I am still baking my own bread. It's been a year now. There is no need to tell me how amazing I am because I know, I really do know. The nice thing about making bread is that everyone is impressed by your talent and sacrifice, even though the two hours that I spend making bread are probably the most satisfying of my week. This is my indulgent Monday afternoon routine (which I will move to Tuesdays now that I tutor on Monday afternoons):
1) Put Baby down for his nap. Don't fall asleep with him. Push play on your audiobook.
2) Dump the dishes on the counter into the sink and put the Bosch mixer on the counter. Install the mixing bowl and the dough hook. Get out the shoe box of bread ingredients.
3) Combine 3 cups of bath-temperature water, 3.5 c whole wheat flour, 1 c white flour, 1 Tbs yeast, and 1 Tbs gluten in the bowl. Mix it for one minute into a paste and cover it.
4) Put away the wheat flour, the yeast, and the gluten. Empty the dishwasher and put the dirty dishes that used to be in the sink into the dishwasher. Start the dishwasher. Get out three bread pans.
5) Pour 1/4 c canola oil or apple sauce into a liquid measuring cup. Pour 1/4 of honey on top of that so the honey won't stick to the bottom of the cup. Pour a glob (about 1 Tbs) of liquid lecithin on top of that without touching it. Liquid lecithin has the grossest texture in the world.
6) Pour the goop from the liquid measuring cup into the bubbly paste in the mixing bowl. Add 1 Tbs salt and maybe a few Tbs of flaxseed meal. Turn on the mixer.
7) Start adding more white flour by half cups until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and it starts to look smooth. Add about 2.5 cups in all. Add 1 Tbs dough enhancer. Let the dough knead about 10 more minutes while you put the ingredients away, grease your bread pans, and unroll a sheet of plastic wrap. If you're feeling home-maker-ish, wipe the counters. Mop the floor for all I care.
8) Twist the dough into three equal size loaves. If it won't pick up in one big ball or if it sticks to your fingers, put it back in the bowl and add more flour. Cover the loaves with plastic wrap and put them on top of the fridge. Wash the mixer bowl and put the mixer away.
9) Sweep the cars and trains off the couch and into the car and train tub. Turn off the audiobook and read New York Magazine from cover to cover.
10) Put the loaves of dough into a cold oven. Set the temperature for 350 degree and bake for about 28 minutes or until the dough looks like bread. Let it cool completely before cutting it.
11) Kiss Baby on his warm sleeping lips to wake him up.
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4 comments:
What fun! Thanks for sharing. I've never heard of such a complicated recipe. You are definitely awarded the Homemaker of the Year medal!
Want to hear something funny? I wrote this down because this was my plan for this afternoon, and I failed on instruction number one. Yup, slept the afternoon away. Oh well, I'll make bread tonight. Nighttime bread uses a different recipe.
For those of us who have been wanting to ask for this recipe but haven't quite gotten around to it, could you be a little more specific about the waiting times please?
I love making bread too, but I'm not as dilligent as you. And yes please to more recipe details.
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