PANARY

Craft baking courses, wood-fired ovens, and consultancy

  • Home
  • Courses
    • Baking Courses
    • Apprentice Days
    • 1 Day Courses
    • 2 Day Courses
    • 3 Day Courses
    • Residential
    • Accommodation
  • Watermill
  • Gift vouchers
  • Blog
    • Blog
    • Newsletters
    • Bakers’ Topics
  • Contact
  • Course Calendar
  • Buy Our Bread
  • Fees
    • Fees
    • Accommodation
  • Wood-Fired Ovens
  • Consultancy
  • About
    • About
    • Testimonials

Newsletter 46 – Wheat sets currency, forthcoming courses, buy our bread, “green” dough

28th August 2018 by Paul Merry

Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Dear Panarians,

When I became a baker, I was alert to references to baking and wheat which showed how culturally and historically deep these subjects are in our civilisation. For example, I have always respected the expression that “bread is the staff of life”, which first appeared early in the 17th century. Imagine the catastrophe of widespread famine that occurred regularly in past times when unusual weather events ruined the wheat and rye crops for a season or two.

Juvenal, the Roman satirist, showed political awareness when he pronounced that in order to keep the populace happy and quiet the rulers must provide sufficient “bread and circuses”.

For the Christian there is the communion wafer to represent the bread that Christ instructed was a symbol of his body; more bizarrely, there was the cutting of a cross on the loaves and buns to dispel the devil.

Silver penny

Recently, when for my book research I was delving into the origins of the Assize of Bread (13th century), I gained an insight into the origin of our currency and the establishment of the English pound, later to be called “pound sterling”. At the time of the Assize the silver penny was often the sole coinage used, and it had been the most popular form of currency for the preceding six centuries. It was introduced during the 8th century by the great King Offa of Mercia. The pound mentioned above was a pound weight of silver, to be divided into 240 silver pennies (and 12 pennies made a shilling, with 20 shillings to the pound).The penny weight of silver had been calculated as 32 grains of wheat, dry, and taken from the middle of the ear. This fascinating link between wheat (and other grains too) and money standards goes right back to Roman times. It stands as yet another example of the deep role that wheat has played in our civilisation.

Click here to view the Baker’s Topics – Green Dough

CALENDAR, forthcoming course

October 2018

  • Sat 13th – 1 Day French
  • Fri 19th – 1 Day Basic

November 2018

  • Sat 3rd – 1 Day Nordic-Germanic
  • Sat 10th – 1 Day Sourdough

Courses that feature Christmas cooking

November 2018

  • Sat 24th – 1 Day Sweet Doughs (Christmas)

December 2018

  • Sat 1st – 1 Day Basic
  • Sun 2nd – 1 Day Basic British

To find out more about all these courses, visit the course calendar

NEW – there has been a request for a special one-day PANETTONE course. Date yet to be set.
Contact me to find out more if you wish to join.

PANARY in PROVENCE April 29, 2019 – booking now

Provence
Vines in the springtime, looking across vineyards to Mont Ventoux on the horizon.
Newsletter 46 - Wheat sets currency, forthcoming courses, buy our bread, "green" dough 1
Spring weather, outdoor relaxing during the course

5 nights in a beautiful vineyard with superb accommodation gites made from the ancient farm buildings.

Baking French-style breads in domestic ovens as well as a wood-fired oven in the courtyard. Lots of baking, two half-day excursions, and lots of fun. Read more about PANARY in PROVENCE, here.

BUY OUR BREAD

Within days this section of the website will be live, featuring a shop. It is all about our once-a-week commercial baking day every Thursday. Bread can be picked up, or sent to you by parcel post

Good baking, Panarians.

Paul

Please share:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window)

Filed Under: Newsletter, 2018

About Paul Merry

Recent Newsletters

  • Newsletter 57 – Gift Vouchers, Christmas baking
  • Newsletter 56 – Hot weather, students’ work, calendar, and working with stoneground flour
  • Newsletter 55 – Covid 19 update, calendar, kugelhopf
  • Newsletter 54 – Covid 19 interruption, the baguette….
  • Newsletter 53 – Gift Vouchers, student’s work, understanding sourness……..
  • Newsletter 52 – 2020 Course dates, students’ work, The Chelsea Bun….
  • Newsletter 51 – 5 day residential baking courses, all about kneading……
  • Newsletter 50 – Stoneground white flour, buy our bread, new half-day Experiences…

Upcoming Baking Courses

  • Saturday 22nd of May, 2021 10:00
    3 Day Going Professional
Book A Baking Course
PANARY - Teaching Breadmaking Since 1997
Teaching Breadmaking Since 1997
Every PANARY course is taught by Paul Merry, a master craftsman who favours a very practical approach to learning, regardless of any student’s prior experience..

Helpful Information

  • Cann Mills – Working Watermill
  • Which Course To Select?
  • Testimonials
  • Learn to bake
  • Gift vouchers
  • Accommodation

PANARY Mailing List

PANARY - Teaching Breadmaking Since 1997
For baking tips and special offers.
JOIN MAILING LIST

Contact PANARY

To contact Paul Merry, or speak with him, please ring +44 (0)1747 851102, email using ,  or visit our contact page.

Copyright © 2021 · PANARY

  • Terms of Service
  • Refund Policy
  • Privacy Policy
panary adj [L.panis bread + - ARY] Of or pertaining to bread; p. fermentation
loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.