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Here at the Food on Fridays carnival, any post remotely related to food is welcome—though we love to try new dishes, your post doesn’t have to be a recipe. We’re pretty relaxed over here, and stories and photos are as welcome as menus and recipes.When your Food on Fridays contribution is ready, just grab the broccoli button (the big one above or smaller option at the bottom) to paste at the top of your post. It ties us together visually.Then fill in the boxes of Simply Linked to join the fun!
Food on Fridays with Ann
During the school year, one of the teachers at our homeschool co-op brings bags of day-old Panera bread to share with the families. Apparently Panera donates all they can to organizations that feed the hungry and still have bread left over, so this man picks up giant plastic bags full of miscellaneous bagels and baguettes for co-op families to enjoy.Even after everyone helps themselves to the bread, plenty of loaves remain at the end of the day. My kids’ classes were scheduled late in the day, so we would load up some bags with the treasures and tote them home to enjoy.We’d slice loaves for French toast, regular toast or sandwiches.We’d prepare baguettes with butter and garlic, sticking them in the oven for a few minutes to accompany our pasta dinner.We’d invent appetizers, slicing baguette thin and topping it with bruschetta, cheese, or tapenade.We’d cube some of it to dip into cheese fondue.We’d cube even more and freeze for later use in casseroles or bread pudding.During the school year, thanks to Panera, we eat like kings…and gain about ten extra pounds.Now that the school year is ending, our source for free Panera bread will end, as well.Our family grieves a bit, but our waistlines can only improve.
I recently read of some middle class urbanites that take Panera’s trash bags from the dumpster behind the store at night because they are filled with left-over breads. At first I read in disgust. Then it started making a lot of sense – provided you didn’t get sick! They do this at grocery stores too.
Alas, I buy my breads inside the store. I know you’ll miss that bounty.
You’re safer buying your bread in the store. I don’t *think* our bread guy is taking these bags from the trash bins. He says the workers there hand them to him, knowing he comes each Sunday and Monday at closing. But…his story could be a cover-up for dumpster diving. 🙂
I just sliced and toasted the last of the cinnamon raisin bread this morning. Sigh.
It really is a shame to let any thing go to waste, and bakeries who will share with co-ops and others are a blessing to many. In our home town we had a bakery that gave truck loads of rolls, breakfast treats and other dainties to our local Rescue Mission and to homeless shelters. I hope you can find the nice teacher next school symester and again enjoy the free bread.
I do feel kind of bad that the bread can’t make it to needy families, but they claim they have already given away a bunch to organizations that distribute it and still have an abundance. It must be hard to estimate how much bread you’ll need in a given day. It’s not like they can whip it up in five minutes and have it ready to sell. Bread takes time, so they have to guess. Some days, they must just make way too much.
It does certainly give us something to look forward to when school starts up in the fall! 🙂
As you say, there are so many things you can do with day old bread – and what a lovely source of it you have during the school year! It’s so nice that the bread isn’t being wasted as well. Thank you so much for hosting, Ann. Have a lovely weekend!
I’ll bet there are boundless things I could be making with it. I have two loaves left from this week, so I’m going to cut it up and freeze it, and then that’s it until fall.
Thanks for joining Food on Fridays–so glad to have you here!
I guess it is good that I live 75 miles from the nearest Panera Bread!
It’s hard to resist all those carbs…this is why I’m a jogger. And even with regular jogging, I’ve still gained.
It really is for the best to have a summer break from all that bread. 🙂
I don’t even know about Panera. Is it a restaurant or bread shop or both? Nor do we belong to a homeschool group — maybe food is a good incentive, aye?
* don’t forget the homemade croutons too 😉
Blessings.
Well, I should have linked out to Panera Bread. It’s a restaurant where you go stand in line to get soups, sandwiches, salads, and baked goods (breads, pastries, cookies, brownies). You pick up your food and take it to the tables. So it’s like a nice lunch place (or light dinner) where you don’t have to leave a tip. 🙂
We have a Panera — but it’s 30 minutes away. Loved it (when I’ve been there anyway).
I think it’s wonderful that the bread continues to be passed down, landing at last in the freezer then the casserole dishes so not one good crumb is wasted.