Alvarado St. Bakery Archives

May 23, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

Bread-heads, Bread-heads Everywhere: Day 50 and 51

It is the bread-lovers dream! This week Peter Reinhart from Johnson and Wales University hosted the first ever International Symposium on Bread. I was honored to be invited to this event and hang out with crazy bread-heads like myself. Peter is true to his vision in bringing together so many bakers, and lovers of the bread trade. It’s a great event that gathered bread experts, milers, agriculturists, bread historians bakers, and more.

The speakers were amazing!

Stefan Cappelle gave a talk, “The Future of Bread Lies in its Past,” about how we are re-discovering sourdoughs as a solution to more than just flavors by having a sourdough library.

Bread Heads pack the lecture hall at the first ever International Symposium on Bread

A whole host of other topics were touched on like Dr. Ann Madden’s talk on microorganisms, “New Microorganisms from Strange Places for Better Breads,” Tom Gumple’s presentation “Innovation, Compromise and Real Life—Finding the proper Balance in a Multi -Unit, Growing Company, or Francisco Migoya’s “Insights from Modernist Bread—Shaping the Future of Bread through Science. The days were packed full of speakers, socials and Q&A Panel.

Peter Reinhart, Executive Director, International Symposium on Bread

Puratos was the main sponsor of this event. So of course we got to taste phenomenal sourdough breads from them. I even got to tour their Sensobus!

Hats off to Eric and Tom from Panera bread. I was not expecting such push back from bread heads on me consuming so much bread. Eric questioned the philosophy behind me eating so much bread and was concerned that I was sending the wrong message to people who have diabetes. Again, to concur with Eric, this is not a diet meant for diabetics.

Though, I do think diabetics shouldn’t give up on eating bread. They should look for options like the Alvarado St. Bakery Diabetic Bread. In addition, Tom said what I’m doing is not anything new; it’s an exclusion diet. I agree with this too because what I have been doing is following the information that science has given me.

Here’s what I ate on Days 50 and 51 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Day 50
Whole Grain Bread	6 slices (40g)	500
Whole Grain Baguette	250g	300
Bread from King’s Kitchen	6 slices	400
Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Honey Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Chicken Salad	1 C	105
Salad	1 C	120
Fruit Salad	1C	150
Macaroon	2	200
Walk		-200

Total		1975

Day 51
King’s Kitchen Rye Bread	4 slices	300
King’s Kitchen Ciabatta	4 slices	400
King’s Kitchen Egg Challah	3 slices	400
Puratos Whole grain roll	1 roll	150
Pesto	1 Tbsp	80
Mrs T’s Bloody Mary Mix	1/2 Can	35
Greek Salad	1 C	150
Dry Airline Pretzels	2 bags	160
Chicken skewer	1	200
Baklava		200
Sugar Free Strawberry Jam	1 Tbsp	20
Nutella	1 tbsp	100
Justin’s Almond Honey Nut Butter	1 Tbsp	190
Calcium Supp
Total		2385

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Lin EB90cpodcast 2, pitching a loaf, podcast

May 10, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

Pitching a Loaf: My Podcast is Live! Day 38

Yes, you read that correctly. Today, I dug into a whole loaf of Alvarado St. Bakery sprouted multi-grain bread, sat back, and listened to our Pitching a Loaf podcast. It’s taken us 6 weeks to produce and launch this new product of ours, and I was joyfully lavishing in the rewards of my team’s hard work. The best part of this podcast journey? Is getting the bakers I interviewed to share their passionate stories with me.

Today, on Episode 6 (coming soon!), I interviewed Arif, a wholesale baker from Canada, who has had issues with their artisan bread bursting on its sides. He complained that this issue has been causing a high waste issue for the past 2 years, and he used the recommended tools that I suggested on the podcast to solve his problems.

We managed to get him to reduce his waste by 12%, increased outputs and reduce energy consumption in the oven. Don’t believe in thermal profiling of your product? Listen to episode 6 and hear Arif’s testimonial.

multi-grain bread- alvarado st bakery-nut butter

Slices of hearty Alvarado St. Bakery Multi-grain bread with roasted vegetables on ricotta and with almond and cashew nut butter. Also, thanks to the American Society of Baking for this wonderful loaf of acknowledgment for my involvement as a session chair at this year’s Baking Tech.

