I don't know if it's a regional thing, but, when I was growing up we referred to inexpensive sammich bread as balloon bread. I always thought it was because Wonder Bread wrappers had red, blue and yellow spots, which looked, to a kid, like balloons. I later found that balloon bread referred to any inexpensive, light and airy bread.
I usually buy high quality wheat bread in those dense, short loaves. Yesterday, I needed bread, and went to the Quickee Mart. I got a loaf of what I had considered medium quality wheat bread -- a long-loaf brand that I had bought several times in the past few years.
Well, it seemed pretty light weight. Then, when I held up my PBJ to eat, the bread offered no substance to retain the sammich's shape. And, it required little chewing. WTF?
So, this bread fits airy the definition of balloon bread. Have other breads been losing substance, as well? Trying to stay price competitive?
Geez, the price of bread! OK, you expect to overpay at a Quickee Mart. That loaf was $2.29. My usual bread is about $4.59 at a grocery store... but, fortunately, they sometimes have them BOGO priced, which makes them not bad, and good candidates for freezing.