueta (also known as pan batido and pan francés) is the most popular bread in Chile. It is often eaten three times a day. The bread is prepared with flour, water, salt, and yeast, Rolled into two balls the dough is pressed together and then nearly split down the middle. It is then baked in the oven with a pan of water to help form the crust.

The crust is very popular. Marraqueta dates back to the late 19th century and early 20th century when a large number of immigrants came from Europe.