High on my list of 'life's simple pleasures' sits the smell, taste and texture of freshly baked bread. I'm talking about real bread here, just the natural goodness of flour, water, yeast and salt. To me, real bread has a golden crunchy crust on the outside and a super fluffy interior and can be improved only be lashings of proper butter. Real bread isn't full of sugar, preservatives and additives and doesn't come in a plastic bag.
May 14th - 22nd is Real Bread Week. It is an annual campaign that aims to inspire people to buy their loaves from independent local bakeries or to even have a go at baking their own. Although 80% of the UK loaves we buy are now produced by a few large factories, there is a promising re-emergence of small-scale independent local bakeries making bread with good ingredients and without processing aids, or artificial additives.
Supporting these smaller scale bakeries brings traditional skills back to communities and provides an local economic boost at the same time - and of course the loaves are lovely.
Some of our club sites get early morning deliveries from bakeries like these. For example Corfe Club Site near Swanage is supplied by the lovely Dragons Village Bakery and our Windermere Site is a short stroll from a fabulous artisan bakery More? in the village of Staveley.
Even better make your own! Making flatbreads at your pitch is very, very easy and a lot of fun - especially if you involve the children. In fact the theme of this year's Real Bread week is 'doughing it with the kids'.
Using just your hands, a bowl, flour, yeast, salt and water you can make a wonderful dough in ten minutes flat. You can cook them on a barbecue, in a dry frying pan or over a campfire.
Click here for Ali's Camper's Flatbread recipe.