Kneading Cares Away

I ONCE MOVED to a community--and ended up living and working there four years--on the sole tantalizing clue that this particular retreat center baked homemade bread every day.

A loaf of bread offers substantial nourishment and is an edible sign of the goodness of the earth, as well as someone's labor and love. Granted, homemade yeast bread crumbles in the toaster, takes hours to make, and sometimes, unfortunately, turns out flat and unappetizing. But don't be discouraged from this most noble pursuit.

Bread can be as simple as a small French round (only water, flour, salt, oil, and yeast) or as elaborate as a rich egg dough with cinnamon-nut filling, braided into a coffeecake and served warm with a maple glaze. Pick a recipe from a cookbook, newspaper, or magazine, or use the one printed below, and get started.

If your schedule is too full for all-day breadbaking, even on Saturdays, split the process into two stages. Make dough late one afternoon or evening, then refrigerate overnight and bake it the next day. (Making bread dough at night gives you a chance to knead out the day's thoughts and worries.) This is also a way to have hot rolls for breakfast without getting up at 4 a.m. The pre-formed rolls or loaves need about an hour to shake their refrigerator chill before baking.

An intriguing development is a white whole-wheat flour soon to be introduced on the open market. It combines the nutritional value of regular whole-wheat flour with all-purpose flour's milder flavor and ease of use. This flour has been used successfully in pizza, brownies, cookies, and chocolate layer cake, items usually not made with all whole-wheat flour. Watch out, unsuspecting junk food addicts!

The following recipe gives proportions for one small loaf of regular whole-wheat bread.

• 1/2 cup warm water (warm to touch, but not hot)
• 1 package (1 Tbsp.) active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup honey or sugar
• 1/4 cup oil
• 1 cup warm milk
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup white flour
• 3-5 cups whole-wheat flour

In a large bowl, sprinkle yeast over warm water. Wait several minutes, until it begins to bubble. Add warm milk, 1 cup white flour, and 1 cup of the whole-wheat flour. Mix well with a wooden spoon or electric mixer until it is sticky and gluten strands begin to form. Add oil, honey, salt, and 1 1/2 cups of whole-wheat flour (1/2 cup at a time), mixing by hand. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and begin kneading, adding more flour in small sprinkles as needed to keep it from sticking. Knead bread for 5-10 minutes. When finished, the dough should have a satin finish and not stick to your hands.

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and leave in a warm, draft-free place for 1 to 1 1/2 hours or until doubled. Form dough into a loaf and let rise again, about 30-45 minutes. If you are going to leave dough overnight, put formed loaf into the refrigerator, covered, before final rising.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put bread in oven, handling gently so it won't fall. Turn oven down to 350 degrees and bake 40 minutes. At that point begin checking bread every five minutes. Depending on size and shape, it will take 40 minutes to an hour total baking time. The top will be dark brown; cover it with foil after 20 minutes if you want a lighter top. The bottom should be light brown, not doughy at all when you tip it out of the pan. You will know when you slice it if you were patient enough!

Carey Burkett was an organic vegetable farmer in Hallettsville, Texas when this article appeared.