Homemade Bread

I never thought I would be one of those moms that make bread. My mom really didn't bake bread when I was growing up. In fact, I have fond memories of going to the Hostess Bakery Thrift Store with her. However, in my quest to be a little more self-sufficient I went to a class on bread making and found out how easy it is. And for all of you that have a ton of wheat in your food storage and you don't know what to do with it, may I suggest making your own bread? As long as you have a wheat grinder, that is. Without further ado, here is my recipe:

5 1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup wheat gluten (I found mine at a well stocked grocery store)

4 tsp. yeast

2 2/3 cup warm water

1/4 cup oil (vegetable, canola, salad)

1/4 cup honey

2 tsp. salt

4 tsp. dough enhancer (I had to get mine from a natural foods/health food store)

1 1/3 cup flour (more or less as needed, I usually need more though)

Directions:

1. Place 5 1/3 cup flour in mixer with dough hook (see note below about mixers). Add yeast and gluten. Add warm water and mix for one minute, or until everything is mixed. Cover with towel and let sit for 10 minutes.

2. Add oil, honey, and salt. Turn on mixer and add dough enhancer and the remaining flour until dough cleans sides of bowl (it's better to add less flour than too much)

3. Knead bread for 7-10 minutes. Preheat oven to 150 F (mine only goes down to 170, which is fine too).

4. Oil hands (olive oil), divide bread into two equal portions, shape into loaves and add to greased pans (I use Pam, which works wonderfully)

5. Put loaves into the oven, shut the door, turn off the oven, and let rise for 25 minutes.

6. Turn oven on to 350 F (with loaves inside). When up to heat, bake for 25 minutes. If you want, you can put a pan of water on the lower rack of the oven. This helps the bread to not be so crusty.

7. Remove bread from oven and pans and let cool on a rack.

8. Cut and enjoy!

Note on Mixers: If you are using whole wheat you need a serious mixer. I have a KitchenAid professional mixer, and if I let it mix for too long (the dough hook helps knead the bread) the motor gets pretty warm. You cannot make this using a standard mixer. A good Bosch would work too. I don't think the miniature one would work though.