Now, back to eating 14 slices of sprouted multi-grain bread. Honestly, this bread made me so full today, I could hardly finish all 14 slices. But I did it. I ate all 5 slices at once at dinner with chicken noodle soup (without the noodle – which got the disapproving nod from my mom)! And I will live to tell this story.

Here’s what I ate on Day 38 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Multigrain	14 slices (34g)	1260
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Roasted Vegetables	30g	60
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Almond Cashew Nut Butter	1 Tbsp	190
Smoked Ham	4 Slices	60
Chicken soup	2C	200
Coconut water	2 C	100
Cauliflower	1C	100
Calcium Supp
Bike		-150
Total		1960

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May 8, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

The Bread Police: Day 36

I had Alvarado St. Bakery’s Sprouted Whole Wheat tucked neatly behind my computer today so no one could see it and my desk wouldn’t be so cluttered. Usually, I’d pile my bread up on a plate beside my computer and ate away at the pile for the rest of the day. I felt that this really dries up the bread slices, and the bread doesn’t taste good at the end of the day. So I stopped prepping my bread slices in the morning, and I prepare them all throughout the day. Slice by slice.

A delicious sandwich made with sprouted whole wheat bread.

Apparently I didn’t let the Bread Police (a.k.a. my biggest fans) know about this change. A couple of them came by my desk, didn’t see my neat pile of bread slices, and started lecturing me. “Where is your bread? Why aren’t you eating your bread?” Chill, mateys! Breads right here behind the computer.

I guarantee you all, I’m still devouring over a pound of bread a day. Today, I even had the privilege of sneaking a delicious cranberry bagel in there (fruit + bread = my weakness). Also, if you haven’t noticed, I’ve added coconut water to my diet for the potassium. I really am glad I found this natural source of electrolytes. It’s really delicious and low calorie also. Don’t worry my friends, no need for the sirens, I’m still eating my bread.

Here’s what I ate on Day 36:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted 100% Whole Wheat	9 slices (43g)	810
Cranberry Bagel	1 (108g)	310
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Coconut water	2 C	100
Smoked Ham	4 Slices	60
Whipped Mixed Berry Spread	2 Tbsp	50
Apple	1	95
Dark Chocolate Penut Butter	2 Tbsp	170
Strawberry Jam	2 Tbsp	100
Sauteed Spinach	1 C	48
slice swiss cheese	1 Slice	106
Roasted Vegetables	1 Tbsp	100
Lox	2oz	120
Chicken wings	4	160
Fresh pineapple	1 C	82
Walk		-345
Calcium Supp
Total		2066

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May 7, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

Adding Beta Glucans to my Diet: Day 35

Today, my loaf of choice is Alvarado St. Bakery sprouted Barley Bread. Why Barley? Well, because barley is high in beta glucans: prebiotics that are beneficial to your gut bacteria. It was a hearty loaf, and it make me feel full all day. Thank you Alvarado St. Bakery!

Here’s what I ate on Day 35 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Barley Bread	13 Slices (34 g)	1170
Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Nutella	2 tbsp	200
Spring Rolls	5 rolls	250
Capocollo	6 slices	160
Spinach	1 C	48
Banana		105
Orange	1 orange	81
Cookie	1	100
Coconut water	2 C	100
Dark Chocolate Penut Butter	2 Tbsp	170
Calcium Supp
Walk		-250
Total		2254

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May 5, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

Sun and Sprouts: Day 33

This week again I was surprised with 2 boxes of sprouted bread from Alvarado St. Bakery. So I guess you’ll be hearing me talk a lot about them. The unique thing about Alvarado St. Bakery is that they sprout their grains and seeds all at the plant with the use of solar power. Solar powered sprouts? Yes, I’ve found another deeply passionate baking company!

I gave Michael Girkout, Director of Marketing, a call for an interview. I wanted to learn more about how they are depending on solar power, how the red kitty Greta was in charge of food safety, and most importantly, why they are not located on Alvarado St. Hear more about this interview on Podcast #5.

Least to say, I enjoyed their sprouted onion poppy seed bagel with ricotta cheese and pesto, and had a wonderful day eating their sprouted whole wheat bread.

Fresh baked bread waiting to be sliced on a solar powered line.

