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Vanessa Kimbell's Guide to Sourdough Bread

Understanding Bread's Influence on Health and Environment

Baking as Lifestyle Medicine is a transformative and systemic approach to systems change; because bread that nourishes is the foundation of good health, social justice, and a sustainable future
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Heath Care Providers: Training In Prescribing Baking As Lifestyle Medicine

The Magic of Black Barley – In Conversation.

16 May 2023 by Lucy Jennings

Black Barley is now available in the UK.

The availability of black barley, as facilitated by Hodmedods, is a pivotal moment in British baking – by providing an inexpensive source of polyphenols. Listen to how Hodmedods is revolutionising the accessibility of highly nutritious grains.

In this podcast conversation introduced by Josiah Meldrum, one of the founders of Hodmedods, you learn about the introduction of black barley and the remarkable work of Hodmedods, and their collaboration with Vanessa Kimbell, who uses black barley in her bread when Baking as Lifestyle Medicine at The Sourdough School.

Josiah and Vanessa chat about being part of a community and connecting to farmers, encouraging and educating people on how to bake and use barley flour and grains – they have been key in bringing about a transformative change in the availability and utilisation of black barley in the baking community over many years.

Josiah Meldrum discusses how their mission to promote sustainable agriculture and ensure fair compensation for farmers practising regenerative farming techniques aligns perfectly with the introduction of black barley and Vanessa’s work on creating bread that nourishes the gut microbiome.

Vanessa Kimbell, renowned for her work at The Sourdough School, recognised the potential of black barley and actively collaborated with Hodmedods. In the podcast conversation, she shares her insights on the specific recipes developed to maximise the delivery of polyphenols and specifically here anthocyanins (a sub type polyphenol that give the colours of red, purple, blue or black to certain plants) in everyday diets. The inclusion of black barley and it’s nutritional value in bread making, especially through fermentation processes like sourdough, allows the process to acidify the bread and enhance the breakdown of the grain, and this has been shown in studies on wheat to increase the bioavailability of phenolic compounds.

Connections: farmer, to miller, to baker and beyond

This podcast captures the interaction between Hodmedods and The Sourdough School and the wonderful collaboration and dynamic between Josiah Meldrum and Vanessa Kimbell. Their friendship and combined efforts, with the two businesses and their teams, and the farmers who have worked so hard, have made black barley more accessible to bakers all over the UK, enabling them to participate in a movement for nourishing bread actively. By incorporating black barley into their baking, bakers can actively support the health of their customers, their families and the environment, while championing fairness in the agricultural industry.

The conversation underscores the significant impact of Hodmedods’ work in promoting biodiversity and supporting farmers through their cooperative and social agro-economic movement. Their commitment over the past 20 years has laid the foundation for positive social change in the bread-making community and beyond.

As you listen to Josiah and Vanessa chatting, you can pick up tips, knowledge and ways to use black barley in your baking at home or in a bakery, with ideas on flavour and how to get the best out of this grain and appreciate the transformative role played by Hodmedods in making black barley available. It showcases collaboration as the key to change, promoting a healthier and more sustainable approach to baking while supporting the well-being of their communities.

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Vanessa Kimbell and Josiah Meldrum and Nick Saltmarsh  - Hodmedods and the Sourdough School
Supporting diversity in the gut and in the environment.

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All reasonable care is taken when writing about health aspects of bread, but the information it contains is not intended to take the place of treatment by a qualified medical practitioner. You must seek professional advice if you are in any doubt about any medical condition. Any application of the ideas and information contained on this website is at the reader's sole discretion and risk.

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Todays live for diploma students will be on 'How t Todays live for diploma students will be on 'How to engage your patient in the lifestyle changes of the BALM' with @vanessakimbell 

In their 6pm live session, we help keep our students on track with the syllabus and discuss the application of Baking As Lifestyle Medicine to the 6 pillars of Lifestyle medicine, applying the research papers, application of the Research, and how this ties into prescribing, along with guest lecturers, discussions and sharing knowledge.

#lifestylemedicine #health #functionalmedicine #nutrition #integrativemedicine #healthylifestyle #wellness #lifestyle #rcgp #dietitian #nutritionist #healthcareprofessional #holistichealth #healthyliving #plantbased #guthealth #naturopathicmedicine #selfcare #functionalnutrition  #naturopathicdoctor #foodasmedicine #foodismedicine #lifestylegoals #cpd #lifestylechange #mentalhealth #sourdough #sourdoughschool #bakeforhealth
BAKE, ANALYSE, EAT; RECALIBRATE & REPEAT. 📆 Th BAKE, ANALYSE, EAT; RECALIBRATE & REPEAT.

