Homemade Bread

Inspired by a book I recently read by Michael Ruhlman (see previous post), I tried my hand at making bread for once.

First of all, it's well known that baking and cooking are different things.  Baking is more science, and cooking is more art.  But anyone who loves food should really be proficient in both to some degree, and this was my turn to actually attempt baking beyond making cookies or biscuits from a box.

Digging up some basic recipes from the Epicurious app on my iPhone, I quickly was able to put together some basic methods using the typical dry yeast, water, flour, etc.

After a couple of partially failed attempts, I was soon experimenting with additional ingredients like dried rosemary, olive oil, honey, etc. to make French loaves or ciabatta-style Italian bread.

Give it a try--far more satisfying than the grocery breads you can buy, and easier than expected!