The Humble Honeyloaf

Written by World Smithy

Overview

Quite possibly the most infamous food found in a family's ration provisions for any given week is the humble Honeyloaf. Infamous, that is, for starting many squabbles at dining room tables over who would get the first slice, of course. Due in part to the very nature of the Elysian Bastions that most find themselves in, sugar, and for that matter anything sweet, is an exceedingly rare commodity to behold.

A Honeyloaf, as one would expect, is made with the honey harvested from the apiaries found in the agricultural rings near the center of an Orbit that still hosts an artificial sun. This honey is then packaged and shipped across one of these cities to a specialized, and often subsidized, baker. These bakers, sometimes called Sweetsmiths or Sugarmasons, use the honey in various confections; the most common among them being the humble Honeyloaf.

The bread itself is made like any other, but its dough is infused with globs of honey at the outset. Because of the added honey, the dough tends to stick to bread molds during the baking process. To combat this, Sweetsmiths will coat the pan in butter so it is easily removed. This process allows the honey to caramelize on the outside of the bread touching the mold without potentially damaging the end result. The tops of these loaves are often drizzled with a small amount of honey after baking, leaving a glaze that reflects even the dimmest of light.

History

The beginnings of the Honeyloaf stretch back some 1,900 years, to that period of time immediately after The Empyrean Schism had come to a thunderous close. As a result of that nearly two century long war, much of the landscape of Vasara was annihilated - which included most of its arable land. Innumerable plant species are thought to have gone extinct, but the important one in regards to the Honeyloaf is domesticated sugar cane. With much of the land being unusable for agriculture, and sugar no longer farmable, the remnants of civilization turned to other sources of sweets.

With the construction of the artificial suns at the center of the Elysian Bastions, agriculture was once again able to take off. Farmers began to keep Wissian Honey Bees in large apiaries in order for their crops to be properly pollinated. A byproduct of this, as one could already guess, is honey. The keepers of the apiaries began to work with the established governments of the Orbits to provide sugar, in one way or another, to the people once again. The rest, as they say, is history.

A humble Honeyloaf, adorned with an additional honey-butter drizzle, as a treat.

Item type

Consumable, Food / Drink

Rarity

Very Common

Weight

1 lb

Dimensions

8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches

Base Price

Free - They are a part of the Family Ration Program the remaining states have adopted.