There can be nothing more satisfying than breaking bread with a group of your friends to seal the camaraderie. From time immemorial, breaking bread signifies a shared bond, a sense of togetherness and every warm, fuzzy and friendly feeling.

Baking bread is my favorite pastime. The aroma of freshly baked bread must surely be one of the very best olfactory enticements for a human being. In fact, let me modify that: not just for a human being. The smell of fresh baked bread also entices my normally aloof cat, right onto my lap, licking his chops, smacking his whiskers and staring unblinkingly at my mouth, hoping to grab a fallen crumb!

When I bake, I love to experiment. Mostly, I use a basic bread recipe but will work with a plethora of ingredients, vegetables and spices so I can blend the eastern and western cuisine. And ever since I’ve switched to whole grains and unrefined carbohydrates, I try to bake bread at home so I can bake with my favorite King Arthur whole wheat flour – so yummy, tasty and oh, so satisfying!

Home-baked bread has many advantages: the aroma of the bread that fills the house for at least a day, the satisfaction of being an “artist” and a “creator”, the knowledge that you can control what goes into your body, and best of all, since we are on our Shoestring series – the cost of the bread!

So go ahead and try this wonderful Fusion recipe of Black Sesame seeds and Sugar Beet Whole Wheat Bread. The grated sugar beet makes this bread moist and soft, the black sesame seeds add the crunch, and the whole wheat gives it bulk and texture.

This bread will assault all your senses – visual, olfactory and sensory. It looks enticing with the glorious red of the sugar beets, the shiny black of the sesame seeds, and the earthy brown of the whole wheat. It smells simply heavenly. And it is tasty and filling. In addition, it is healthy and low-fat. What more reason do you need to try this out on a Sunday afternoon?

Here is one more: it costs $1.40 and makes about 25 – 27 slices. Each slice is so filling that you can only eat a slice for each meal. That makes it $1.40 for 25 servings!

So without more ado, let’s start.

Here is what you need:
3 cups King Arthur whole wheat flour
1/4 cup + 1 tsp sugar (brown sugar, if you want to ensure the bread has no whiff of refined stuff!)
1 tsp salt
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 medium sugar beet (peeled and grated fine)
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp black sesame seeds
1 cup water
1 tbsp active dry yeast
1 egg white

Here is how you make this:
Heat one cup water in the microwave until warm. Test the temperature by dabbing a drop onto your wrist. The water should be just warm and bearable. Add 1 tsp sugar, salt and active dry yeast to the water and let sit for about 10 – 15 minutes in a warm place until the water froths up.

In a large bowl mix together the whole wheat flour, 1/4 cup sugar, olive oil, grated sugar beet and 1/4 cup black sesame seeds. Slowly add the yeast mixture and knead thoroughly. Cover with a clean, wet kitchen towel and let sit on your warm countertop for a couple of hours. Punch down, knead, and cover once every hour.

Preheat the oven to 400F. Shape the dough into a loaf. Brush the top of the loaf with beaten egg white and sprinkle with 1 tbsp black sesame seeds.

Bake for about 40-50 minutes until golden brown. Remove from oven, cool and slice. Store wrapped in an aluminum foil for upto a week.

Cost:
Whole wheat flour: $0.60
Oil : $0.20
Sugar : $0.10
Beet : $0.30
Sesame seeds : $0.10
Yeast : $0.10
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Total :$1.40 – Serves 25 - about $0.05 to $0.06 a slice!
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February has been a month of many delicious new trials and some hot favorites. With the winter snow blanketing the ground, and the slushy, slippery streets to deal with, it has been a month of warm, cozy meals by the fireside, safely ensconced in the family home.

We started the month off with the Goat Cheese Salad with Couscous – an easy and quick dish to put together when you are back home tired after a long day at work. Goat cheese gave this salad that gourmet touch, while the Kalamata Olives provided that tangy, salty taste. All in all, it was a healthy, low fat, and satisfying meal.

The Brain food – Stir fried Curried Okra added that crisp, crunchy flavor to any meal. This accompaniment is the enticing pick-me-up to keep your family’s intellect sharp and incisive.

If you ever needed to entice your taste buds and ensure that you have something at hand to smother over warm bread to make an easy meal, make the Sweet Green Chili pickle. Stock your refrigerator with this pickle and you can lay your hands on a yummy meal in a snap.

For a replete Sunday lunch, after a day spent on the snowy slopes sledding with your children, make the Radish Greens Stuffed Whole Wheat Bread. Serve with the Sweet Green Chili Pickle or with warm jam. Nothing like greens camouflaged in warm, homemade bread to welcome kids home from a long, rambunctious morning of play and fun!

Make the Crisp, Curried Kovakkai, if your family is tired of the same ole’ potatoes, peas and cauliflower. Watching your family down the vegetable without any proddding will be a reward in itself.

Fasting one day a week? Don’t forget to take a swig of the Fresh Homemade Vegetable and Fruit nectar to keep you alert and hydrated.

When the sweet tooth beckons, make this wonderful, healthy Sugar Beet payasam. No trans-fat laden, unhealthy, artery-choking dessert for you and your family! Enjoy every sensation with healthy, wholesome ingredients!

Cold winds howling outside your window panes with sleet and snow bearing down? Eat this satisfying, sweet and spicy, Sweet Potato Spicy Soup to warm the cockles of your heart.

There are days when you crave a delicacy and all you can think of is to visit the local ethnic restaurant for a meal. Resist that feeling and make this wonderful Edamame and Green Onion Pilaf at home to assuage that craving.

And finally, round up your snack attack with this wonderfully healthy Jicama Mint cutlets.