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Mother Jones Daily Bread
"It'll move what's in ya!"
or
"Lets start a movement"

I became interested in the bakepacker system as a way to cook a variety of meals in the wilderness.  I've since researched other cooking methods which are much more weight and fuel efficient than the bakepacker.  I will continue to explore the uses of the bakepacker.

  It all started with the Basic Bannock (Mountain Bread) recipe found in the cookbook which was part of the BakePacker cooking system. 

It called for Montana Hard Red wheat for the flour.  The first couple of weeks that I baked the bread, I used a bleached white flour.  The bread was very boring.  I sometimes juiced it up with fresh fruits.  Still, there seemed to be something missing.

1 1/2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp sugar
1 Tbs vegetable oil
2/3 cup water

Understanding that whole wheat flour is better for a human than a bleached white flour is, I went to the health food store to get some ingredients.  A bag of whole wheat flour, and several small bags of different whole grains.  I've spent several months playing with the formula. Because my intentions were to cook this in a wilderness setting, I've been cooking the bread without the oil.  I've done it with and without, and haven't detected any difference in the outcome other than the bread is easier to remove from the cooking bag.   

The mixed grains:
whole oats, whole rye, whole buckwheat, whole flax, black sesame seeds, alfalfa, raw sunflower seeds without shells, raw pumpkin seeds

I like the flavor of rye, and this is the main grain in the mix. 
Whole oats look like rye and are not my favorite, so recently I've been working with rolled oats. 
Buckwheat...  just because, O-tay!
flax is good for the digestive system.  Don't use to much tho.
Sesame seeds make the bread look like it's got bugs.  It is a nice addition.
Alfalfa...  take it or leave it.
I noticed that the sunflower seeds give the bread a nutty flavor.  A Mother Jones Daily Bread without sunflower is just not the same. 
Use few pumpkin seeds.  Don't want to over power the bread with its flavor.  Finding the occasional pumpkin seed in the bread is a welcome treat. 

I've also entertained the use of Almonds and or other nuts to supplement the protein.
The last batch I made included gluten.  This is a wheat protein which helps trap gas which then makes the bread rise.  I don't use yeast, so I don't know how this would effect the bread other than give a bit more protein.

You should play with the proper grain mix on your own. 

  In a one quart ziplock bag..
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
1/2 to 3/4 cup of mixed whole grains
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
some salt
more sugar than the recipe says
 

Seal the bag with some air inside.
 Shake until the ingredients are mixed well.
Remove the air from the bag and store until needed.

I've mixed up to 18 bags at a time.  It takes 10 pounds of flour to do this.  I then store the bags in a safe place until I need to cook a bread. 

To cook...
Add water enough to make the dough moist, but not wet.  You will be baking it in a steamy environment, not a hot air oven.  The moisture stays in the bag.  Place on top of the Bakepacker grid.  I use 2 cups of water in the pot, but the instructions call for only one cup.  They say boil the water for only 20 minutes.  I boil for up to 1 hour to insure that the bread is fully cooked. 

With the tweaks that I've done to the recipe, I've found that it is not something that you want to carry into the wilderness and cook on a camping stove.  It would use up to much fuel which is a burden to carry anyways.  I've decided that I would cook a bread or 2 prior to an extended hike.  The bread should remain eatable for a few days.  I may even take a dry bread mix and the Bakepacker system into the the wilderness if there is the chance that I might be able to cook it on a campfire. 

REPORTS
Enjoying bread immensely and it was a hit w/ our infant who has been puking for three days between cutting teeth and a virus. He loved this bread and kept it down, too. I am eager to share this recipe with some of my friends.

Couldn't get my children to eat it, but I enjoyed it.  Got hard after 3 days, so I threw out what was left.

Got moldy after 6 days.

I can not believe how heavy it was.
 

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