By Cherie Langlois/ photos by Jean M. Fogle
In my quest to de - tension from lifetime ’s inevitable anxieties , I ’ve dabbled in various relaxation techniques , from meditation to yoga . I sniff lavender , essay to avoid o.d. on caffeine and stroke my whiz computerized axial tomography each day .
I unwind by taking long country walk with my click and figure out out my aggressions by attacking weeds in the garden .
But on lowering winter day , when the garden slumber under mulch and the rain dampen my motive to exercise out of doors and only multiple cup of coffee stand between me and hibernation , it ’s intimate , originative , repetitive activities that comfort me like nothing else .
Maybe I ’ll rug hook as the wood stove casts its flickering glow or knit a scarf while hear to the sweet strains of vacation music .
Or perhaps I ’ll warm up the solar day with one of my preferred winter activity : hit bread the one-time - fashioned way , by paw .
For me , nearly every part of this sensuous process do as acheap flesh of relaxation therapy :
I ’m suddenly transported to Paris , savoring fresh moolah in a boulangerie without a care in the world .
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I know . You ’re a busy somebody encumber with too many responsibility : a job , a farm , fry , pets , a skirt jail cell phone and e - mails to answer . You do n’t have time to run off baking bread , specially when you may snatch a factory loaf at the storehouse .
Sounds to me like you could habituate some bread - based therapy , too .
Basic Bread IngredientsOur world is full of a astounding and mouth - watering variety of breadstuff , thanks to the Earth ’s wonderful diversity of culture .
The list stretch longer than a baguette .
To give rise their clear-cut flavors and textures , the myriad lolly of the humanity incorporate many different ingredients , including butter , honey , raisin and testis .
However , all breads that use yeast as a leaven or rising factor divvy up a foundation of four , down - to - earth factor ( check the lengthier list on entrepot - bought , bagged simoleons and see if you may even identify every component ) .
Flour
Flour , created by milling cereal grain ( usually wheat ) through a succession of grinder , forms the bulk of a boodle formula . In the realm of bread - baking , though , not all grain and flours are created equal .
wheat berry , first cultivated some 10,000 years ago in Asia , contain higher concentrations of a protein known as gluten than grain like rye whiskey , corn and barleycorn .
Gluten give dough its snap , allowing it to immobilise gasses unloosen by the yeast and make a light , springy loaf .
Bread made entirely from low - gluten grains wo n’t stand up well , if at all . Gluten content also varies according to wheat type and the domain where the pale yellow grew .
unlike wheat flourswill affect the nature of your lolly , too . Regular , all - purpose , blank flour has had most of the alimentary bran and wheat source remove . It ’s been bleach with chlorine gas to give it a bright - blanched color , while more eco - favorable , uncolored all - purpose flour has a creamier cast and — I call back — a better mouthful .
According to Maggie Glezer ’s in - depth bread rule book , Artisan Baking ( Artisan , 2003),all - purpose flourscontain about 10.5 percent protein . Bread flours , on the other hired hand , have around 12.5 pct protein , which translates to a higher gluten content and more elastic bread loot .
Unlike white flour , whole - wheatflour keep on all part of the wheat berry kernel , including the healthy bran and straw germ ; however , its protein / gluten message can vary .
This easy - dark-brown flour impart a hearty predilection and rustic look to staff of life , but using it as the only flour will make for a stickier dough and denser loaf , so many recipes call for combining it with unbleached white flour .
in conclusion , if you favour that your bread come from sustainable origin , look for constituent flour milled from pale yellow grown without conventional synthetic fertilizer , pesticide or genetically modified ejaculate .
Salt
While it ’s possible to concoct bread without salt , add a little salinity to the flour has several important functions : It enhances flavor , hold the barm ’s legal action so the moolah uprise equally , and help remit that inevitable clip when the bread turns hard and stale .
Yeast
Yeasts are miniscule , one - celled fungi that live all around and within us : on plant life aerofoil , on our skin , inside our bowel and in salt H2O .
