Our Daily Bread

I wanted to write a post about my most favorite (and least favorite) things in New Zealand. Perhaps I’ll get around to making that list. For now, I’ll mention my favorite sandwich bread. We’ve been eating a lot of sandwiches on this trip because they are easy to prepare and convenient to carry on a hike.

A number of years ago, during a previous visit to New Zealand and Australia, I discovered Soy-Lin bread made by Bürgen.

This brand is advertised as being healthy for women as it contains phytoestrogens, calcium, iron, and Omega-3. I like this sandwich bread, however, because it’s really moist and full of tasty grains. The main ingredients, in addition to wheat, are soy and linseed. It goes just as well with peanut butter and jelly as with deli meats. One loaf will last us several days, and the bread stays fresh and moist for at least five days, unlike French bagettes, which grow stale and hard quickly (we reserve these, freshly purchased, for cheese, prosciutto, and wine).

Our stand-by for hikes and on-the-road lunches, especially when we don’t have an ice-chest, is the traditional American sandwich of peanut butter and jelly. It’s tasty, full of protein, can be made ahead, and requires no refrigeration. We’ve also been enjoying sandwiches with sliced ham or chicken, tomato, and watercress. Instead of mayonnaise, I make a spread of avocado, olive oil, and lime. These ingredients all work well together on the moist and flavorful Soy-Lin bread.

One trick I sometimes use when without ice and I want to carry a sandwich with meats or other ingredients that need to be refrigerated (and it’s hot enough to encourage bacterial growth) is to make the sandwich the night before and freeze it in a ziplock bag. I can then stick it in my backpack and not worry about carrying ice or an ice-chest. By the time I’m ready to eat lunch, it has thawed out (if not, I can set it in the sun for a few minutes).

Soy-Lin bread is only sold in New Zealand and Australia, apparently, so I will miss it when I go home.