There's a first for everything. I mentioned to my mom that I was considering purchasing a bread machine. Since hers was just sitting at the house not being used, she loaned it to me. Thanks mom! It sat at my house also not being used for a while until the other week when I decided to give it a try. Frankly, I was getting tired of paying $3.99 for a small loaf of organic bread, and the bread machine recipes looked simple enough.
I did it. The bread turned out wonderful. I Googled and found a recipe on
allrecipes.com called "Best Bread Machine Bread" that was given a 4 1/2 star rating by over 1,100 people. That was 3 weeks ago, and I haven't bought bread since. My first two loafs were basic white. I've got to get a little more adventurous though and try some other types using the machine. I purchased a bag of 100% whole wheat flour with a recipe on the bag that I had to try. It called for molasses and orange juice as ingredients. I treated myself to a beautiful, red glazed, Le Creuset stoneware, bread pan (just $11.99 from Ross) and made my first loaf from scratch. And, it didn't stop there. I made pizza dough the other night. I've got Abigail interest piqued also. She found a recipe for bagels in a cookbook for kids that she wants us to try.
It's not just a first for making bread. There have been many firsts for me over the last year...a first for trying to understand what's in the food we eat, for planting a garden, for cooking from scratch, for appreciating good cookware, for planning menus, and now, for baking bread. What's next? I'm considering canning this summer. Yikes! All this from someone that has never enjoyed being in the kitchen! Who knew?