This was Greta taking her naps in between catching rodents at the bakery. Greta left the bakery in the ’80s and has since passed on.

The Alvarado St. Bakery logo with Greta on it.

Here’s what I ate on Day 33 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery® Sprouted whole wheat	10 slices (38g)	900
Alvarado St. Bakery® Onion Poppy Seed Bagel	1 Bagel (95g)	250
Ricotta Cheese	1/4 C	100
Orange	1 orange	45
Homemade Pesto	1 Tbsp	80
Sugar Free Strawberry Jam	2 Tbsp	160
Steamed Broccoli	1C	35
Butter	1 Tbsp	100
Pan Fried Chicken	113g	230
Almond and cashew nut butter	2 Tbsp	190
Apple	1	95
Orange	1 orange	81
Coconut water	2 C	100
Calcium Supp
Bike		-200
Total		2121

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April 28, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

The Sisterhood of the Travelling Loaf: Day 26

I looked at my half-eaten loaf of Sonoma Sun bread from Alvarado St. Bakery and said, “You’re coming with me.” I have to go to Seattle this weekend to meet a couple of my convent high school friends, one of whom I haven’t met for 30 years. I packed my bread up and headed to the train station.

The traveling Sonoma Sun loaf in my bread bag.

The accompaniments in the bread bag.

I have to admit, I was fearful and excited at the same time. I had never boarded an Amtrak train before and I really don’t know what is proper train etiquette. Plus, this is the first time I am traveling on a bread diet. You know how diets are ruined with travels!

lin - eat bread 90

I started the day really disciplined, until I saw Ivar’s clam chowder soup at the Bistro car. Yes! My mind was saying no, but my taste buds were screaming for a taste of delicious creamy and chunky clam chowder. So, this happened.

Ivar’s Clam Chowder with slices of Sonoma Sun bread is the ultimate Amtrak combo!

That was truly a bad choice for my diet, but I doubt it would be the last bad choice I’ll make this trip.

I immediately went for a 2 mile run upon reaching my destination. Wished I could do more, but I had to meet another friend of mine for dinner at Anchovies and Olives (a seafood tapas restaurant). My challenge was to make sure that I consumed the rest of the bread in the restaurant.

Grilled sun choke salad with Aioli, scallion and mint (top left), smoked fish crostini with pickled onion (top right), and grilled macrina foccacia with bang caudal (bottom): my meal at Anchovies & Olives.

Did you know that you can judge a restaurant by the bread it serves? This restaurant had no clue what a foccacia is. Their grilled focaccia was a glamorized ciabatta with grill marks. I could hear my husband say, “Don’t be a bread snob,” and I really needed to consume my fill of bread for the day, so I had to eat it—regardless of whether or not it met my standards of foccacia. It just puzzled me why they can’t just call it grilled ciabatta.

Here’s what I ate on Day 26 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Brioche French Toast		800
Grand Central Baking Rye Sourdough	4 slices (50g)	560
Egg		300
Ham	1	105
Macaroons	2 pc	120
Potato Roll	80g	120
Meat plate		300
Tomato Basil soup	1/2 C	75
Caramelized Brocolli	1 1/2 C	150
Tiramisu		250
Prosecco	1 glass	90
Port	1/2 glass	50
Coconut water	2 cups	90
Walk 8 miles		-800
Total		2210

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April 27, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

Food Trucks and Donuts: Day 25

Sonoma Sun from Alvarado St. Bakery.

The Sonoma Sun loaf from Alvarado St. Bakery was my bread of choice today. The bakers at Alvarado St. Bakery sprout their own grains to make their Sonoma bread. I tried it with something different today: Avocados. My nutritionist Connie wants me to eat avocados (listen to podcast #2).

I’ve never liked the bland taste of avocado, and I felt it is best eaten in guacamole. I am surprised that it is so rich in potassium and it helps me counteract my sodium levels. So today I mixed it up and tried avocado slices with Greek cream cheese on Sonoma Sun Bread.

Avocado with Sonoma Sun Sprouted Bread.

Today, I had friends from out of town visiting me and I brought them on a food truck tour. Unfortunately this time, I had to skip most of the eating. However, when we stumbled on the poke bowl shop, I had to try one. Can I say, it was a taste explosion in my mouth!