Wild yeasts , of which many species and nervous strain live , also be adrift in the air travel ; in fact , a warm mixture of flour and water supply left to sit for several minute will get down work , thanks to the floating yeast it snares ( this is one way to createsourdough - eccentric breads ) .
K of years ago , humankind may have accidentally discovered yeast ’s leavening superintendent - magnate in this way .
stick in barm into warm water and then to flour , and thisliving organism immediately begin fermenting the sugars present in the dough(some recipes call for sum up cabbage to “ prey ” the yeast ) .
ferment produce ethyl alcohol along with carbon dioxide gas , and the gas pedal create tiny house of cards that become trapped in the lucre ’s stretchy gluten , take in it expand in sizing , or rise . Without yeast — or another leaven agentive role , like baking soda — the leave bread would turn out as flat as a tortilla .
The fermentation begun by the barm contribute the loaf with a spongelike grain , delicious odor and real - bread taste perception . Most home bread bakers practice commercially made , regular , dry barm uncommitted from grocery stores in low packet or more stinting mass sum at health - food for thought markets and warehouse store , like Costco .
water supply
The summation of water to flour have the gluten to work , make a protein internet to capture carbon paper dioxide produced by the yeast .
Voila , a dry admixture of flour and salt becomes kale . Any safe drunkenness water will do .
How to Make BreadMany people seem to call back earn bread from excoriation is a unmanageable , complicated affair that requires either hours of hard workplace or an expensive lucre motorcar to get the job done .
Beginner ’s Bread
This easy recipe makes two small , tasty loaf while introducing you to the joys of bake loot . Try it once , and then palpate free to try out with different flours ( such as interchange whole straw for one-half of the bread flour ) , herb toppings , and texture- or flavor - better additive like beloved and milk . output : 2 loaves
ingredient
PreparationPour the warm weewee into a declamatory mixing bowl and sprinkle with barm . Set aside to proof for 5 to 10 minutes .
whip the barm / water mixture and bring salt . arouse in the first two cupful of bread flour 1/2 cupful at a time .
Continue adding flour until a dough forms and it becomes too unmanageable to stir .
Place dough on a thinly flour cutting board and rub down in more flour until it loses its stickiness . Knead for about 10 minute until smooth and elastic .
situation dough in an oiled bowl and turn to coat , traverse with a damp towel , and let grow in a warm , draft copy - free area for about one hour or until doubled in size .
Punch down the shekels , knead for several proceedings , watershed and shape into logs to accommodate two oiled or buttered rectangular bread pans ( 9 ” x 5 ” x 3 ” ) .
Cover with a damp towel and let rise for another 30 second or until doubled in sizing .
Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
In a small bowl , whisk together the ball and H2O . Brush just the top of the loaf of bread with glaze .
Place Pan on the centre rack of het up oven and broil for approximately 30 minute , until the crust looks prosperous and the loaf vocalize hollow when tap on the bottom .
Remove loaves from pan and plant on wire wrack to cool . Bon appetit !
Not so . If the pioneer with their simple - bone kitchen utensils , wood stoves and dawn - to - crepuscule study schedule could make staff of life , so can you . Just trace these basic step .
Mix the factor
Many recipes , including our Beginner ’s Bread recipe , call for sprinkle dry yeast over warm water ( about 110 to 115 degree F ) and leaving it for five or 10 minutes to check it ’s still active , a unconscious process know as “ proofing . ”
You ’ll know the barm cell are still alive and kicking when the mixture begin to guggle and froth .
If it does n’t , the yeast may be past its termination date — in a word , dead .
You ’ll also see recipe that instruct cooks to add yeast directly to the dry ingredient , then mix in water of a somewhat warm temperature ( around 120 to 130 degrees F ) .
Still others use the “ sponge ” method acting which involves mixing up a hitter of water , barm and flour first . Whatever proficiency you use , be careful not to kill your barm by overheating it .
After the yeast proof , whip the mixture and add the salt . Then stir in the flour about 1/2 cup at a prison term until the mixture becomes doughy and pulls away from the side of the bowl , becoming too unmanageable to put forward .
Knead the Dough
Next to devouring bread fresh from the oven , knead sugar is the part of bread - baking I savour the most .
For some years , I used a abide social for kneading , and for the great unwashed with arthritis , carpal tunnel or other issues making it difficult to work dough , this micturate a great tool .
Then along number my daughter , and the search for flirt with activities we could partake in together began . Not only did I have as much fun playacting with dough as she did , but I lie with the soothing question , the quiet and the workout it gave my hands and arms . I never went back to my mixer .
staff of life dough needs plenty of rub down to stretch and warm the gluten .
Again , stretchy gluten strand help becharm carbon dioxide produced by unrest , making the gelt come up and yielding an airy loaf of bread with a moist , sponge - like crumb . Too little kneading can result in a bland , impenetrable , chewy bread loaf of bread .
To begin :
I care to give the dough a punch once and for a while for good measurement . Keep work until the dough feel smooth and elastic , about 10 bit ( or as specified in the formula ) .
Let It Rise
Set your fragrant bread ball into an oiled bowl and continue with a moist towel to keep a dry crust from forming on top .
line up a draft - free spot to range the bowl so the barm can make the boodle rise . A temperature of 75 to 85 academic degree F crop well for most kale ; cooler temperature wo n’t hurt the barm , but will slow the rebel appendage .
During winter , I change state the oven onto its lowest setting for about 15 minutes , switch it off and put the dough within to spring up with the door ajar ( commend not to untimely cook your yeast ! ) .
Depending on elbow room temperature , the rising time will run one to two hours , go out you free to do other chores .
Allow the rising lolly to duplicate in size , but no more — let it inflate out of control can cause the pitiable yeast to suffocate .
Punch and Shape
After the first rising , punch the cabbage down with your fist and give it a quick kneading to redistribute gas formed during fermentation .
Now the moolah is quick to mold .
Visit a European bakery or pour over a beautifully photographed book likeBread : The moolah of the World and How to broil Them at Homeby Christine Ingram and Jennie Shapter ( Hermes House , 2003 ) , and you ’ll encounter a delicious variety of lucre physical body , from elementary round boules to braided hallah .
For starters , try fashioning an easy orthogonal loaf by cast or rolling your simoleons into a logarithm - like shape to fit out the size of your goat god . Place the dough in the grease pan with any wrinkle on the bottom .
arise Again , Glaze and Slash
Cover your loaf with a moist towel and allow the dough to rebel again for 30 minutes to an 60 minutes until no more than double up in bulk . Before you bake , bread recipes often suggest brush on a glaze of some kind , such as egg blanched , yolk or Milk River , to give the loaf of bread a lustrous , golden crust and varnish in wet .
Slashing or contract the loaf with a sharp knife lends a bumpkinly touch and also help the bread continue its shape during baking .
Bake , Cool and Eat !
Preheat your oven to the recommended temperature and when it ’s live and ready , carefully slip your pans onto a eye rack .
Start out cooking your loaf of bread for the amount of time suggested by the recipe , but keep in mind these times may vary .
spritz some waterinside the oven once or twice while the scratch cooks can aid mimic the steamy conditions found in professional bakers ’ oven .
To test for doneness in the clock time - honored way , remove the loaf from its pan with oven mitts and tap the bottom with your fingerbreadth . If the loaf sounds hollow , it ’s done . dispatch your lettuce to a rack to cool , but do n’t forget to sample a gash while it ’s still warm ( not a job for my category ! ) .
Bread - devising is a acquisition that anyone can learn , but it does take practice and solitaire .
reject feeling too defeated if , after following a specific recipe to the letter , your bread looks different from the complete loaf of bread fancy in the cookbook .
Baking bread is an imprecise science , with many variables affect the outcome and plenty of elbow room for error . For example , while broil today , my daughter and I accidentally drop orchis glaze between the wampum and pan ; as it cooked , the glaze glued the clams to the pan .
While we managed to pry one loaf out intact , the other stuck tight and came out minus the bottom crust . But you live what ? It still tasted Godhead .
So put on your best-loved medicine , relax into the moment and enjoy every part of the bread - making experience — even your mistakes . They ’ll learn you to be a dependable baker and , best of all , they ’re eatable .
