Capturing Making Bread

Some years ago a friend of the family started making this amazing bread and she was kind enough to pass the recipe around the family.  This recipe is fantastic when you are feeling lazy and slacking on grocery shopping because it requires a grand total of 6 ingredients (flour, yeast, sugar, butter, sugar and water).  The only odd ball necessity is a baguette pan,  well worth the 15 bucks.  In addition to being yummy, easy even for the non-kitchen inclined, the bread is impressive to dinner guests and a scientifically interesting process, which I decided to photograph extensively (can you say "dork"?).

 To start in a small bowel mix one package of dried yeast in 1 cup lukewarm water with 1 tablespoon of sugar.  Mix and let sit for 20 minutes.  In a few minutes you will begin to see bubbles.  That is the yeast breaking out of its inactive state and begining to digest the sugar making BUBBLES (or carbon dioxide) and alcohol (baked off in the oven).

Hint about the yeast packages.  Store the extras in the refrigerator (normally sold in sets of three).

In another, bigger bowel combine 4 cups of white all-purpose flour and 1 teaspoon salt.  Recently, if it is for us, and I want something a little healthier I will use 2 cups white flour and 2 cups whole wheat.  If you are trying it your first time, stick to the white.  The mixture pictured above has some whole wheat flour in it.

 Next, mix the dry flour mixture with the yeast/water mixture and ADD an additional 1 cup of lukewarm water.  At this point you will definitely notice the doughy texture.  Place the bowel in a semi warm area, I like to use our sunny kitchen counters.  Also place a towel over the bowel to help keep the heat in.  Leave this mixture for 2-3 hours.  Apparently this allows the yeast to digest the starch in the flour yielding sugar (yum) and release more CO2. 

For my next exam I have to memorize like a billion biochemistry/metabolic pathways; including ones on carbohydrate metabolism.... You know the breaking down of glucose, glycolosis, Kreb's cycle.  Also the whole gluconeogenesis, triglyceride break down, bilirubin formation.  It is going to be a chemtastic weekend... All I have to say about that is baking bread much more enjoyable.

Okay, getting back to the bread.  After a few hours of sitting it will magically look like this... 

Punch it down a few times (not too much) and re-cover it with the towel. 

 

 I usually leave the bread for another hour or so so that it can rise a second time.  

Now melt 1 tablespoon of butter and brush half of it on the baguette pan.  Also add salt a bit of salt on the bottom of the pan.  Divide the dough in half and place on the pan.  Brush the rest of the butter on the dough and sprinkle a little more salt on the top.  Now its ready for the oven...  

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.  The bread should look like...

THIS!  Dan and I got a little overzealous before I snapped the photo.  We enjoyed the bread with some yummy meatballs.

AND!  Photo of the week:

 My mother is not holding up this Monster can just because she is addicted to Monster, but she needed it to do some explaining to the Jamaica, Queens train conductor.  After boarding the train to New York from Glen Cove the conductor handed my mother back her ticket and before registering that she needed it for the transfer in Jamaica she folded it up and threw it in her can to be thrown away!  And so we prepared ourselves for the explaining we were going to have to do in Jamaica, keeping the can as proof.  My mother maybe got one sentence into the story when the conductor interrupted with "where did you get on?" while tucking the seat check into place.  My conclusion is that he really must have heard it all before.  

To conclude the picture of the week, it was fantastic having my mom visit.  We ordered take-out, played lots of scrabble, and greatly enjoyed seeing Memphis.  The music was fantastic!