Author Topic: I bake (almost) all of our bread!  (Read 4552 times)

mooshie

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I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« on: November 01, 2016, 03:17:34 PM »
This forum is really cool, and I'm just over here going, "I don't know that we're all that badass, but we're saving as much as we can."  So I often feel like I don't really have much to say, so I just read.

BUT I do usually bake all of our bread! :) (sometimes I don't feel well, so we use store bought bread)

I know, it may seem like an insignificant thing to do, but when you figure that it costs me about $0.25/loaf of home made bread (including utilities as best I can figure), and that the cheapest loaf of store bought bread usually runs about $1.00/loaf, and the fact that we go through at least 4 loaves a week, well, the savings can add up ($52/yr vs. $208/yr). Plus the kids like it better, and I like to think that it's healthier since there are no preservatives in it. But I usually just use white flour, so who knows if it really IS healthier? It's pretty darn good though!


terran

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #1 on: November 01, 2016, 03:19:35 PM »
Great job! What's your recipe?

mooshie

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #2 on: November 01, 2016, 04:44:52 PM »
1 3/4 C warm water
1 T salt
2 T shortening
3 T sugar
6 C flour

2 T yeast mixed with 1/2 C warm water, set aside to proof yeast while you mix the rest of the ingredients.

Mix first 4 ingredients and 3 C flour until well combined, add remaining flour 1 cup at a time (I usually add the yeast/water mixture with the 5th cup of flour). Knead 1-2 min to activate gluten. Cover, let rise in greased bowl, turning to coat until doubled in size (about 1 hour), punch dough down, let rise again (about 45 min), punch down. Turn dough out onto floured surface, divide in half. Shape 2 loaves, place in greased bread pans, cover, let rise until doubled in size (about 30 min). Bake at 350*F 30 min. Turn bread out of pans right away for easiest removal. Let cool on cooling rack, or serve right away for yummy, hot, fresh bread! :) Enjoy!

Note: I mix my bread in a kitchenaid mixer with the knead hook, and double the recipe (though it won't all fit at once, so I mix up 2 batches and put them together in a huge bowl to rise together) so I only have to make bread once a week. Once it's cool (several hours after it comes out of the oven) I slice all of it into 1/2" thick slices (18 slices per loaf), put it in bread bags I save from when I occasionally buy bread from the store, and put 3 in the freezer and 1 in the pantry. This bread can get moldy within 3-5 days if not used quickly since there are no preservatives. But, it never lasts that long around here! But that's why I always put the other 3 loaves in the freezer.

It does take a long time to have it completed, but only about 30 minutes of this time am I actually actively working on the bread. So I can clean, read, study, surf the web, workout, whatever while it's rising. I just set a timer, run into the kitchen wash my hands, punch the bread down, recover it and set a new timer, and go back to what I was doing. Though, I will say, I've got it down to a science. I can grab all my ingredients, measuring tools, and mix the bread without a recipe, and it only takes about 15-20 min to mix up 2 batches now. It didn't always go that fast! I've made it 100s of times by now!

If you try it let me know! I'd love to hear how it works for you. I remember the first time I baked bread. It was a mess! The bread was delish! But I remember feeling like it wasn't worth it. And now my kids cheer when I bake and look a bit sad when we only have store bought bread. LOL!

libertarian4321

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #3 on: November 01, 2016, 04:49:38 PM »
Plus, home made bread usually tastes a lot better than the store bought stuff!

ahoy

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #4 on: November 02, 2016, 09:36:51 PM »
I would love to bake all our bread too!  I don't, but I have cut back a lot of buying it.  I bought a second hand bread machine several months ago and usually get it to mix and knead and then I make buns out of it.

Last night for the first time I made bagels and was very impressed (not using bread machine).  I still can't believe they actually worked out.

Happy bread making!

hollyluja

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #5 on: November 03, 2016, 12:59:59 PM »
I do too!  Around here a good sourdough loaf is closer to $5, which just boils my blood.  I also have a sourdough starter from my parents that is older than me and nearly idiot-proof.

The sourdough/no-knead combo works around my full-time job schedule so well, that it literally takes ~10 min of hands on time, spread out over 2 days, to keep us in good whole-wheat preservative-free bread all week. 

I never thought of it as badassity, so thanks!

NV Teacher

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #6 on: November 03, 2016, 02:17:23 PM »
Good for you.  I grew up on homemade bread. There were 10 in my family so Mom made four loaves a day Monday-Friday.  That way we had enough to get us through the weekend.  She did all the mixing by hand in a big old pan and kneaded it on the bread board.  Lots of work for her but so yummy for us. 

mooshie

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #7 on: November 03, 2016, 02:20:47 PM »
Yeah, back in the day when there weren't so many mouths to feed around here I did the bread machine too. Sometimes I'd shape the loaf in a bread pan, sometimes I wouldn't. But we go through too much now for that to seem very efficient. I'd be baking bread at least every other day. It uses less utilities for me to just make a big batch and bake once a week.

