Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles…

Miracles of miracles!

As some of you friends may know, I’ve always loved homey sorts of tasks: knitting (yeah, I know), sewing, cooking, gardening (especially veggies and berries), canning…heck, I even love cleaning (but not ironing! Sorry, Mother). But I’ve never shown much promise in the baking department. And I also know that this has quite a bit to do with the fact that I don’t properly follow baking recipes. Not to mention I have this funny dislike for the horrific mess flour makes. It’s a weird peeve I have…what can I say? Anyway, I decided it was time I got working on this problem I have with baking; considering the sad mess this country’s in lately, I figured I’d better learn to be as self-sufficient as possible.

So, just the other day I was searching for a really kick-a** bread recipe. Now, while I love bread (it’s possibly my favorite food, especially when its got butter, another favorite food, on it), I do not love making it. I think my biggest problem with it is the kneading part of it. I just never seem to do enough of it, even with the dough hook. That’s pretty sad, I must admit.

Then I found this recipe: No-Knead 100% Whole Wheat Bread on the King Arthur Flour Website! They also have a version for white bread too, for those of you who prefer white bread. Oh yes, and what looks like a gorgeous recipe for Brioche…

Straight from the mixer...

It’s so great; you just mix the ingredients together, mix it for a few minutes with your mixer, scoop it into your greased bread pan, let it rise, pop it in the oven, and bake! Ta-dah! Done. I know it sounds suspicious, but trust me, it works.

Okay, let me just say that I have no illusions that my bread is beautiful. It actually looks like unbaked brains. However, the bread this yields is truly the moistest, yummiest bread I’ve ever made, and I will be making many more loaves, so with practice, perhaps it’ll start looking like actual bread. 😉

...after 70 minutes of rising...

One note: I highly recommend letting the bread cool completely before cutting, as it is extremely moisty (yes, moisty) and when it’s warm, it crumbles easily. Of course it was impossible for us to wait for it to cool completely, but what was left the next day sliced perfectly. Yum! Look mom, I can make bread!

I can’t believe I did it!

Oh wait, that’s a different musical… 🙂

...hot from the oven!