I want to let you know that I’ve been working very hard and making tremendous sacrifices for your benefit over the past couple of weeks. I mean, this was the kind of work that is way over and above and I did it all for you. I have been cooking and testing out homemade German bread from The Brot Box. I think some thank yous are in order and I might need a vacation.
If you’re not familiar with my brand of humor, I’m being cheeky with you. Baking and eating bread to test it out was a treat. I’m often asked to test out products to share here on the blog and I definitely say no more than I say yes, but when The Brot Box asked if they could send me some of their homemade German bread for me to try, I did not hesitate. (By the way, this is not a paid sponsorship. They asked if they could send me some bread to try out and review if I loved it.) For those who are not familiar with the word brot, it means bread in German. Knowing it was German was a tick in the win column for me right away, but once I learned that their bread is made with flour from German farmers, I had just one question – Can you get me German butter from German farmers, too?
If you don’t know, I grew up as a military brat, living on two different military bases in Germany from kindergarten through the end of 5th grade. We lived in tiny military housing apartments an ocean away from the rest of our family. Long-distance calls were so expensive that we would record and mail audio tapes back and forth to our extended family to keep in touch. There were a lot of downsides, but the upside is I got to spend the formative years of my youth in the Bavarian Alps.
The picture below is of “The Young Adventurers”, a group that was put together for military kids to hike, camp, swim, raft, and ski in Germany. I’m the little girl with the bright blond hair in pink shorts and a light blue jacket.
Through the years we lived in Germany, I had the privilege of traveling through Europe, touring castles and medieval towns, attending the most amazing Christmas Markets (Christkindlesmarkt), hiking in volksmarches, and skiing on some of the most amazing slopes in the Alps. I also became very fond of German food and, to me, it’s childhood comfort food every bit as much as macaroni and cheese.
And, one of the things I miss the most is German bread. When we traveled, I remember my mom packing a cooler with lunch meats, lettuce, mayo, and mustard, and then she’d have a bag full of brötchen, which literally means “little bread.” We’d make brötchen sandwiches for our picnic lunches and they were amazing. I also remember having Bavarian pretzels as big as my face after a 5k Volksmarch or at the Oktober Fest. They were always my favorite, warm, sliced along the bottom edge, and slathered with sweet and salty German butter. Those food memories hang with me and I get excited anytime I have the chance to eat authentic German food.
This is my mom and I in our dirndls.
All of this to say, the concept of The Brot Box was very appealing to me.
I tested out the Stone Oven Bürli Bread first. One of the things that stood out was the fact that it has 0 grams of sugar, 10 grams of protein, and 4 grams of fiber per serving. Typically, when you see those stats on American-made, store-bought bread, you want to prepare yourself for something that is dry and akin to cardboard. We’ve just gotten used to the idea that healthy bread is subpar bread.
This bread has a crispy crust with the perfect crackle and a fluffy, delicious middle. When Jeff first took a bite of one of the Bürli rolls to have with some homemade soup he said, “This is our bread.”
Here are some of the details about why The Brot Box bread is different…
The bread, rolls, and pretzels arrive frozen, you thaw them out, and bake them for warm, delicious, homemade German bread from your oven. And, everything we tried (for your sake) was delicious.
These are the Potato Carrot Rolls, which we liked warm with butter or used for sandwiches…
This is the Swiss Farmer’s Loaf, which we liked for toast and to have to dip in soup…
These are the Oktober Fest Pretzels, which, naturally, we liked as is or with some butter…
And these are the Brötchen, which were my favorite. It pulled me right back to sitting on the hood of the car by a mountain lake, eating my brötchen and salami sandwich.
Do you see how hard I’ve been working?! Ha, yeah, it really was such a treat and I am now a Brot Box customer.
I absolutely love bread and it’s one of my favorite things, but I have tried to dial back my bread consumption because of the bleached flour, added sugars, and empty calories. But, if I can get 10 grams of protein and 0 grams of sugar while eating an amazing roll with a salad or bowl of soup, I’m in. As Jeff said, this is our new bread and I hope you love it as much as we do.
