Bread Making 102 - Easy 2,000 Year Old Bread

The other bread that Michelle taught me to make was this amazing bread called 2,000 Year Old Bread.  She got the recipe from Cha Cha Dave's 2,000 Year-Old Bread recipe. The video is a little annoying but he does a good job of illustrating how to make the recipe.

 

 

 

The problem that I have with Cha Cha Dave's recipe is that it's really for one loaf of bread.  Michelle didn't recommend me trying to double the recipe she said just make multiple batches.  I still didn't like this idea very well and that I had to wait 10 to 24 hours to use the dough.  I'm just not that patient.  SOOO, I found this awesome recipe at Lisa's Dinnertime Dish - Artisan Bread you can click on the link to get the recipe as well.

 

It's super easy I can make a batch for 2 big loaves or 4 smaller ones.  And I found that I could leave it on the counter for 45 minutes and then pop it in the fridge for another 45 minutes to an hour and I could use the dough to make my bread without waiting hours and hours before I could use the dough.  You can use the cornmeal to roll your dough in but I still prefer to use the whole wheat flour and oatmeal to roll my dough in.  See how pretty it looks? I do not use a pizza stone.  Save your money and use your cast iron pot.  I have the Martha Stewart enameled cast iron pot.  I only have the 8 qt. but the smaller pots work better because they cradle the bread while it bakes and helps keep it round and pretty.  Turn on the oven to 500 degrees pop in the enameled cast iron pot for 30 minutes to heat up then take it out, throw the bread dough in the middle, and pop it back in the 500 degree oven to bake for 35 minutes.  I like mine extra crispy on the outside.  If you don't, then just bake it for 25 to 30 minutes.

I hope you enjoy these recipes as much as I have.  Such a pleasure to make your own bread and it's so delicious!!!

Oh I almost forgot!  I don't like to use my Kitchen Aid to mix the dough, I actually just use a fork.  Yes it hurts my arm after a few minutes but I like the consistency much better. 

Bread Making 101 - Easy to Make Homemade Bread

Okay it's been a while since I attempted to make bread again after the disastrous attempts back in 2012.  I had tried again a few months ago and it was still a disaster.  I started calling some friends for advice with no success.  Then finally my BFF Michelle came for a visit and Voilà!

Here's the recipe she gave to me and as a side note it really does make a difference what your weather is like where you live. Here in rainy Washington I did need to add a bit more flour when it's raining outside.  The other thing that really helped me was to have Michelle teach me what the consistency of the dough should be after you knead it and before you start rising the bread.  HUGE difference to the textures of my breads.  This recipe is for making rolls as well as bread.

2 cups of warm/hot water (not scalding hot though)
1 heaping tablespoon of yeast
1/4 cup of sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt
4 tablespoons of vegetable or canola oil
4-6 cups of flour (depending on the humidity)

For the rolls I used all white flour but for the bread I did 1 cup of whole wheat flour that I use from my Deseret Industries food storage Hard Red Winter Wheat the ones from the #10 containers.  I ground up the wheat in my handy dandy Blendtec blender. I had forgotten that it has a grinder feature.  I do like to let the ground wheat rest overnight.  Maybe it's just me but the bread seems to work better if I let the wheat flour rest.

So I put 2 cups of warm/hot water in my Kitchen Aid bowl and add the yeast.  I like to use the small whisk to mix the yeast well and then add the 1/4 cup of sugar and whisk again. Then I let is sit somewhere warm for 5 to 10 minutes to activate the yeast.  When it's foamy, add the egg, salt and oil mix with the dough hook and start adding the flour.  I add 1 cup of wheat flour and 3 cups of white flour.  Then I start adding more flour as needed. 

 

The dough should be sticky but stretchy and it should come off the sides of the bowl.  Michelle told me to knead the dough for about 10 minutes or so.  Then take it out and put on the clean surface with a very SMALL amount of flour.  If you put too much you will see how the dough gets too hard and you will have a brick of bread instead of a soft moist bread.  Knead it with your hands for a few more minutes until you can make a ball like the picture above.  Place in an oiled bowl and cover with plastic around the dough not the bowl, see picture above.  Cover with a kitchen towel and put in a warm spot until it doubles in size or for approximately 45 minutes.

 

Punch the dough down with your fingers then cut the dough in half with a knife.  Roll into logs and place into a sprayed bread pan.  Let the dough rise again for another 45 minutes.  Cover only with the kitchen towel.  Once it doubles again, and what you won't see in the picture above was that, I cut a slit on the top of my bread.  Then I baked in a 350 degree oven for about 15 to 20 minutes.

 

If you're making rolls when you get to the part where you cut the bread in half you would just make golf or a little bit bigger than golf ball size and place on a sprayed cookie sheet and then let them rise 45 minutes.

 

The results are beautiful, healthy and delicious bread.  You will not want to buy bread or rolls ever again!

Easter/Spring Home Decor

Here's just a couple of really cute and easy crafts that I actually finished in time to set out before Easter comes and goes.  Enjoy!