Our Stake's Relief Society Enrichment: NOT KIDDING ha ha How To Make Bread

[MaidservantX]

Okay, I had a good time this morning at Stake Relief Society Enrichment and so I just wanted to report to y'all a couple of things -- you have already read regarding the talk on the family the Stake R.S. Prez gave.

Then we split into two classes. One of the classes was on breadmaking.

I need to disclaimer something. The amount of times I have made bread in my career as a wife and mother could prolly be counted on both hands. The amount of times that the bread has actually been edible is half that. In fact, I have passed on the bread making duties in our house to my 13 year old son (bar mitvahed! ha) and he does all right, hey. Well, he is the one who took over, let's say that. (The men in my hubby's family have a great tradition of being great at cooking what they want to eat: bread, brownies, pancakes . . . you get it.)

So I'm not some homemaking queen here when I say that . . .

I am totally psyched that at least in some places in "the church" they still INSIST on breadmaking as part of a Relief Society sister's curriculum!! I'm not being sarcastic.

Of course, it instead of "punching", "kneading", "tepid water", "proofing", "grease the pan" etc. it is BREADMAKING MILLENIUM STYLE, ha ha -- saf-instant, liquid lecithin, grain mills, bosches, food network, canola spray, and "you can do it under one hour!" Of COURSE you can. It's the New Testament version of the covenant, ha ha . . . of breadmaking.

The net result is the same on the family that eats the homeade bread though.

You know, there is something archetypical in this, as well as highly comforting. Bread making is the making of civilization. And women are traditionally the ones who have done it, at least in the church. (Men can join easily, no worries.) But if there is ever an apocalyptic disaster, no worries, Mormon women everywhere are gonna reach for their kitchen rock and pestle, and their handful of grain -- they are going to make flour -- they are going to make (unleavened) bread -- and, really, everything is going to be all right.

[MorningStar]

In an emergency situation, people who don't know how to make bread are really going to wish they knew how. I know how. It just doesn't come out as good as my mom's and it bugs me!

My sister-in-law gave us a breadmaker for Christmas. My husband loves using it - just made us some last night because we're out of bread.

I should get a grinder for the wheat we have. We don't have a done, but it would last us for a while, I'm sure. Now, yeast doesn't last that long, does it? How do you go about having enough yeast in an emergency?

[MaidservantX]

You can freeze yeast for some time -- maybe a year or more. You can use it straight from the freezer, no particular thawing except in the lukewarm water as usual; or if it is saf-instant, not at all. Also -- if we're talking "power-outage" type of emergency where there is no cold storage -- yea, hence the unleavened bread.

I suppose somebody ought to learn to make yeast. Or keep a sourdough starter going at all times.

Hmm.

[WillowTheWhisp]

I love the smell of home-made bread.

You can't make yeast. It's a living organism.

[MorningStar]

I wish my freezer weren't so small. We can hardly fit non food storage items. *sigh* Someday I want an extra freezer for all my freezing dreams.

[skalenfehl]

Ok, I'm peeking in on you sisters. I just gotta say that I loooove homemade bread. When I was a kid, my mom would make bread every few Saturdays from scratch (we had a store of wheat). I remember getting up early and I remember the yeast rising, etc. My mom was already combining ingredients and then we'd help her knead the bread over and over again. We'd put the dough in about four or five bread pans and oh boy *drooooools* I remember the smell throughout the house of the bread baking in the oven as I watched it rise for hours. After it was finally done I couldn't wait for a fresh slice with melted butter...

[havejoy]

Do a search for "salt rising bread". It's made without yeast and would be good to know about if you ever need to make bread and there isn't any yeast around.

[madjen38]

I am one of those horribly chronic bread from scratch people (I love beating dough on a frustrating day tee hee hee). BUT, I discovered homemade bread that my family has NO IDEA I didnt make it. RHODES makes these great frozen loves. Its about $3.00 for 5 loaves (which is a steal) and I proof it and bake it while they are all gone. When its done, it looks like mine, tastes like mine and I dont have flour everywhere. NOW, I dont do that all the time and still love to make artisan breads, but heck... I love this stuff!

[Misshalfway]

I have a bunch of yeast in my freezer. We were cleaning the garage yesterday and I was reminded that I really didn't know how long I could store it before it goes bad. Is it one year? Is that correct?

I make whole wheat bread all the time. Dough enhancer! That is the trick. It makes the bread so soft. Not hard and dry like my old recipie! Yummo! My kids cut giant slices and smother them with real butter. Food of the Gods!!!

[susieSA]

Man oh man I looooovvvveeee homebaked bread...
Taught myself how to bake bread - love to experiment too (kinda an adventruous cook.. hehe)
And have been passing my techniques onto a few of my friends too... Even my stepmom