If you’d like to try out The Brot Box, use the coupon code MISSMUSTARDSEED to get 5% off your order.
20 Responses
WOW! I’m going to order some of this bread. We love really good crusty bread, which is really hard to find around here. I’ve tried some other bread box services, but I eventually got tired of the same sourdough breads. Thanks for the posting about this with a discount code too!
We spent a total of seven years in Germany when my husband was stationed there . One of my daughter’s favorite memories is walking to the Backerei and buying bread and buying pretzels . I just ordered so I can surprise her with a taste of her past . Thank you !
We had a “Brötchen Man” who would set up in a food truck in our base and we would get treats and bread there regularly.
Thank you for your sacrifice. Above and beyond.
Thanks for the tip. It does look amazing.
Sure wish I could still eat glutinous foods like wheat and rye!
Thank you for your “sacrifice”!
How wonderful the bread looks…can only imagine the divine aroma as it bakes. American store bread is mostly awful and not really worth the calories…but this looks amazing.
Years ago we went on a Rhine river trip and the bread was fabulous…couldn’t get enough of it. Will have to try this.
Thank you for this “heads up” on something wonderful.
This looks delicious! I’m going to have to try it out! I wonder if they offer a sweet bread at Christmas time!
Where /how does one get German sourced flour?/
confusing as to where to type comments! Also, pls. when telling a story, don’t leave out details like: 2 diff. mil. bases (which/where?) …kindergarten-5th grade (years?) Bavarian Alps – I bet U mean AFRC? (Garmisch/Berchtesgaden/Chiemsee?) …I will ✓out BrotBox, but where’s the good old Bauernbrot or Bayerischbrot??
aloha & tschau,
Wally
We were at Garmisch first for two years (my dad was studying Russian there) and then Stuttgart (Patch Barracks) for four. I think 83-89 or in that range. It was truly a magical childhood even though we lived in a 900 sq ft apartment!
We are currently stationed in Hohenfels and have been previously stationed in Stuttgart and Bamberg. My husband is retiring next year and we’ll be returning to the U.S.. I know our whole family will go through German bakery withdrawal! It’s so good and inexpensive! Thanks for sharing this company.
I didn’t know anyone who have tried the Brot box
I’m glad you tried it and recommend it, I love fresh baked bread.
Thank you
You might try Kerry Gold Irish butter which is available at most major food stores. It’s similar in quality (Has less water than American butter and from cows treated with fewer antibiotics than American livestock.) to German butter and has a wonderful taste. Kerry Gold is more expensive than American butter but since it is more dense with less water the difference in price is not so great as it looks! Polish butter (Found at Polish specialty stores.) is good but I still prefer the Irish unsalted butter. Do not bother with the so called “premium European style” butter put out by a prominent American dairy which comes in a black package. It’s just a more expensive version of the same old watered down American butter.
Oh my, this sounds so good!
I spent a semester in Germany in 1980 and have such fond memories of that time and place (part of it in Bayern). That photo of you and your mom is precious.
The picture of you in the pink shorts was taken on the Pflegersee! My husband and I were just there last week — having met and married almost 20 years ago while working for the Army in Garmisch. This was our first time to return to the area and we especially enjoyed the hotel’s breakfast with its wonderful bread selections. Good to know about the Brot Box so we can order German bread to enjoy at home.
I placed an order but it did not have any option for adding the coupon to save 5%. I look forward to getting my order of breads! Yum!
This is just the type of bread my husband enjoys eating. My husband is part German and has relatives living in Germany whom we’ve visited several times. I’m going to order a box for a surprise Christmas present for him. Thank you for telling us about this.
I ordered Burli Rolls and Swiss Farmers loaf….they came today. And I immediately baked one of the Burli Rolls. They are indeed wonderful. When I ordered I thought the shipping was rather high, but when I opened the box I was impressed with the packaging…dry ice and (biodegradable) foam packing. We live out in the sticks, so I’m sure delivery took an extra day….the dry ice was gone. But the bread was still cool and most went right into the freezer. Thank you for your introduction to this bread. It was a splurge, but one my family and I will enjoy.