Homemade Bread Baking / Good Health & Nutrition

Last night I attended an excellent bread baking class taught by my friend Gabriele.  She is a wife and mother of six and makes just about everything from scratch.  Last fall she taught another friend and me how to bake homemade bread and even found us bread machines at an incredible price.  I also purchase local honey and Prairie Gold wheat berries from her which I use regularly.

The recipe below is her own creation and makes a delicious loaf every time.  After many years of baking bread, Gabriele  has modified the recipe which was originally published in the book Recipes by God, 2004.  I can't remember seeing this book in a bookstore. A friend who was moving last year  gave me the copy that I own.    Although her name is not on the front cover of this book, Gabriele actually wrote all of the recipes in it.  She and her family are pictured in the front of  the book where she is mentioned as being the co-author.

If you'd like to purchase this book  from Amazon.com just click on the book title above.  A companion book to this titled Body by God is also available at Amazon as well as at Paperback Swap.  [5 p.m.  Looks like someone got the last copy at PB Swap so check your local library.]

Here is the recipe:

HOMEMADE BREAD

(modified slightly from p. 13 in the book)

INGREDIENTS

• 5/8 cup soy or rice milk (any milk will do)
• 3/4 cup water  (You can also use just water instead of milk + water)
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 3 tbsp. honey

• 4 cups whole wheat flour (or combination of flours--My family prefers that I use 2 cups fresh ground whole wheat flour and 2 cups regular flour)
• 1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 2 1/2 tsp. INSTANT yeast

DIRECTIONS

1. Put all of the wet ingredients into the bread machine
2. SIFT the flour with the salt using a fine sifter
3. Add flour and salt to the bread machine
4. Make a small crater in the top of the flour
5. Put the yeast in this little "dip" in the flour
6. Turn bread machine on for a loaf of bread for  2 hrs. 50 min. or on the dough cycle for 1 hr. 30 min.

I have used this recipe many times myself and always get a perfect loaf.  I have posted other blogs about how to make  stromboli and pizza using this same recipe as well as making bread for gifts especially during the holidays.  My neighbors were sure happy last year with their gifts of homemade bread.   Thank you, Gabriele, for teaching us how to prepare nutritious bread which is a staple in just about every household.

Proverbs 31:27 

She looks well to the ways of her household, 

And does not eat the bread of idleness.