THE SHIRT FARMER .COM

This tool makes bread making a snap! My mother used to have a bucket with a crank. Oh did my arms ache when we made bread.....all that cranking and kneading. Not any more. Now making bread is fun!

Before we get started, I'd like to cover a few things. The recipe I share here should be considered a starting point. We all have certain preferences, and I have "built" this bread to fit my needs. I don't tend to like sweets, or anything too salty. My son doesn't like wheat bread, or any little hard seedy things in his bread (I do though!). I do sneak a little white wheat in for extra nutrition, and so far he hasn't detected it. I've tried more...and he's noticed, so I've cut back to a portion he didn't notice. The point is...this recipe reflects our taste.

After you've got the "feel" of breadmaking, I encourage you to adapt this recipe and locate others. King Arthur flour has a nice cookbook filled with recipes for all sorts of breads, crackers, bagels, pancakes......well, just about anything made with flour!

Also, each home is different. I heat with wood, and I hang my clothes to dry near the fire. The humidity in our home is most likely very different from yours. Many chefs use weight rather than volume when measuring, to account for humidity. I don't....I adjust by feel. The temperature, and even the weather will affect the length of time for rising also.

If I am making it sound difficult, I don't mean to. I just want to forwarn you that success probably isn't going to happen the first few times. Just like anything new, it takes a little practice. Don't be hard on yourself, and don't give up. Expect to have to give your dogs some healthy treats! That's what I do with my "duds". If you don't have dogs.....then the birds! The cost of ingredients is minimal, but the satisfaction after a few practice runs is well worth it. It is fun to say, "I make my own bread."

These are the ingredients for this recipe...I'll call it "Basic Bread"

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 Tbs maple syrup (or sugar)
• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup dry milk (optional)
• 1 Tbs melted butter (or oil)
• 1 egg
• 1/4 cup white whole wheat flour (optional)
• 2 3/4 cups bread flour (increase to 3 cups if omitting wheat flour) You can also use regular flour instead of bread flour....I just strive for increased protein in my bread, and bread flour has higher protein.
• 2 tsp salt

Now, remember...you can fiddle with this! How about substituting warm milk for the water and dry milk? If it's whole milk, you can try cutting the oil or butter out. That is the fun of bread making......just remember to jot down what you did. When your family says, "This is the best bread I've ever had!" you'll want to be sure you can repeat it!

Step one....waking up the yeast. Many people skip this part and just mix all the ingredients right away. I usually don't skip it. My son and I make bread together most of the time, and this is a fun step that reminds us how important "little things" can be. I pour the warm water into a bowl, stir in the sweetener, and then the yeast. We hang our heads over the bowl and wait.

pic. 1 - freshly stirred....................pic. 2 waking up

In both pictures do you notice a "crooked smile" formation? Just above the smile is a fairly blank area. In picture 1 there are a few specks of yeast, but in the second picture it is more cloudy or foamy looking. Those are actually little explosions of movement. It is like watching mini fireworks bubbling to the surface. You'll know the yeast is awake. There's no mistaking it!

If you're trying this with children, the wait is usually full of questions the first time around. What IS yeast? Why do we need it in bread? What is that smell?

Yeast is a single celled plant that feeds on starch and sugar. As they digest it, they release gas as waste. "Similar to our toots, right?" was my son's first comment! Ha-ha! This gas causes bubbles that get trapped within the dough and inflate it.... or, "rise" it. It is helpful to have a piece of bread for them to examine up close, looking for the signs of these bubbles. Yeast is dormant without moisture (compare to a seed). I could go on here....but perhaps you should have an encyclopedia ready if your children are inquisitive.

Okay, now you know your yeast beasties are alive and kicking. You can add all the other ingredients. Yeast isn't fond of salt, be sure to add that last. Now, let the mixer do the work for you!

Another quick note here....my mixer will only work with a one loaf recipe. If I try to do any more, the bowl kicks out. If you want to cook 2 loaves at the same time (it makes sense....you're paying money to heat that oven up!) just be aware this can happen unless you have one of those commerical sized Kitchenaids.

This is after about 3 minutes of mixing, with a brief rest part way through. It is sticky, stiffer than batter, but probably wetter than you'd think bread dough should be. This is because we'll be kneading it on flour later, and that will absorb into the dough.

Now put a litte oil in a large bowl and spread it around. Place the dough in. Cover it with a damp cloth or plastic wrap. I've done it with plastic wrap this time so you can see something more than a lump under cloth!

Place in a warm area. I put mine near the fire. Our house is usually about 65F during the winter (fluctuating because of wood heat), and bread dough prefers a warmer climate. A draft will dry things out, so avoid that. On this day, it was snowing outside.....barometric pressure has a say on how fast things will rise too! It took about 2 1/2 hours for it to rise to nearly double in size.

Don't worry, it doesn't always take that long! Now spread some flour and pull the dough onto it. It helps to have a little flour on your hands too....it's sticky. The first thing I do is squish it a bit. Squeeze out the bigger bubbles. Then I lay it on the counter, make a couple of fists and hammer away. Yes, just like hammering!

I expend a lot of energy during the day doing other things. I like to enjoy my cooking....not get tuckered by it. This method requires little muscle work. Once I've flattened it, I fold it, turn it, and do it again. Or let the children have at it! This is something they CAN punch! Do this several times. (3 minutes?)

I let it rest a bit while I clean the bowl out and re-oil it. Then I give it one more "massage". I form it into a ball, drop it in the bowl, then turn it over so the greasy side is up. All I can think of here is the old wive's tale of rubbing oil on your belly while pregnant to prevent stretch marks!

Now it goes back by the fire for another rising. (Some people skip this second rising and go straight to the final rising...see which you prefer!) The second rising takes less time. Once it has doubled again, repeat the kneading....err....hammering process. This time though, oil up a bread pan, and form a log rather than a ball.

This rising is much shorter. I usually wait about 20 minutes, then set the oven to 350. The bread goes in once the oven is fully heated and the dough had doubled. Hint....make sure that whatever you use to cover the dough isn't stuck down.....the dough may need to push above the pan rim. A smaller pan makes a taller loaf.

Bake for 35-40 minutes. Enjoy the aroma!

See the clear box in the background.....with the white "picket-fence"? That is a neat bread holder with cutting guide! No more crooked slices, and sandwiches two miles thick! (Unless I choose to have them that way!) And no more plastic bags.

If you have any questions, feel free to contact me.