I can't believe how easy this was...

[Peanut Butter]

I just baked my first loaf of bread. I realize this must seem pretty ridiculous to you domestic gods/goddesses out there, but it was a pretty big step for me. I didn't want to go to the store to get some because I knew if I did I'd probably end up getting some unnecessary crap because I am terrible about impulse shopping. Also, I reaaally don't like to be in the store after about 8:00 am, because that's when they start getting crowded. Blech.

it's aliiiiiiiive - no seriously, I got all giddy when I checked on the dough and it had tripled in size. SO COOL.



I just used the recipe on the side of the flour package (King Arthur bread flour). I thought that making bread must be some really hard thing to do, otherwise why would people spend $$$ on fancy machines that take up counter space to do it?

I'm never buying bread again if I can help it. This stuff is amazing. Ingredients: flour, milk, honey, yeast, oatmeal.

[Norrie]

Looks awesome! 

I want to start experimenting in making gluten-free bread that doesn't suck. I'm not sure that it's humanly possible to pull off, but I can't do any worse than the folks who are selling it at Whole Foods.

[footenote]

You Go, Peanut Butter! There is no holding you back now. Anything you enjoy eating can be made at home. Woo hoo!

[sunflower_yellow]

This is so great!  It is SO satisfying to see that you really can do something for yourself!  I had the same feeling the first time I combined water and vinegar to clean my kitchen instead of purchasing Windex, or the first time I cut my hair and realized that I liked my style SO much better than the stylist's version.

I have been making all of the bread for our household for the past...  hmmm...  I don't think I've purchased a loaf of bread, tortillas, or pita breads in nearly three years?  I started off by making simple bread with white flour, then progressed to 100% whole grain loaves, and now I've moved on to a bread maker machine such that I can spend time on other kitchen tasks that give us super healthy, fresh food that would go for 500% the cost of ingredients in a health food store.

If you have questions on your bread-baking learning experiences, I would recommend The Fresh Loaf.  I received a lot of feedback and guidance as I perfected my skills from that community.

Congrats and enjoy!

[chicagomeg]

I don't have an ounce of bread baking skill in my body, as evidenced by dozens of failed attempts, but I am great at adding things to my robot (aka bread machine, but come on, robot is cooler!) and letting it work its magic. Hmm, maybe I'll have a toasty slice with some pumpkin butter as a reward after I wrap up this homework...Yum!

[CopperTex]

How long does homemade bread last? I'd like to try this, but not sure we go through bread fast enough for it to be worthwhile.

[oldtoyota]

Looks awesome! 

I want to start experimenting in making gluten-free bread that doesn't suck. I'm not sure that it's humanly possible to pull off, but I can't do any worse than the folks who are selling it at Whole Foods.

It is possible. Did you see the GF challah recipe I posted in the forum?

[Mynameisnotfluffydude]

That looks yummy!  You reminded me that winter is bread making season.  The oven doubles as a heater :)  DH makes beer so I have a standard honey-wheat recipe much like yours that I add spent grains to.  It's divine, crackly and crunchy.

Copper Tex, I portion and freeze the bread right away (wrapped in foil, then plastic) since it doesn't have preservatives and gets rock hard pretty quickly.  It toasts up nicely though and is almost as good as fresh out of the oven.

[Greg]

Hey CopperTex, it doesn't matter.  Slice it then freeze it, use as needed.

I learned about a year ago to make my own pizza dough and swear I'll never buy pizza again.

[Russ]

How long does homemade bread last? I'd like to try this, but not sure we go through bread fast enough for it to be worthwhile.

doesn't matter... it's so tasty your bread consumption will probably quadruple

really though, mine usually lasts a week or two in an airtight container, but then you get to do other fun stuff with it once it's stale... bread pudding, french toast, bread crumbs, croutons, stuffing...

a benefit of controlling the process is that you can also make smaller loaves. the dough will keep in the fridge or freezer for a long time

[nikki]

Woot! Congrats!

This post makes me sad though because I live in an apartment without an oven :(  I can't bake ANYTHING!

Does anyone have good experience with rice cooker breads and cakes? I know it's possible to make them, but haven't tried yet.

[Mr. Minsc]

Awesome!  The hardest part I've found with any type of cooking (or rather, anything new and unknown in life) is just getting started.  After that it's trial and error followed by eventual success!

Once your bread making roots take hold venture in to The Sourdough Thread.  You can thank me later. :)

[cheeselover91]

Congratulations!!! Bread is so much fun - you can also do bagels, tortillas, crossiants, soft pretzels, pitas... literally anything! One easy, cheap recipe I love is the "Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes" Master Recipe (available for free http://www.artisanbreadinfive.com/2010/02/09/back-to-basics-tips-and-techniques-to-create-a-great-loaf-in-5-minutes-a-day).

