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Many people think baking your own bread is somehow complicated. But bread baking was invented a very long time ago. So, how difficult can it really be? It takes less of the cook's time than getting into the car, driving across town to a grocery store, standing in line, and buying a cheap loaf of inferior bread.

There are about ten million different recipes for bread, so we're just going to talk about the basics. One of the fun things about baking bread is that even if you make a mistake, the result is usually so much better tasting than anything you buy at the grocery store that everyone will think you are a genius. Bread making may not be the answer to life, the universe, and everything, but it isn't making nuclear bombs and destroying the rain forests either. It is a way to add a lot of value to the quality of your life, with just a little effort and planning.

Frugal HINT: If you bake a lot, buy yeast in quantity at a bakery supply store or large warehouse store. It is a LOT cheaper in bulk than the little packets sold in grocery stores. (Those packets run a buck or so for about 3 tablespoon fulls, and a 4 ounce bottle is $4.50 or more. But I just bought two POUNDS of yeast at a warehouse store for $2.50!)

Making Bread is easy as one-two-three-four! A basic summary showing how easy it is to make your own bread. Read the "Your Basic Bread Recipe" below for more detailed instructions.

Your Basic Bread Recipe This kind of bread takes more time than the "Quick Breads", because it has to "rise", but the actual involvement of the cook is about 15-20 minutes, max. Bread is basically liquid, flour, oil, and yeast. The various possible combinations of these ingredients produce the various kinds of breads. Once you understand the Your Basic Bread recipe, which is based on my own grandmother's recipe, feel free to experiment.

Begin by measuring into a large mixing bowl 1 cup of warm water -- and the emphasis here is warm, not hot, about the temperature of a baby's bottle. Add 1 tbsp of sugar, stir to dissolve. Add 2 tbsp of yeast (or two packets). Sprinkle the yeast onto the top of the entire surface of the water, so the little yeast

buds are all moistened. Let this sit for about five minutes. The yeast will begin to bubble and form a foam on the top of the water. What's happening is that the little "yeastie beasties" are busily going to work, doing what they do. It's called a bloom.

Add 3 tbsp of oil or melted (and cooled) shortening or margarine, 1 cup milk, 1 tsp salt (or less, depending on personal taste), and 2 more tbsp of sugar. Mix well, add three cups of flour and stir 50 times clockwise, and then 50 times counter-clockwise. At the end of this step, when you dip a spoon in the batter and raise it out of the bowl, the batter kind of strings its way off the spoon back into the bowl.

Add another 3 to 4 cups of flour and mix until the dough forms a good ball, coming away from the sides of the bowl. (You may need to add a little more flour.) Turn the dough out of the bowl onto a floured surface and let it sit for ten minutes (if you are in a hurry, you can skip this waiting time.) Knead the dough five to ten minutes. The more kneading, the nicer the crumb and the texture of the bread. The dough should be just a little bit sticky. If it is too sticky, however, sprinkle with flour during the kneading process.

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. Amen.

To knead the dough, flatten the dough and fold it over, pressing on it with your hands. Turn the dough sidewise and do the same thing. Flatten, fold, press, turn, flatten, fold, press, turn and so on and so forth. Get the kids involved here. You can say the Lord's Prayer while you do this, and build a little rhythm. If you do this, you will find that at the end of the kneading you will be experiencing a marvelous feeling of inner peace and happiness. (It really does work.)

When you have finished kneading the bread, roll it into a big round ball and put it in a greased bowl, rolling the dough around in the bowl so a thin film of oil covers the dough, and cover the bowl with a cloth or paper towels. Say a little prayer and thank God for this bread.

Let it rise in a warm place for about an hour. It should double in size (that's those little yeastie beasties doing their job). "Punch down" the dough. That is, make a fist and press it right into the middle of the dough. It will deflate. That's OK. It's what it's supposed to do. Let it rise again until almost double, for about another 30 minutes.

Divide the dough into two equal parts and let it rest for 10 minutes. Shape into loaves and put into pans. Let it rise again, until sides of dough reach the pan and the top is well rounded (30 minutes to 1 hour). Be sure to grease the loaf pans first. (Shortening is best for greasing any baking pan.)

To make dough into loaves: flatten it into a rectangle. The width should be about an inch longer than the length of the pan, the length should be about 12 inches. Fold dough in half lengthwise. Flatten into a rectangle about 15 inches long and five inches wide. Press down on dough with hands. Fold in thirds by overlapping the ends. Press with your hands. Fold toward you, 1/3 of the way at a time, pressing on each fold with the heel of your hand, so it is making a round cylinder. Roll back and forth. Seal each end by pressing with the edge of your hands. Smooth the loaf with your hands so it is even. Put in a nine inch loaf pan with the edge down.