What’s a Poke bowl? It’s rice and raw tuna mixed with fish roe, seaweed greens and sesame brittle with a sweet sauce. The Poke originates from Hawaii, so it has that tangy and sweet taste to it.

A colorful Poke bowl with bigeye tuna, roe, sweet onion, avocado, sea salt, sesame brittle, cucumber, mixed seaweed and classic Hawaiian sauce.

Our last stop was Blue Star Donuts. The thing about Blue Star that is not known to many people, is that if you buy three donuts, and you’re really nice to the cashier, they give you an extra donut (yes, do that next time). Their donuts range for $3-4 apiece, but these are my favorite donuts in town. They have by far the best (brioche) dough, and the highest quality fillings and toppings. If I were to bring a box of Blue Star to you, you’d know that you’re special.

$Valhorna Chocolate Crunch (bottom center) is a custard filled donut.\$

Valhorna Chocolate Crunch (bottom center) is a custard filled donut. It is truly the star of this bunch from Blue Star Donuts.

Here’s what I ate on Day 25 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St Bakery® Sonoma Bread	5slices (43g)	600
Sprouted wheat bread	200g	420
Banana	1	105
Dickinson’s® Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Tilamook Butter (Salted)	2 Tbsp	200
Homemade Pesto	1 Tbsp	80
Avacado	1/2 cup	184
Greek yogurt spread	1 Tbsp	22
Blue Star Donuts	1	200
Poke Bowl + Chips	1	150
Steamed Brocolli	1C	30
Calcium Supp
Bike		-100
Total		2011

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April 21, 2017June 28, 2017 by Lin Carson

No Need for a Sugar-high: Day 19

Sprouted diabetic lifestyle bread from Alvarado St. Bakery.

I’m really digging this Sprouted Diabetic Lifestyle bread from Alvarado St. Bakery. Their organic grains are sprouted and directly made into bread sweetened by only organic dates. This produced a bread that was clinically proven by the Glycemic Research Institute in Washington DC, to be low glycemic.

A low-glycemic diet is one that selects foods on the basis of minimal alteration of circulating glucose levels. Glycemic index (GI) and glycemic load (GL) are measures of the effect on blood glucose level after a food containing carbohydrates is consumed. Remember, a low glycemic diet is helpful to diabetics managing their blood sugar. Whether it applies to the rest of us or not is arguable. The push that all carbs are not created equal, and the creation of the low GI diet has propelled the South beach and high protein diets.

I believe this bread would suit those diets very well. However, I still like eating this bread because it has a very low sugar content, and yet, it was very palatable when eaten by itself. I have a lot of respect for Alvarado St. Bakery who has put so much work into producing this type of bread. Today is unusually sunny and in the 70s in Portland. I ended this long crazy week with w 5K run down the waterfront corridor. Portland weather is turning amazing and I may eat more bread because of this.

Here’s what I ate on Day 19 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted California Style	7 slices (34g)	630
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Diabetic Lifestyle	6 slices (34g)	480
Apricot preserve	3 Tbsp	150
Salami	6 Slices	180
Barney Â® Almond butter Vanilla + Espresso	1 Tbsp	95
Orange	1 orange	45
Quiche	1	250
Run		-444
TOTAL		1386

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April 20, 2017August 6, 2017 by Lin Carson

Sprouted Grain Bread Nutrition is AMAZING! Day 18

With more and more sprouted grain bread popping up on grocery store shelves, you may be wondering, is it really THAT much more nutritious? Yep. Not only are you getting more vitamins and minerals by the sprouting process, but you’re also getting a uniquely delicious bread!

Sprouted multi-grain bread.

Alvarado St. Bakery is serious about their spouted grain bread. So serious that they sprout their grains in filtered water for several days until they begin to grow, then they grind it down and make it into bread. By using this special process, they make their special sprouted line without the use of flour.

Alvarado St. Bakery is the nation’s oldest and largest cooperatively-owned organic bakery. Today, I had the opportunity to taste their Multigrain and Diabetic Lifestyle bread. It was slightly sweet, and very moist.

Why sprouted grain bread?

Sprouted grains helps to increase the availability of some nutrients. Sprouted whole grains are also easier to digest and contain essential vitamins, minerals and fiber. After I ate 4 slices, I felt so full I couldn’t eat anymore for another couple of hours. I really think this really is the best kind of bread, and being so high in protein, you feel full forever!

sprouted grain bread nutrition healthy diet

Breakfast sandwich with fried egg and skyr topped with romesco on Sprouted California Style bread from Alvarado Street Bakery.

