Hello from Owleeii
Hello everybody :-)
My name is Ellie, I am 24 yrs old and currently living in northern California on Travis AFB. I have always wanted to bake my own bread instead of purchasing it; for many reasons really. I'm sure there's a health benefits and a positive cost analysis, my main reason is much more simple, I just want to :-) I find baking to be very relaxing and centering. I enjoy the pleasure the process brings me and also the happiness the finish products brings others.
I've spent the past few days up to my eyeballs in machine reviews.....paddles up or down? Stuck in bread? Not mixing? Machine makes the bread taste bad (heh, the machine must really not like you for it to sabotage your flavor)... finally I decided that a machine would take the fun out of it and I decided to do it all by hand.
I need to invest in recipies, a mixer, some quality pans. I'm interested in producing organic and non GO products.
I'm happy to be here!
Hi, Ellie!
Welcome to TFL!
It sounds like you have some good reasons for baking bread, ones most of us share, whether home bakers or professionals . (Not really a distinction, now that I think about it.)
You do know that you can really make bread "all by hand," meaning you don't really need a mixer? And you don't really need pans, for that matter. And there are lots of recipes available here and from other bread baking web sites.
There are lots of excellent books with good formulas, but their unique contribution (in my opinion) is helping you understand the process of bread making, the chemistry and biology part as well as some of the mechanics.
So, look around. Use the TFL search function. Look at some of the blogs. And let us know the kinds of breads you think you would like to make.
David
I echo David's remarks. I would add, "Keep it Simple, Student, KISS." Don't add a lot of ingredients, because you would like to add flavor. Learn the principles with a simple French loaf, or a sandwich bread to find out the flavors of the plain bread. Doing the kneading by hand will get you to learn the feel of the dough. Judge the dough by the dough itself, not by the clock. That is, learn how the dough reacts with kneading, when it has risen enough, and when the bread is done, from the bread characteristics. Click on "Lessons" above on this page.
Ford
put off buying expensive things until you know what kind if bread you want to make. Investing in recipes is already done since almost every bread known to man has a home somewhere here on TFL. David and Ford are right. You don't need much if any equipment to make great bread - not even pans unless you want to make sandwich bread in the traditional shape at higher hydration,
Knowing the many ways of how to make it, learning the feel of the dough and how it changes with various ingredients and hydration levels is what makes one a good bread baker. I'm sure that, like me, the breads you make now won't be much like the ones you make in a few short years - except for those great ones you bump into, really love and make as a regular routine. These great breads are different for all of us - none of them are wrong and all are great at least to us. That is what bread making is all about. Finding out what bread you like and then making it as well as you can - and looking for the next one you might llike better:-)
Us older folks, not that we are old, would love to be you and just starting out on our bread baking journey for the first time. Some say it is the process and not the product that has value but, in bread baking, both are important - at least is is if you eat your product:-) Few things are more personally satisfying than making a good meal and the bread to go with it .... then they are eaten up..... and you get to do it again! Now that is one well thought out process .....
Explore the site and if any questions arise - ask away - someone will help.
Welcome and Happy baking
Some of those pans cost a fortune. I looked in my cupboard and decided the rectangular 1 1/2 qt Corningware casserole was perfect for a wide sandwich loaf. I also discovered tin cans of various sizes (careful-NOT coated on the inside!) work for round slices or small gift loaves. If you make long sandwich loaves, a rectangular angel food pan works great, as do those hot table stainless steel pans in the desired size.
In addition to your cupboard, check rummage sales and thrift stores for bread pans, casserole dishes, cookie sheets for baking and baskets for proving (after a good cleaning). It is rare that you need to buy a specialty pan-unless it is REALLY specialized.
Have delicious fun!