If You Can Read You Can Cook: Learn to Bake Bread

Yeah, yeah, it’s been two weeks.  Let me just say that since the last time I’ve checked in, I’ve officially crossed “open a bakery” off my list of career possibilities:

I used a recipe from Bob’s Red Mill, but don’t let my foul attempt scare you off from trying it yourself.  It wasn't Bob's fault.  My problem, which I realized too late, was that I used a ½ cup less of water than the recipe called for. 

 

This was somewhat out of character for someone who prides herself on being detail-oriented and meticulous in all aspects of daily living.  It is also strange because my grandma’s favorite kitchen saying is “if you can read you can cook.”   Sorry, Charma!

Speaking of my grandma, she would also not like how I had to set my mixing bowl on the floor to try to “knead” the dough.  There were probably dog hairs on the floor. 

Actually, there were most definitely dog hairs on the floor.

And I wasn’t quite sure what “kneading” was.  On the second round, I tried a different approach:

I have several takeaways.  First, follow directions.  Second, baking bread takes patience and it probably wasn’t wise to wait until 4:00 PM to start this, especially when you have a bedtime that hovers somewhere around 8:30.  Third, next time I should do a quick google video search for the terms “kneading bread” and “proof” before getting started.  

Although it may be true that if you can read you can cook, it is also true that if you can google you can do just about anything. 

Although the bread looked like a couple heads of rotten cauliflower, it didn’t taste half bad eaten in thick slices with avocado or covered in honey. 

But it wasn't great on its own: