At the weekend I suddenly decided I was going to make some bread. Now I…
Making Homemade Bread
Making homemade bread is one of those skills I have never learned. I have attempted it a few times but somehow it never seems to work. I am a dab hand at soda bread, it is one of those recipes that is fairly foolproof and tastes delicious. I have fond memories of making it in Domestic Science classes at school and carrying it home proudly in a tupperware box. Domestic Science will now be named Cooking Technology or something else that makes it sounds very impressive but Soda Bread is still easy to make. It is one of the few breads that does not use yeast and I suspect yeast has always been my downfall in making homemade bread.
Yeast seems to be a delicate thing, you need to have tepid water to activate it. Too hot and you kill it, too cold and it won’t rise. It also seems that it does not like salt either, you need to keep it separated from the salt before you mix your loaf. To me it seems a bit like a highly strung diva, if you don’t treat it right the bread will not work. It also takes time to make a loaf, you need to knead it for ages then leave it to prove until it doubles in size. Quite how you know it has doubled in size is a bit of a mystery, do I need to use a ruler or just guess and hope? There is something mystical about the way the loaf rises when left alone.
The work doesn’t stop there, once it has risen it has to be kneaded again and left again to rise. At this point you feel it is a bit like watching a kettle, watching it will stop it rising. An hour later it is ready to go in the oven, a lot of work for a loaf. My hands were sore from kneading it, I should have used my mixer. The moment of truth, time to put it in the oven. I didn’t dare look to see how it was getting on, I just left it to its own devices. The smell of baking bread is gorgeous as it wafts though the house making you hungry. Finally it was time to see if it was ready, you need to bang the bottom of the loaf to see if it sounds hollow. It sounded fine to me, I am sure a seasoned baker would have been able to tell if it needed five minutes longer or not. Listening to the ring of cooked bread must be an art gained over years of practice.
The finished result looked nice, if if little crooked. I am sure with practice I could make a really smart looking loaf of bread. It was actually very tasty, if a little bit heavy. No doubt it was slightly underproved or overproved, but I was very pleased I actually managed to make a reasonable loaf. I think I may have to start looking for a bread maker for future attempts.
Homemade Bread Recipe
Homemade bread
Ingredients
- 500 g 1 lb 1 oz strong white flour
- 40 g 1½ oz butter
- 14 g 2 sachets fast action dried yeast
- 300 ml 10 fl oz tepid water
Instructions
- Add the flour and butter to a mixing bowl. Mix in the salt then add the yeast. Stir to combine
- Add half the water and mix with the rest of the ingredients. Continue adding the water a little at a time until you have a soft dough that is not sticky. You may not need all the water, or you may need a little more.
- Turn the dough onto a work surface and knead until it is soft and stretchy.
- Place the dough in a lightly oiled mixing bowl and cover the bowl with cling film. Leave to prove for around an hour until it doubles in size.
- Line a baking tray with baking parchment.
- Take the dough out of the bowl and knead again then shape into a round loaf.
- Place on the baking tray, cover with cling film and leave to prove again until it doubles in size.
- Make some cuts on the surface of the dough
- Preheat the oven to 220C, 425F, Gas Mark 7.
- Place the loaf on the baking tray in the oven and cook for about thirty minutes, until it is risen and golden and sounds hollow when the bottom is tapped.
- Place the loaf in the oven
I have to admit the bread was gorgeous with my freshly made tomato soup, perfect for lunch on a cold Autumn afternoon.
I love homemade bread. I cheat by doing mine in my breadmaker. My gran used to make all her own bread, always using fresh yeast from the baker. I don’t know if you can still get fresh yeast. #TastyTuesdays
I have no idea, I have only seen the dried version. I wonder if the fresh yeast works better or if its more temperamental
Mmmm I love homemade bread 🙂 This looks scrummy! I’d love to see you on #homemadethursday this week 🙂
Thank you. I will definitely pop over, keep forgetting!
That bread looks great! I am getting the urge to bake bread again after the summer, love soda bread too, so quick & easy! #tastytuesdays
I am definitely going to have to make some more. It takes ages but it seems to taste nicer somehow
Looks great to me! I make all of our bread in our breadmaker (cheat!), but have to try and have a go by hand soon! #tastytuesdays
I would love a breadmaker, I think it would take all the hard work out of it.
It is somehow lovely to make your own bread … if you have time at hand and don’t mind the kneading. The looks of your bread is somehow familiar. I can remember having some breads like this, too.
The kneading is the hard part, it seems to take ages. It was worth it though
Yummy, nothing like a slice of warm homemade bread with a big bowl of soup in this rainy cold weather! 🙂 x
It is definitely just the thing for this weather, hopefully the sun will come back soon
Thanks for the recipe, I will give this one a go. We only eat homemade bread, but that’s easy to do as I have a bread maker, but every couple of days I make a fresh loaf and that way I can be sure my family is avoiding all the nasties they put in the shop bought sliced stuff to keep it “fresh” for days on end lol
I really must get a breadmaker, everyone says they are great
You should get a breadmaker, they are so easy to use and quick, mine has a 2 hour and a 4 hour loaf (depending on how much time you have). Since I have been using one, my husband refuses to eat shop brought bread any more. It’s also nice to know exactly what is going into the bread you are eating.
My recipe for bread is:
500g flour
1tsp salt
2tsp fast acting dried yeast
1tbs sugar
2tbs olive oil
350ml water
Put all the ingredients into the pan, set the program on the machine and that’s it.
How easy is that? It certainly beats all that kneading and waiting for it to prove and wondering if it is ready. Will definitely have to invest
That looks really delicious I love to make bread 🙂 #TastyTuesdays
I forgot to mention, I noticed you didn’t have any sugar in your recipe. I was taught that you need sugar to feed the yeast which helps the bread rise. It may be the reason why the loaf wad a little heavy.
ooh I never knew that, will have to try that next time
I can almost smell it, yummy! Thanks for linking up to #tastytuesdays x
I absolutely LOVE homemade bread and my life has changed since I discovered Mel’s easy crusty bread from Le Coin de Mel. I kid you not, it is the easiest, tastiest bread. EVER. I cannot recommend it enough! Here’s the link if you’re interested:
http://lecoindemel.com/easy-crusty-bread/
#TastyTuesdays
oooh thanks, I shall definitely have a look at that and give it a try
A gorgeous homemade loaf, you can’t beat it.