Breadbaking

My friend Sarah, who is not a blogger, gave me a recipe for the most delicious bread. At first, I was really hesitant to make it. In the past, when I’ve made bread, it was with the help of a bread machine. This recipe doesn’t need a machine. Even if you think you can’t make fresh yeast bread, try it. It’s really a whole lot easier than it seems and it doesn’t take very much time.

First, let me tell you how much time you are going to need to do this. Then, you can decide if it will work with your schedule. You will need 5 minutes or so to assemble the ingredients and get started. Then, you will need to wait 15 minutes (check facebook, read a few blogs). When you come back to it, you will need about 7 minutes of active time. Then, you will walk away for an hour. After the hour passes, you will either spend 10 minutes preparing to bake, or just a moment to stick the dough in the fridge until you are ready to bake it.

Still with me? Okay, here is a list of the items you will need to bake this awesome, delicious bread. Trust me, you can pronounce and recognize everything in here.

Water – 3 cups
Honey – 2/3 cup
Yeast – 2 Tablespoons
Olive Oil – 2/3 cup
Salt – 4 teaspoons
Whole Wheat Flour – 8 cups

That’s it. Just six ingredients you probably already have. Yes, you can substitute white or unbleached flour, but it will change the taste and nutritional value. Yes, you can also substitute your favorite oil (canola, corn, soy, etc), but it will also change the taste. Make it once by the recipe, then mix things up the way you want them.

Okay, so let’s get started. I make mine in my KitchenAid mixer. If you don’t have one, you can do this by hand. First, you have to activate the yeast. To do that, you need to get it into warm liquid. So, in a large bowl, pour in 3 cups of warm water. I use it hot straight from the tap. Add the honey to the water and stir until it is well mixed.

Sprinkle the yeast over the water, stir lightly and walk away.

Read a couple of blogs, send out a tweet or two, or fold some laundry if you must. Come back in 15 minutes. The mixture should be foamy looking and not at all appetizing.

Pour in the olive oil and add the salt. Stir the mixture. (Note: If you are using a mixer, now is the time to add the kneading tool to the machine and turn it on “stir”.) Add the flour, stirring after each cup, until it is all in there. Now you have the basic dough.

Next comes the kneading step. If you are using the mixer, just step up the dial to “2” and keep an eye on it while it kneads. If you are doing this by hand, turn it out on a lightly floured surface and work it with your hands. You will knead the dough for a full 5 minutes. Don’t skimp here. Whole wheat flour does not have as much gluten as white flour. If you skimp on the kneading, the bread will be heavier and not rise as much. It will still taste fine. It just won’t be as light and airy. If you have never kneaded dough before, here is a link to a tutorial from Allrecipes.

After you knead the dough, it’s time to let it rest and rise. You will need a large bowl (or a dutch oven). Pour a little oil in the bowl and spread it around. You can also use no-stick spray. Put the dough in the bowl and roll it over so that the oil coats both sides. Cover the bowl with waxed paper or a clean towel. Leave it sitting out on the counter for an hour. Walk away and go do something else.

After an hour, you are ready to bake the bread. However, if it is a weeknight and you want to finish tomorrow, you can do that, too. If you want to bake it later, just punch down the dough so that some of the air gets out. Then, put it back in the bowl, cover it loosely with plastic wrap and put it in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake it. If you are going to bake the bread now, preheat the oven to 350°. Punch down the dough and divide it into four equal portions.

Quickly shape each piece into a rounded loaf shape and put them into oiled loaf pans.

Let them rise for 30 minutes while the oven is preheating.

Pop them in the oven and bake them for 30-35 minutes, until the top is just as brown as you like it. We like ours a little crustier, so they bake the full 35 minutes.

Pop them out of the baking pans and let them cool on baking racks. I store mine in gallon size freezer bags. You can keep a loaf on the counter for a couple of days. If you want to keep it longer, store it in the refrigerator. There are no preservatives, so the loaves will not stay fresh as long as store bought bread.

See? Easy peasy.

Now, want to mix things up a bit? Yeah, me too. What if you want fresh bread for dinner each night with enough left for sandwiches the next day. Go ahead and divide the dough into four equal portions. Bake one. Put the other three into individual gallon sized zipper bags and store them in the refrigerator until you are ready to bake them. Bake them one at a time. The dough will stay fresh in the refrigerator for a week. When you are ready to bake a loaf, pull it out, knead it for a moment or two, put it in the oiled pan, let it rise and then bake it.

What if you need hamburger buns? Take one of the four portions and divide it into 8 pieces. Roll them into balls and squish them flat. Put them on a baking pan (or stone) and let them rise for 20 minutes or so. Bake at 350° for 12-15 minutes. Or, turn those 8 pieces into breadsticks.

How about pizza dough? Take one of the four portions and divide it into 2 pieces. Keep stretching and pulling the dough until it is the diameter of your pan. I bake mine on a stone. Bake for 8-10 minutes. Use it like you would a store bought pizza dough. You can also freeze the baked crust.

Hungry yet?