Bake the loaves at 425 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes. The loaf pans should not touch each other or the sides of the oven. To test for "doneness", tap the crust, it should sound "hollow". It is doesn't, bake a few minutes more.

When done, immediately remove the loaves from the pans. Set on wire racks or across the edges of the loaf pans so that air can circulate around it. Let it cool at least 20 minutes before slicing and eating. Do not skip this step. If freshly baked bread is sliced too quickly, the inside remains damp and "doughy".

Some other tricks for bread making include: Brush the baked loaves with melted margarine or butter after removing them from the pan, to make a soft, tender crust. To make raisin bread, add one cup raisins to the dough when you knead it. For whole wheat bread, use half whole wheat flour and half white flour.

Variations: For sweet roll dough (such as for making raised cinnamon rolls), increase oil or shortening to cup, increase eggs to 2 eggs, increase sugar to cup, use 1-1/2 cups milk, reduce water to cup. Make into desired rolls after the second rising. For Dinner Rolls, prepare as sweet rolls, use less sugar, use 1 cup water and 1-1/4 cups milk. Dinner rolls bake in a 400 degree oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until golden brown. Form dinner rolls by rolling dough into small balls (after second rising), let rise a half hour, then bake.

If you are baking for your weekly needs, freeze anything you aren't eating right away. Use good freezer bags. Allow about 3 hours to thaw a 1 pound loaf of bread. Slices of frozen bread can be toasted in the toaster without thawing. Frozen rolls and biscuits can go directly from the freezer to the oven. Heat in a slow oven (275-300 degrees) for 10 to 15 minutes.

For Refrigerator Rolls, after first rising, put in refrigerator in tightly covered air-tight container. When you want to bake rolls, take some dough out of the container, form into rolls, let rise in a warm place, then bake at 400 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.

For Crescent Rolls, after first rising, divide dough in half. Roll each half into a circle, spread some melted margarine over the dough. Cut like a pie, and roll each piece up starting with the large end first. Let rise double, bake at 400 degrees until golden. Variation: in addition to margarine, spread dough with some kind of filling, roll up, let rise, and bake.

For another type of bread or hot roll dough that keeps particularly well in the refrigerator, add 1 cup mashed potatoes to the water and yeast, increase sugar to cup.

Cinnamon Rolls

Sweet roll dough -- sugar -- cinnamon -- melted margarine

Roll sweet roll dough into a rectangle, spread with melted margarine, sprinkle with sugar and cinnamon. Roll up and pinch seam to close (sometimes it helps to dip your fingers in water as you pinch the seam). Cut into 1 inch rolls. The best way to do this is to slice the dough with a thread or dental floss. Holding the string in both hands, slide it underneath the roll of dough, then cross your hands so the thread pulls through the soft dough.

In a 9 X 13 inch pan, mix together the following: cup margarine (melted), cup brown sugar, 2 tablespoons Karo white syrup. Coat the bottom of the pan with this mixture. Set the cinnamon rolls in the pan (don't crowd them). Let rise for 30 minutes or so. Bake at 350 degrees until done, about 20 to 25 minutes. This makes a cinnamon roll with a crunchy caramelized bottom. If you don't want the crunchy bottom, just place rolls in a greased pan to rise and bake. When you make this recipe, be sure to double it, or you won't have any left over to have with your coffee the next day.

Making Bread is Easy as One-Two-Three-Four! 1. Put 1 cup of warm water plus one tablespoon sugar in a mixing bowl. Add two tablespoons of yeast. Let sit for about five minutes.

2. Add three cups of flour, 1 cup of milk, dash of salt, 2 tablespoons of sugar, and 3-4 tablespoons of oil or melted (and cooled) margarine or shortening. Stir 50 times clockwise, and then 50 times counterclockwise.

3. Add another 3 to 4 cups of flour and mix until the dough forms a good ball. Turn dough out of the bowl onto a floured surface and let it sit for ten minutes. Then, knead the dough for 5 to 10 minutes.

4. Let rise in a greased bowl for about an hour (it should double in size). Punch down the dough. Let it rise again for 30 to 45 minutes. Divide into two equal parts and shape into loaves. Place in loaf pans and bake at 425 degrees for about 25-30 minutes.

