I made calzones Sunday night and I came to the realization that I simply don't make enough bread - even though it's painfully easy.

Mix the dry yeast in about a 1/4 cup of warm water with a dash of sugar to feed the yeast. Let set until frothy. Mix in with 3/4 cup of warm water, 16oz of unbleached AP flour, a slug of olive oil, 1 tsp sea salt, and 1tbsp on sugar.

Mix all in stand mixer fitted with kneader attachement and let 'er go. Add more water or flour depending on the consistancy. It should spring back when pressed and not be sticky.

Place dough in bowl with another slug of olive oil to coat. Place in warm area in kitchen. My kitchen is normally pretty cool [because of ME} so I place the bowl inside of a larger bowl lined with a heating pad set on the lowest setting

Let rise for about 1 to 1.5 hours. Take out of bowl, pull flat and fold in threes (like a letter going into an envelope.) At this point you can either place dough in fridge or cut up for use.

Any other bread bakers out there (no bread machines, cowards!)

I use my bread machine all the time. Don't understand why it makes me a coward. Do you walk to work, pu$$y?

I'm not a big fan of bread, but now that we've got the good stand mixer, making more doughs is definitely somewhere on top of my list. I'll have to keep this post in mind.

You use a stand mixer? You freaking WUS! In order to make respectable bread, you must grow your own grains, grind them by hand, and knead the dough with your bare hands!



And you damn well better be pulling that plow with a donkey, mister!

You use a donkey? Wimp.

During the winter months I bake a LOT of bread. In fact I don't think I bought any bread products from January-May of last year. Once summer rolled around I just didn't spend enough time at home to go through the rising cycles.

Sunday was always my bread baking day, and will be again as soon as my fall softball league finishes up (end of October). Fresh bread is so much better than store bought. My white bread recipe makes 2 loaves, so I would usually bake on Sunday, freeze a loaf, and then pull it out of the freezer the following Sunday. Fresh bread gets stale pretty quickly compared to store breads, but I found that fresh croutons made with the stale bread are freaking awesome. It's not as versatile as the basic sandwich loaf, but if I'm making Italian food, I also LOVE fresh ciabatta.

I also make a lot of Pizza, Calzones, Stromboli, etc.

Bread is pretty much the main reason why I bought my mixer last year, and it's what it gets used for the most. I have a bread machine but it didn't offer the capacity I wanted, nor the versatility. You need to be able to feel the dough to know if it needs a little more flour, bread machines don't offer that. I think I only baked in my bread machine one time, I don't like the weird shape of the loaf, doesn't work well for sandwiches. I used it as just a mixer/kneader/riser for awhile, but soon realized a mixer would do a better job. If anyone wants a slightly used bread machine, it's all yours

Quite true. Mothers-in-law make for the best grain.

Just yoking, folks.

Bread machines are fine, but I didn't want a thread regarding "settings."

Who are you- the little red hen?