Bread, Bread, Bread....Yummy!!!

"3" Wonderful Bread Recipes...

Bread Making Basics by Connie Q....the best!

Before Pinterest, I spent hours searching for recipes or videos on things that I would like to make, but didn't know how to do. I love to bake. The one thing I was not very good at was making bread. I wanted to learn more about it and see if it was really as hard as I had made it out to be.  Well.... boy was I wrong.  Like everything else it's just a technique.  Once you learn the technique, bread making becomes so easy. I have become proficient in making bread and rolls thanks to the wonderful contributors from Pinterest and a wonderful website by Connie Q.  I hope you try a few of these recipes.  They are easy and taste so good.  Your family will be amazed at your talent and you will be amazed at how easy it really is...enjoy!

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One of the first websites I came across for learning how to make good bread was ConnieQ Cooking...http://www.connieqcooking.com/how-to-bake-bread.html  Her tutorial is wonderful. Her technique is easy.  Please check it out if you are a novice and would love to make some good homemade bread and cinnamon rolls.  Her website does not have any photos of the finished product, but has 4 videos showing you step by step how to make bread from start to finish.

Here are links to You Tube Videos by Connie Q

Bread Making Basics..... by ConnieQ

http://www.connieqcooking.com/how-to-bake-bread.html

Bread Making (Part I)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PGPhlfn-Lww 

Bread Making (Part II)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hmwu2mjPZQU

Bread Making (Part III)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVdaS0Xq32Y

Bread Making (Part IV)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZdT6SzWy0u4

Thank you Connie... I finally learned how to make good bread from your techniques!!!

Crusty French Bread

My husband's 60th birthday was in March.  I decided to have an Italian dinner for family.  I started with a Chicken Alfredo Lasagna recipe from Pinterest.  I made a great green salad and then I added Crusty French bread.  I found the recipe on Pinterest, of course.  This was without a doubt the easiest recipe I have come across to date.  The bread turned out beautiful.  I made several loaves and the family loved them.

There's nothing better than warm crusty French bread with butter.... yummy!!!!

I found the bread on Joan's blog, http://chocolatechocolatemorechocolate.blogspot.com/

She has a great tutorial on how to make this bread.  She does a wonderful job showing you step by step. 

Check out her blog for this great, easy recipe..... you won't be disappointed!

http://chocolatechocolatemorechocolate.blogspot.com/2012/03/crusty-french-bread-recipe-no-knead.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+ChocolateChocolateAndMore+%28Chocolate%2C+Chocolate+and+more.%29&utm_content=Google+Reader

4 Ingredient Over-Night Bread

Last week I came across a bread recipe on Pinterest that intrigued me.  It used only flour, yeast, salt and water.  How simple!  It did however need to be cooked in a cast iron dutch oven.  I didn't have a cast iron dutch oven so I was on a quest to find one.  The gal on the blog was using a Le Creuset 5.5 quart dutch oven.  These puppies are really expensive.  I found this ad for them on Amazon.  The best price is $34.73, which is not terribly bad.  I do use mine all the time.  It's great for soups, stews and of course 4 Ingredient Over-Night Bread!

According to the recipe you have to leave the dough on the counter overnight.  So last night I mixed up the dough which took about 2 minutes and went to bed.  This morning I baked the bread in my new cast iron dutch oven.  OMG!!!! this bread is unbelievable.  It is like an artisian bread.  It is crusty the way I like it and wonderful. 

Here's how it turned out...

This bread was without a doubt the easiest thing I have ever made.  The taste is out of this world.  The recipe came from http://simplysogood.blogspot.com/2010/03/crusty-bread.html  Janet has many variations to make from this simple recipe.  Check out her blog for more ideas on adding different ingredients.  I checked out all the comments on her blog and everyone is in agreement that this bread is wonderful.  Some of the variations are...sharp cheddar, Rosemary, lemon and gruyere and cranberry, orange and almond.  You could make your own variations.

Here is the recipe from Janet's blog...

Crusty Bread

3 cups unbleached all purpose flour

1 3/4 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon yeast

1 1/2 cups water

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together flour, salt and yeast.  Add water and mix until a shaggy mixture forms.  Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set aside for 12 - 18 hours.  Overnight works great.  Heat oven to 450 degrees.  When the oven has reached 450 degrees place a cast iron pot with a lid in the oven and heat the pot for 30 minutes.  Meanwhile, pour dough onto a heavily floured surface and shape into a ball.  Cover with plastic wrap and let set while the pot is heating.  Remove hot pot from the oven and drop in the dough.  Cover and return to oven for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes remove the lid and bake an additional 15 minutes.  Remove bread from oven and place on a cooling rack to cool. 

This recipe is a keeper!

Until next time....enjoy!!!

"Life's short....eat dessert first!"