TheMostBeautifulWord

BREAD

One of the most beautiful words in our language

BREAD

A loaf of Bread, one of the most beautiful things to behold

I make bread weekly. I do not measure. This is what I do.

I take a bowl and put some dry yeast into it

I add warm milk, a spoonful of sugar (to feed the yeast)

and enough flour to make a runny mixture.

I place a tea towel over it and let it rise.

I pour some warm milk over a bowl filled with rolled oats

when the bread starter has risen to three times its volume,

I drop 2 eggs into it, some poppy seeds, some sunflower seeds,

a handful of wholemeal flour, the soaked oats
and enough plain flour to make a soft pliable dough.

Mix it all together and knead it so that it becomes nice and stretchy.

Let it rise, when it is twice its volume, punch it down to get rid of the gasses 

which helped the dough to rise. It is necessary to get rid of them so that they do not kill the yeast

Let the dough rise again and once more punch it down. 

Now add a little salt (last because it kills the yeast)

form the dough and drop into loaf pan

Rise in a warm place and when risen place in an 160 degree oven

you know when the bread is done,

when you push a knitting needle into it and it comes out clean.

BREAD

One of the most beautiful smells on earth

     

'The poet and the baker, both nourish the world'

TheGiftOfBread

It was a rainy day, which stopped me from finishing a paint project.

I used the opportiunity of the rain softened earth to pull some weeds

in readiness for some more vegetable planting

Then, inside I decided to make bread.

I took a mixing bowl and placed a handful of flour, 

some dry yeast, a spoonfull of sugar (food for the yeast)

and some warm water, mixed it and let it stand.

I mashed some cold potatoes with cream to a creamy substance

when the flour mix was bubbly and twice its volume

I added the potato, a couple of eggs 

and enough flower to make a pliable dough

Nothing was measured, its simply bread, an ancient food 

I kneaded it and let it rise, punched it down

kneaded it once more let it rise and punched it down again

kneaded it again and shaped it into two balls

placed them into a bread tin, proofed it and baked it 

'It is nice to be kneaded'