[Gerard]

OP, I like how you fit your namesake into the background of your bread pictures. And yeah, I completely agree with you that baking bread is way easier than you'd think from the way non-bakers talk about it.
wrt using up stale bread, another great advantage of home-made bread (and non-supermarket bread generally) is that it's still "good" even when it's old and dry (unlike supermarket bread, which when it finally spoils is downright nasty). And there are a few thousand years' worth of using-up-stale-bread recipes in the world (bread crumbs, stuffing, bread salads, frittate, toasts, grilled sandwiches, french onion soup, rusks...).

[Peanut Butter]

I don't have an ounce of bread baking skill in my body, as evidenced by dozens of failed attempts, but I am great at adding things to my robot (aka bread machine, but come on, robot is cooler!) and letting it work its magic. Hmm, maybe I'll have a toasty slice with some pumpkin butter as a reward after I wrap up this homework...Yum!

Ohh, thank you for reminding me about pumpkin butter season. I always buy several jars and stick them in the freezer to use year round. I would eat a brick if it was pumpkin flavored.

[Peanut Butter]

easy and fun and empowering and BETTER.

YES it tastes so much better. It even tastes really good with nothing on it. I think I'm going to have to make several loafs and freeze them because I'm just tearing through this one way too quickly.

[Peanut Butter]

I don't think I've purchased a loaf of bread, tortillas, or pita breads in nearly three years?  I started off by making simple bread with white flour, then progressed to 100% whole grain loaves

I want to learn how to make tortillas, but especially pupusas! I fell in love with them when I lived in California, but even when I go to the hispanic market here in town they look at me like I'm crazy when I ask for them. I must be pronouncing them weird.

[Peanut Butter]

OP, I like how you fit your namesake into the background of your bread pictures.

LOL, I didn't even notice that. However, I'm such a PB fiend that it would be hard to take a picture of my kitchen WITHOUT some sort of nut buttery goodness in the background.

My favorite way to have bread (fresh or stale) is French Toast/eggy bread, so stale loaves have never been a problem for me.

[Peanut Butter]

Once your bread making roots take hold venture in to The Sourdough Thread.  You can thank me later. :)

Oh geez, I already have a cat that I have to bribe people to feed and water when I'm gone...

[expatartist]

Oh thanks OP for posting this. I've got to get off my butt and start making bread again. Been getting out of the habit!

@Nikki I make bread in our toaster oven, they're a great substitute for a full-sized ovens in Asia, and you should be able to find one in Korea? No recipe, just flour, water, yeast, honey, and whatever else I feel like throwing in: berries/coconut milk/pumpkin/flax seed. You might be interested in this site: http://www.wokwithmebaby.com/ loads of fun (western) recipes from a rice cooker!

[chicagomeg]

I don't think I've purchased a loaf of bread, tortillas, or pita breads in nearly three years?  I started off by making simple bread with white flour, then progressed to 100% whole grain loaves

I want to learn how to make tortillas, but especially pupusas! I fell in love with them when I lived in California, but even when I go to the hispanic market here in town they look at me like I'm crazy when I ask for them. I must be pronouncing them weird.

Papusas are Salvadorian, not generically Central American so that could be why. I had to explain them to Mexican friends. They're hard to make well though (says the girl who needs a bread machine...)

[meadow lark]

This is my favorite bread recipe.  Makes a batard.  I used to bake a lot before I figured out I was gluten intolerant.  If you like cookbooks, you might enjoy The Tassajara Bread Book and Laurel's Kitchen.  Fun for the different time and culture of them.
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=13Ah9ES2yTU&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D13Ah9ES2yTU

I also love papusas!  But I just go to a Salvadorean restaurant for them.

[TrulyStashin]

Woot! Congrats!

This post makes me sad though because I live in an apartment without an oven :(  I can't bake ANYTHING!

Does anyone have good experience with rice cooker breads and cakes? I know it's possible to make them, but haven't tried yet.

You can do it!!!   http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=countertop%20oven&sprefix=countertop+ov%2Caps&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Acountertop%20oven

[ender]

Oh thanks OP for posting this. I've got to get off my butt and start making bread again. Been getting out of the habit!

Me too.

[SavingMon(k)ey]

Oh thanks OP for posting this. I've got to get off my butt and start making bread again. Been getting out of the habit!

Me too.

+2. I got ingredients last weekend and didn't get my butt in gear. I left a bread recipe book on the coffee table and my partner complained that I was just torturing her with the beautiful pictures of delicious bread on the cover...

[nikki]

@Nikki I make bread in our toaster oven, they're a great substitute for a full-sized ovens in Asia, and you should be able to find one in Korea? No recipe, just flour, water, yeast, honey, and whatever else I feel like throwing in: berries/coconut milk/pumpkin/flax seed. You might be interested in this site: http://www.wokwithmebaby.com/ loads of fun (western) recipes from a rice cooker!

I have a toaster oven I got second-hand from a friend (he had a convection oven), but there is no temperature control and it's a piece of ****. It really does just toast/burn things! I'd rather do without or be creative with what I have on hand (rice cooker!) than buy a whole new appliance.

Thanks for the link for rice cooker experimentation!