Better Times Cookbook Home ... Justpeace Home ... Bookstore ... Better Times Webzine Home Active Dry Yeast, Instant Yeast and Compressed Yeast

Cake yeast, or compressed yeast, is fresh yeast. It is used by many professional bakers and can be found in the refrigerated section of some supermarkets. It has a short shelf-life of one to two weeks. Some pastry recipes call for fresh yeast, which comes in 0.6-oz squares. Active dry yeast is the most commonly available form for home bakers. It is available in 1/4-oz packets or jars. Store jars in the refrigerator after opening. Be sure to check the expiration date before baking. Instant yeast is a dry yeast developed in the past thirty years. It comes in smaller granules than active dry yeast, absorbs liquid rapidly, and doesn't need to be hydrated or "proofed" before being mixed into flour. "Bread Machine Yeast" is instant yeast that may include ascorbic acid, a dough conditioner. Yeast: The Basics

Yeast Conversion Rates

In commercial baking, precise measurements are key. Home bakers generally don't need to reduce or increase liquid amounts to compensate for the type of yeast used since the quantities are so small.

To substitute instant or bread machine yeast for active dry yeast, use 25% less instant yeast than active dry.

A 0.6-oz cube of cake yeast is roughly equivalent to 1-1/2 to 2 tsp. instant yeast or 2 to 2-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast. Bread Machine Baking: The Basics

Proofing Active Dry Yeast

Yeast makes carbon dioxide gas that acts as a leavening agent. Start by "proofing" or growing the yeast: this ensures it is active and re-hydrated (this step is not required for fresh or instant yeast): Sprinkle the yeast onto warm (110 degrees F/45 degrees C) water and stir to dissolve. The water should feel warm, not hot, to the touch. Yeast feeds on sugars--honey, molasses or refined sugar--by breaking down the flour's starches into sugar molecules. Set the yeast aside until the mixture resembles a creamy foam. This should take between three to eight minutes. If nothing happens, discard the mixture and try again with different yeast. Proofing Yeast

Mixing and Handling

Mixing: Combine the liquid and proofed yeast at the bottom of a mixing bowl. Add flour and salt. Some of the best breads are lean doughs, consisting simply of flour, water, yeast and salt. Baguettes and ciabatta bread are examples of lean doughs. Enriched doughs contain fat, whether in the form of butter, milk, oil or eggs. Challah, brioche and sweet roll doughs are enriched doughs. If your recipe calls for butter or egg yolks, mix the flour-water-yeast mixture to hydrate the flour and develop the gluten strands before working in the fat.

Kneading: Using a plastic bowl scraper, wooden spoon, or your hands, scrape the dough onto a liberally floured work surface. Kneading develops long elastic strands of gluten, or wheat protein, which trap the gases produced by the yeast. Kneading by hand is not a complicated process, but it does require some stamina. With the heels of your hands, press the dough down and away from you. Fold the dough over, turn 90 degrees, and repeat over and over until the dough is smooth and elastic. If you're using a stand mixer, knead with the hook attachment on low speed until the dough is elastic. Flour or oil your fingertips and pinch off a small piece of dough. You should be able to stretch the dough to a thin "windowpane" without tearing it. Kneading Dough

Shaping

Once the dough has doubled--this can take between 45 minutes and two hours, as enriched doughs take far longer than lean--deflate it and expel the gas. If you're dividing the dough into loaves or strands for braiding, use a sharp knife rather than tearing the dough. On a lightly floured surface, shape the loaves as desired: if you're baking in standard loaf pans, pat the dough into a rectangle to express the gas bubbles and fold up in three parts, like a business letter. Pinch the seam to seal. Place the loaves in pans or on a lightly floured kitchen towel. If you're topping loaves with seeds, now is the time to do it. Cover with a damp towel and let rise at room temperature while you preheat the oven. Forming and Baking Bagels Forming and Baking Baguettes

Scoring

Flour your index and middle fingers, and gently poke the sides of your loaf. The indentations should remain; if the dough springs back, it needs to rise more. It's a good idea to score the loaves to allow the gas to escape without bursting out the side and disfiguring the bread. Use a serrated knife--or a baker's lame, a curved razorblade--to cut diagonal slashes. Work quickly, cutting about 1/4-inch deep. Immediately transfer loaves to the hot oven.

Baking

The heat from the oven makes the gases in the dough expand, causing oven spring and releasing moisture. Baking stones help home ovens mimic hearth ovens by storing heat and moderating the temperature. Use a spray bottle to spritz the walls of the oven, creating a blast of steam for a crisp, chewy crust. Bake until the bread is well browned. Test for doneness by picking up the loaf with a hot pad and rapping on the bottom with your knuckles: the loaf should sound hollow when done. If it does not, or the sides or bottom of the loaf are still pale, return the bread to the pan and continue baking.