Bread, beautiful bread! One of my very favourite things to make, and one of the most decadent treats in which I choose to indulge. I gravitate to pretty loaves or fancy flavours, and I love to give bread as gifts.
Bread has historical roots in our ancestry - many cultures have traditional breads unique to their homes, many people have family bread recipes handed down. There is a reason the phrase "breaking bread together" still resonates in our language; it means food (especially
bread) is a tie that binds people in harmony. There is a reason you have read or heard stories where prisoners were given "only bread and water"; bread is an elemental staple, one of the simplest forms of nourishment that alone can sustain a body if necessary.
I have collected many bread recipes over the years, not all of them tried and true. I would like to start making and tasting all of them; record which ones were favourites, which were easy or pretty.
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| Peasant Bread |
My first bread experiment was this weekend, when I made Peasant Bread. I found this recipe on a link through Pinterest - you can find the tutorial for it
here .
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| Grilled peasant cheese |
This was a very simple recipe, just flour and yeast, really. I can totally imagine that this would be what peasant bread was actually like. I liked that it called for nearly no fuss - no kneading or special instructions; just mix, rise, and bake. The recipe made two regular sized loaves, and my family hastily snarfed them up. The taste was simple as well - spongy and plain, but perfect for grilled cheese or toast. I would make this again for a nice accompaniment to soup or sandwiches. This is not a gift loaf, but I would serve it to company at a casual supper.