I don't think I've purchased a loaf of bread, tortillas, or pita breads in nearly three years?  I started off by making simple bread with white flour, then progressed to 100% whole grain loaves

I want to learn how to make tortillas, but especially pupusas! I fell in love with them when I lived in California, but even when I go to the hispanic market here in town they look at me like I'm crazy when I ask for them. I must be pronouncing them weird.

On making tortillas at home: super easy. Watching my boyfriend do it intimidated me, but I've done it twice this week already and can verify that he makes things way more complicated than necessary. And is super slow. ;-P   

Here's the recipe we use, which can be altered to show metric conversions or different serving sizes (setting it to 12 makes 8 tortillas for me): http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Chef-Johns-Flour-Tortillas/Detail.aspx?event8=1&prop24=SR_Title&e11=flour%20tortillas&e8=Quick%20Search&event10=1&e7=Recipe

Also worth noting that I just use margarine or butter, whatever's on hand, instead of shortening.

My tortillas never puff up like in videos I've seen, so maybe I'm doing something wrong, but who cares? They're delicious and soft still.

[jbird]

Wow, that looks delicious! I'm feeling inspired to try and make a loaf too.

[Gerard]

My tortillas never puff up like in videos I've seen, so maybe I'm doing something wrong, but who cares? They're delicious and soft still.

I've been making flour tortillas a lot lately, and the two puff-inducing things that work for me are (a) letting the dough rest for an hour or so (or overnight in the fridge) before rollling and cooking, and (b) 30 seconds or so on one side, then flip and cook till blistering and brown-spotting on the second side, then flip back to the first side and press down on areas of the tortilla with a flat spatula (or, for purists, a wadded up cloth).

Flour tortillas are so easy (especially whole wheat ones) that everybody should give 'em a try. And you can use the same dough to bake your own (very rustic) crackers!

[TrulyStashin]

I'm so grateful that I read this thread on Friday.  I made the tortillas from the link above on Friday night and they were delicious and ridiculously easy.   Also on Friday, I started the Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day from the link above and I am soooo happy!   I mixed the  bread on Friday night and put it in the fridge overnight as the recipe calls for.  On Saturday morning, I pulled off a hunk of dough, let it rest on the counter for an hour and then baked it.  Only two of us were home and we demolished it.  I make another loaf today with the same results.  I have another loaf resting on the counter now and will bake it before I go to bed in hopes that we will actually have bread for sandwiches.  So far, I've gotten three loaves from one batch of dough and it looks like I can probably get one more loaf out of the bowl in my fridge.

We are all ruined forevermore for any commercial bread or tortillas.

[Peanut Butter]

My tortillas never puff up like in videos I've seen, so maybe I'm doing something wrong, but who cares? They're delicious and soft still.

I've been making flour tortillas a lot lately, and the two puff-inducing things that work for me are (a) letting the dough rest for an hour or so (or overnight in the fridge) before rollling and cooking, and (b) 30 seconds or so on one side, then flip and cook till blistering and brown-spotting on the second side, then flip back to the first side and press down on areas of the tortilla with a flat spatula (or, for purists, a wadded up cloth).

Flour tortillas are so easy (especially whole wheat ones) that everybody should give 'em a try. And you can use the same dough to bake your own (very rustic) crackers!

It's been awhile since I started this thread, but I finally got up my courage and made my own tortillas - THEY'RE SO GOOD. I had a pack of store-bought ones in the cupboard, but now I can't even look at them, ha ha.



Note also how much more consistent my bread loaves have become. I've really pared down the recipe I use and the steps I follow, they take way less of a time investment now.

[wing117]

Looks good! I didn't know about this thread. I love bread making! I haven't tried my own tortillas yet, though. They look delicious.

For anyone who is worried about their loves going stale or making to much I use sterilized aluminium cans (think emptied canned corned, etc...) to divide the dough up into single or double serving sizes. Cap with plastic wrap and store in the fridge for up to a week (or maybe more, but honestly you'll be doing it every day and run out after a week! :) ). When you're ready for bread, just take it out of the fridge, preheat the oven, maybe let it rise for 20-30 minutes while your oven is preheating, and then cook for about 12-15 minutes (golden brown top). Instant single serving bread. You can also leave the bread in the cans and pack it in your bike to keep it from being crushed.

I'm a big fan of "Peter Reinhart's Artisan Breads Every Day" book as his recipes are setup to be put in the fridge overnight or longer as part of the rising process so it plays really well into the process I outlined above.

[AtlStash]

Anyone else try a bread maker? Got one from my Mother and love it. The bread seems just as good to me as standard oven baked. One plus is it uses a lot less energy than the oven.

[sleepyguy]

I have a sunbeam one that I got for $50, got it early last year and have yet to buy a single loaf of bread since.  Makes perfect bread every time!  another bonus is the house smells great after a fresh loaf is done :)

Anyone else try a bread maker? Got one from my Mother and love it. The bread seems just as good to me as standard oven baked. One plus is it uses a lot less energy than the oven.