Cardienscarf

You don't get a big hole in the bottom of the bread where the paddle was and you get more of a loaf shaped loaf. I used to do mine this way and I think it cooked more evenly, made the house smell delicious and let me control the second rise.

Pulaski

OK thank you, that makes sense.

I am looking forward to bread that tastes of bread, so shape is not a massive concern, but as some will go to sandwiches, the hole might make that more difficult.

AmerLisa

I have to say that I've never had a loaf of bread (bagels, rolls, etc) that didn't become mildewed in a weeks time. I have to keep them in the freezer if I know I'm not going to use them in a week. Can't even imagine two weeks!

Now if we're talking milk....

scrubbedexpat091

Super Store and No Frills tends to be 2 cheapest in Vancouver, but neither have many locations, but the smaller independent markets tend to be fairly priced, I went to a place called Donald's along E Hastings near Nanaimo street when I lived in Vancouver and prices were decent, especially on produce.

Now I live an hour north of Vancouver, on the way to Whistler and we have 3 grocery stores, Save-On, Nestors, and Extra Foods (Loblaw brand, but independently owned)

Save-On in this town tends to have the best prices overall, Nestors has decent sales on some stuff, as does Extra Foods but the quality of meat and produce there is nasty, but they have the largest selection of frozen dinners and frozen foods, and smallest selection of fresh foods, and no bakery.

Wal-Mart sells a small amount of cereal, junk food, and some frozen foods along with milk and eggs and such, but no grocery section like a Super Wal-Mart.

Overall there is no place that is cheap in this town for food, but by the time you add in gas, car rental, and such to get to Vancouver, there is no savings going there, same with the border since its a 90 minute trek just to the border.

The only place to buy cheese at a decent price is Shopper's when on sale, everywhere else cheese is horribly pricey even for Canadian standards.

Sarah

My grandfather had a greengrocers shop in Lancashire and used to polish the apples after closing time. I'm thinking it's not polishing that makes them so shiny now though.

Zez

Do you have Trader Joe's? They are the cheapest supermarket we have found.

scrubbedexpat091

Not sure of all apples, but those from Washington are generally waxed with either carnauba wax which comes from a palm tree found in Brazil or shellac which is apparently created by some bug in Thailand.

Waxing of apples is not new, been done for quite a long time, the washing and processing before going to market removes the natural wax found on apples so it needs to be replaced to preserve the fruit longer.

shellac is also used to make jelly beans shiny.

mikelincs

It would bake as well, BUT, you get a tall square loaf with a big hole in it where the paddle has to come out, it's really a cosmetic reason but we do get a loaf shaped loaf.

Guindalf

While TJ's prices are reasonable, they are NOT the cheapest around! We make a trip to the nearest store about 90 mins drive away, about once a month or so and they have great food. However, Walmart is cheaper and, for anything that's not brand sensitive (like Heinz tomato sauce and Hellman's mayonnaise), the cheapest is Aldi!

The latter actually owns TJ's, BTW.

MarylandNed

It depends. Converting USD prices into GBP is only one half of the equation. Price is not the only factor in determining whether something is more expensive - you also have to look at disposable income. When I came to the US, my salary immediately doubled from what I was earning in the UK and so I had a lot more disposable income. So when I looked at prices in the US relative to my income, things were actually cheaper here than in the UK. And certain things such as gasoline are much cheaper whatever way you look at it. I don't concern myself with comparing prices anymore (that happens naturally over time). I just know that I'm much better off financially in the US.

HumphreyC

Once again - a groceries thread I disagree with; especially the wine bit but then i'm partial to Californian red.

I go back to the UK twice a year now for 2-3 weeks at a time. Can't say I notice any real difference in grocery prices once you correct for $ vs £ 'fair value'. Some things cheaper - some things more expensive. All seems to balance out.

The bread comments are all true though - too much sugar and the stuff lasts for a suspiciously long time.

HumphreyC

Yup - I read somewhere that any comment about relative prices without taking into account average wages is useless (this is how cost of living calculators usually work). Prices seem to track wages and you see that even on a very local level. For example the prices in my local 'Ghetto Basket' in downtown Fitchburg- where a lot of people pay with food-stamps- are extremely cheap. However go down the highway 30 mins to Worcester to a similar supermarket and they are quite a bit more pricey.

Hotscot

Even cheaper than WalMart?

mikelincs

My loaves never last more than 2 days, then I have to bake another one, fresh bread is soooooo good.

Bob

When you get the decent stuff, yes.

Walmart doesn't even have the cheapest anyway, that would be Wegmans with their $1 loaves....which aren't brilliant, but they're not terrible and good enough for PB&J's for the kids.

Though I've been making my own. Started with the no-knead recipe which is great, but the kids weren't a fan for sandwiches.

http://breadbaking.about.com/od/yeas...1loafbread.htm

That's a quick and easy one, doesn't take much time at all to put together, I do a double batch one evening and then bake it the next morning usually.

Anyway, what's with another donkeys old thread being revived? Not on it's last couple of days this time I suppose :/