📆 The Sourdough School Clinic - Thursdays 8pm - for students of The Sourdough School 

✏️ In this weekly live session, we cover technical baking questions. Students can submit their Baking Record Sheets in advance of the session.

📋 We look at the details of our student's bakes - the specifics of the flour, timings and temperatures. Using our sourdough record sheets Vanessa will make suggestions on how they might modify, or recalibrate the next time they bake.

Follow the link in the bio to learn more about becoming a student at The Sourdough School 👆

#sourdough #sourdoughschool #bread #sourdoughlove #sourdoughlover #naturalleavened #leavening #levain #realbread #breadmaking #bakebread #makebread #makerealbread #learntobakebread #breadmakingclass #sourdoughstories #bakingforlove #bakingtherapy #sourdoughbaking
IBS AWARENESS MONTH Do you suffer from irritable IBS AWARENESS MONTH

Do you suffer from irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)? It can be tough to deal with the uncomfortable symptoms of stomach cramps, constipation, diarrhoea and bloating. But did you know that making dietary changes, such as incorporating sourdough bread into your diet, could help alleviate some of those symptoms?

Studies have shown that sourdough's long, slow fermentation process can reduce IBS symptoms. Plus, during #ibsawarenessmonth, we're exploring how adding different herbs and spices to your sourdough can further improve both the flavour and the digestion of your bread.

Let's talk about gut health, fermentation, and how sourdough can be a delicious and healthy addition to your diet. Join the conversation and share your experiences with IBS and sourdough.

#guthealth #healyourgut #healthygut #guthealing #guthealthmatters #letfoodbethymedicine #foodasmedicine #gutbrainconnection #nutrientdense #micronutrients #digestivehealth #nutritionfacts #microbiome #breadandguts #ibsawarenessmonth
THE SOURDOUGH SCHOOL – HAND CARVED WOODEN LAME THE SOURDOUGH SCHOOL – HAND CARVED WOODEN LAME

One of the biggest issues around using a plastic lame to score sourdough, of course, is that eventually the blade will become blunt and the lame could end up in landfill.  So several years ago I talked to my dear friend EJ about developing a lame with a replaceable blade. And he came up with this very beautiful hand carved wooden lame.

Very sadly EJ is no longer with us. Recently a friend of EJ’s who is also a wood turner and carver offered to make these again for us in remembrance of our dear friend.

Follow the link in the bio to our shop where you can find our full selection of wooden sourdough tools 👆

#sourdough #sourdoughschool #bread #sourdoughlove #sourdoughlover #naturalleavened #leavening #levain #realbread #breadmaking #bakebread #makebread #makerealbread #learntobakebread #breadmakingclass #sourdoughstories #bakingforlove #bakingtherapy #sourdoughbaking
The Baking As Lifestyle Medicine (BALM) Protocol The Baking As Lifestyle Medicine (BALM) Protocol

The current food system is broken at multiple levels, from the pesticides used in our soils to the emulsifiers and additives adulterating industrially-processed foods. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the bread we eat.  The figures reported by the UK Flour Millers say that bread is bought by a staggering “99.8% of British households” and that “the equivalent of nearly 11 million loaves are sold each day. Approximately 60-70% of the bread we eat is white and sandwiches are thought to account for 50% of overall bread consumption. Average bread purchases are the equivalent of 60.3 loaves per person per year.” 

Most bread sold is made by modern processing methods that strip heart-healthy whole grains of their nutrient contents, resulting in low-fibre bread with a high glycemic index. Over time, white processed bread can increase a person’s risk of insulin resistance alongside other lifestyle diseases.

We’re on a mission to revolutionise the bread making process at every level – from soil to slice. The rules governing this are laid out in our Baking As Lifestyle Medicine protocol. 

#lifestylemedicine #health #functionalmedicine #nutrition #integrativemedicine #healthylifestyle #wellness #lifestyle #rcgp #dietitian #nutritionist #healthcareprofessional #holistichealth #healthyliving #plantbased #guthealth #naturopathicmedicine #selfcare #functionalnutrition  #naturopathicdoctor #foodasmedicine #foodismedicine #lifestylegoals #cpd #lifestylechange #mentalhealth #sourdough #sourdoughschool #bakeforhealth
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