My days’ worth of bread.

Here’s what I ate on Day 18 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Multigrain	7 slices (34g)	630
Alvarado St. Bakery Sprouted Diabetic Lifestyle	6 slices (34g)	480
Nutella	2 tbsp	200
Apricot Sugar-Free Jam	2 Tbsp	40
Dickinson’sÂ® Lemon Curd	4 Tbsp	240
Siggi’sÂ® Skyr Vanilla	1/2 C	60
Grilled Pork	2 oz	150
Coconut Cardamon Almond Cashew Butter	1 Tbsp	95
Egg	1	78
Orange	half	23
Romesco	2 Tbsp	100
Bike		-200
Total		1896

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April 16, 2017May 9, 2017 by Lin Carson

Why Raw Kale Can Make You Fat: Day 14

Sonoma Sun from Alvarado St. Bakery.

I woke up feeling very hungry, so I made a ham egg and cheese sandwich with Sonoma Sun from Alvarado St. Bakery for breakfast this morning. That really hit a spot. Sometimes it takes a good hearty sandwich to start the day right.

Someone critiqued my menu choice and said I don’t eat enough salad and raw green vegetables. I personally am not a salad person. I just find it too troublesome to prepare salad for my whole family, where I could prepare the same amount of nutrients and antioxidants by just blanching some green vegetables and serving it with delicious butter.

“But eating raw vegetables are good for you, all the fresh vitamins and antioxidants are killed in the cooking process.”

I hear this and see kale and spinach salads and smoothies gaining popularity these days. Did you know that eating raw broccoli and kale or other cruciferous vegetables could be harmful to your thyroid? These raw vegetables contain chemicals that block the production of thyroid, and can be harmful to people struggling with their weight, not knowing that they could have hypothyroidism. If you love eating raw kale and arugula, and you’re having weight and depression issues, go check out your thyroid hormone level, and stop eating these raw.

In addition, raw spinach contains oxalic acid which blocks iron and calcium absorption. In order for you to reap the benefits of iron from spinach, you have to cook it. Yes, that is why Popeye got his spinach from a can! I don’t know which health guru started this eating-raw-vegetable trend, but obviously, they didn’t study the science of nutrition. I did try to get a green smoothie the other day, but the lady behind the counter told me she couldn’t blanch my spinach before putting it into a smoothie. So I moved on.

Some other raw veggies that I turn and run from:

Edamame: Yikes! Protease inhibitors! They reduce your digestibility of proteins.
Mushrooms: Gross. Do you know what these are grown on? Horse manure.
Sprouts: Food safety alert!! The water that sprouts grow in are the best medium for E.coli. Why? Because the workers don’t clean their hands when they plant these sprouts. My stomach churn for people who eat organic sprouts because they are not chemically sanitized!

I truly believe that is why humans grew bigger, stronger and lived longer when fire was discovered. We physically used fire to make more nutrients available to us, and this killed all the necessary bacteria that made us sick. So let’s use some heat and logic, to make food more nutritious.

Now, back to bread eating. Bread, a perfectly safe food to eat that is rich in nutrients that are readily available.

My dinner tonight included steak, caramelized onions, portabella mushroom, asparagus and Puratos O-tentic Baguette. Note: my steak is always well done because its proteins are more easily digestible.

Steak, veggies and O-tentic Baguette.

Here’s what I ate on Day 14 of EB90:

Food	Portion	Calories
Alvarado St. Bakery® Sonoma Sun	5 slices (43g)	600
Puratos O-tentic Baguette	285g	750
Tillamook® Salted Butter	2 Tbsp	200
Mango		200
Egg	1	78
Tillamook® sliced cheddar	1 Slice	45
Smucker’s Sugar Free	1 Tbsp	10
Dickinson’s® Lemon Curd	2 Tbsp	120
Skippy® Peanut Butter	1 Tbsp	95
Orange	1 orange	25
Asparagus	1 C	27
Steak & Onions	3oz	271
Almond Breeze® Chocolate Almond Milk	1 C	40
Easter Candy		250
Run		-200
Total		2531

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