Monday, September 20, 2010

The Best Bread You've Ever Made. EVER.



Before you read this, and I promise it will be worth it if you try the recipe in the end, you should know that I'm feeling a little snarky while writing, so read it with a snarky-ish attitude and I think you'll enjoy it.

Am I slacker?  Yes and no.  In the blog world, yes,  I suppose I am a slacker, being that it has been WEEKS since my last post.  What kind of blogger doesn't even blog?!?  A slacker one, that's who.

Well, despite my blog slacker-ness, (and yes, of course it's okay to make up words and bend grammar rules on your own blog), I have actually been . . . sorta . . . kinda . . . busy. 

Confession: I didn't cook all summer.  No.  Cooking.  All.  Summer. Seriously, I'm not going to claim any sort of super-woman status because I simply am not super woman.  Summer is my favorite time of year for many reasons, and don't think for a second that one of those reasons isn't grilled food.  In my house, the best thing about grilled food is that my husband makes it and it is deeee-licious.

So now that fall is coming (tomorrow, actually), I have to pony up and start cooking, which is okay because I actually don't hate cooking.  I enjoy it, as long as I have all the ingredients I need when I'm in the middle of making a recipe.  (For the record, I had to borrow evaporated milk from a very kind neighbor today.) 

Anyway, all that was my super long intro into telling you about the best bread ever.  I wish I could claim to be the GENIUS who came up with this recipe, but it actually came from a friend, Carol, who gave it to my mom.  Let's pretend Carol is the genius, even if she isn't the true source.

Why is this the best bread ever?  Only because it's so delicious AND it takes no time at all to make. Oh, but I do have to include a warning.  Every time I eat this bread, I keep eating it and keep eating it and I feel really sick.  So it might be a good idea to remember that it's best in moderation or just be prepared to have an over-full tummy.

SO YUMMY YOU'LL EAT TOO MUCH AND HAVE A TUMMY ACHE FRENCH BREAD
5 Cups Flour
2 Cups Warm Water
2 Pkg. or 5 tsp. Yeast (fast rising)
4 Tbsp. Sugar
4 Tbsp. Oil
3 tsp. Salt

Mix warm water with yeast.  Add sugar.  Let sit for 5 minutes.  Add oil and salt.  Stir in about 4 cups of the flour--make soft dough.  You can add the rest of the flour when you knead it.  Let rise then punch down and shape into rustic loaves.  Using a knife, cut several diagonal slits across the top of loaf.  Bake @ 375 degrees until light brown, about 20-25 minutes. 

Note:  You don't even have to let this bread really rise.  Seriously.  If you don't have time, throw it in the oven and it will still be amazing. 

3 comments:

  1. This bread sounds too good to be true, Jessica. I want to try it! How long do you usually knead it?

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  2. Sarah, I probably knead it less than a minute. Seriously, you don't have to do much. I make the bread at 4 if I'm planning to eat @ 6. :)

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  3. I make a half batch for Dad and I and it makes a gigantuous loaf of yummy bread. Even left over for toast. It makes excellent toast. Love you, Mom

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