First time Bread Baker.

[Maya's Mama]

I'm wanting to make some home made bread. I've never really done much in the way of bread baking and I don't know where to start. What recipe would you recommend for some one who is new to baking?
Thanks.

[duonyte]

Hi and welcome to baking! Do you know how you are going to make it - completely by hand, with a stand mixer or in a bread machine?

I think there is a tutorial here for bread baking, but the one I usually recommend is from Fresh Loaf - if you are making bread totally by hand, that tutorial and recipe are a good place to start.
http://www.thefreshloaf.com/lessons/yourfirstloaf

[Maya's Mama]

I was planning on doing it by hand ( i didn't really realize there is another way) but if i can do it in the stand mixer I will.

[Donna M.]

Welcome to Breads, Maya's Mama! I really like Buttermilk & Honey Bread for a nice, soft sandwich bread. It is an enriched bread so it is very soft and fine textured with good keeping qualities. If you prefer more of a French Bread style with a crunchy crust, then you would want a recipe that is mostly just flour, water and salt (sometimes a small bit of oil).

Since you are new to bread, I would suggest that you start out with white bread, or one that only contains a small amount of wholegrain. Whole grains are much trickier to deal with for a beginner. Regardless of what you make, we are here to help you. You will love baking bread!

If you are using a mixer to make your dough, be sure that it is a heavy-duty mixer such as a Kitchen Aide. You really don't need a mixer, though, I never use one. Learn to do 'stretch and fold', which you will find a how-to in the stickied thread at the top of this page titled "Sourdough Bread Class". It works for any dough, not just sourdough.

Have fun!

[Chocolatl]

Why not start with a no-yeast bread, like this one?

Australian Rosemary Damper

[Maya's Mama]

Hi.
So I know I initially started this thread in march but I finally had the courage to bake bread today and It was an absolute success!! I'm so pleased... Will post photos soon. Very proud of myself right now.

[duonyte]

That is terrific! Waiting to hear more!

[jeria0711]

Awesome! I've taught lots of small bread making classes to friends over the years. One thing beginners tend to do is to get the liquid too hot for the yeast and kill it. It should not be warmer than your skin. I tend to just use it straight out of the tap on cold If the liquid is a little cool it will just take a bit longer to activate and your yeaast will live.

I also buy yeast in pound packages and put it in the freezer--- those tiny packages are expensive! I use 1 TBS of bulk yeast instead of a yeast packet.

[Maya's Mama]

I have had a jar of yeast for years in the pantry. I must say I was impressed to see how well it worked.

[Maya's Mama]

Here it is!!



I made Moldovan Bread
And look how pretty it came out!! More importantly it tasted better than it looked. My kids absolutely loved eating this. I do want to get away from buying store bought bread. This bread was just wonderful. Especially right out of the oven.
Thanks for the encouragement.

[duonyte]

There is nothing like fresh homemade bread. I know it's hard, but do try to let it cool before you slice it - the bread will get gummy if sliced while it is hot. Of course, if you manage to demolish an entire loaf, that's ok, I actually will hold back some dough and make a roll or two out of the dough to eat right away, hot and dripping with butter, while the main loaf cools.