And I forgot about the no knead sourdough breads! They're SO yummy!! But I have yet to get to where I'm happy with the process and results. Perhaps it's time I make another attempt. But you know, I'm a lazy human and it's so much easier to stick to what I know. LOL! But I think it'd be worth it because I love sourdough bread!

Would you be willing to share your recipe (and how to make a starter, I threw my out years ago)?

tonysemail

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #8 on: November 03, 2016, 02:44:29 PM »
I just got started baking bread a few weeks ago.
still trying out new recipes that don't require kneading.
a concern now is whether all this bread will make us gain weight.

mooshie

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #9 on: November 03, 2016, 02:53:30 PM »
LOL! I guess it depends on how much you eat. We usually just do one sandwich per day per person. Though occasionally we'll have a slice of bread with dinner. I certainly ate more bread when this habit was new though. That didn't last too long and had no ill effects for us.

dycker1978

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #10 on: November 03, 2016, 02:58:44 PM »
Bread slicing machine for only $76.  And its not a machine, just a guide...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAzU8QhIZ9M

happy

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #11 on: November 03, 2016, 03:06:19 PM »
Yay for home made bread! I've been baking all our bread for over 4 years now.  I use a bread maker and then bake in the oven in a bread tin.  I admit to falling to a bedpan and catheter in that I use a bread mix which I buy in 10kg bags. Shop bread here starts at about $2.50 when its half price on special, ranging up to $8 or so for a fancy pants loaf. Mine costs <$1. Sometimes I make it fancy by adding cheese/garlic and olives on top of a low round loaf and sometimes I make rolls.

mooshie

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #12 on: November 03, 2016, 03:20:41 PM »
Bread slicing machine for only $76.  And its not a machine, just a guide...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HAzU8QhIZ9M

LOL! That thing would drive me nuts! Though I did think, "Hey, I have that muffin stone!" While watching the video. heehee

hollyluja

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #13 on: November 04, 2016, 03:28:27 PM »
Yeah, back in the day when there weren't so many mouths to feed around here I did the bread machine too. Sometimes I'd shape the loaf in a bread pan, sometimes I wouldn't. But we go through too much now for that to seem very efficient. I'd be baking bread at least every other day. It uses less utilities for me to just make a big batch and bake once a week.

And I forgot about the no knead sourdough breads! They're SO yummy!! But I have yet to get to where I'm happy with the process and results. Perhaps it's time I make another attempt. But you know, I'm a lazy human and it's so much easier to stick to what I know. LOL! But I think it'd be worth it because I love sourdough bread!

Would you be willing to share your recipe (and how to make a starter, I threw my out years ago)?

The best bread book IMO is Chad Robertson's Tartine bread .  You can find the basic recipe online as well, but the book is important for understanding the signs to look for.  This is my favorite variation

He has a basic recipe for a starter, but honestly after years of trying on and off to make one, I think it's best to find someone with a good one and ask them for some.  It can take up to a year for a new one to become stable, whereas I can abuse and neglect mine for days on the counter and months in the fridge and it comes right back.  I've given many babies away on my local Buy Nothing Project Facebook.


DailyGrindFree

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #14 on: November 05, 2016, 04:27:12 PM »
Home made bread tastes a lot better. We own one of those bread machines and my wife makes bread. But not often enough. I guess she needs a little nudge. Or I learn how to use the darn thing. :-)

stashgrower

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #15 on: November 05, 2016, 11:59:43 PM »
OP: well done!

I bake sourdough. It took some time to get my starter-from-scratch stable, but more like a month than a year. I second the book recommendation.

mooshie

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #16 on: November 06, 2016, 06:45:51 PM »
Thanks for the book suggestion. I bake a lot more in the winter. It sounds like perfecting sourdough would be a good project this year. Mmmm....

nyxst

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #17 on: November 18, 2016, 09:25:14 PM »
I've been incredibly intimidated by the thought of making bread. So, I watched a bunch of YouTube videos. I watched different people make every mistake that the books were telling me about, and their bread STILL looked pretty damn amazing, so I finally decided to try making my own bread.... it is OUTSTANDING... I can't believe I haven't been doing this my whole adult life. My kids even do most of the work! Thanks for this thread and the inspiration! Tonight's loafs are Maple Walnut Wheat Sandwich bread... I doubt it will last through the weekend. So. Freaking. Delicious.

KCalla

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Re: I bake (almost) all of our bread!
« Reply #18 on: November 19, 2016, 09:49:17 PM »
And bread freezes wonderfully!  We slice it and then freeze any that we are not going to eat within 24 hours.  We just slide the whole thing into a plastic bag (twist tie style).  Then when we want some, we just "knock off" the number of slices we need.  If going to toast it, we don't even thaw it. 
If for sandwiches for work or travel:  just make the sandwich as you wish on the still frozen bread.  It will be thawed soon enough.