When we lived in Kobe, Japan, we had access to a fabulous bread made from Genmai brown rice. It was a lovely dark bread, thickly sliced and flavour so robust that it complemented perfectly with our preferred spread -- i.e. vegemite.
Having returned to our wee town of Corning, N.Y., finding a hearty and wholesome bread was tricky, if not, illusive. American breads sold at my favourite Wegmans supermarket aren't exactly noteworthy. Yes, there are the gourmet type variety like the Rosemary Olive loaf which is finger licking good and the reliable Pane Italian that graces our dinner table ever too often. But if I'm not willing to pay nearly US$4.00 for a loaf then, my choices are limited to the junkier variety laden with preservatives and the "holy" high fructose corn syrup ubiquitous in American foods.
If being a Mom hasn't made me a more patient person, it sure has taught me that I don't want my kids eating McDonald's and the likes of easily accessible junk food associated with Western lifestyle. Hence, I didn't wait for the stars to align and bought myself this book.
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| My new companion, the bread bible |
My aim was to replicate hearty rye breads that the hubs & I loved and to lessen the dependence on store-bought breads. Between google searches and my bread bible, I managed to churn out at least 2 very flavoursome breads. The best part, the ingredients simply called for flour, water and salt.
I ditched the baby steps of starting with baking simpler breads and went ambitiously for the sourdough rye bread. The sourdough rye bread baking method was fairly time consuming. Instant yeast for a quick rising bread? No way! The recipe needed a good 5 days preparation in advance for good fermentation of flour and water to take place. Even then, throw in another 3-4 hours to allow the dough to rise and shape. Baking sourdough rye bread turned into my new meditation, almost cathartic once a freshly baked loaf left the oven.
My first nervous attempt yielded a surprisingly pretty loaf (I thought) but with a crust so thick and hard that my kids should all have been awarded the Nobel Peace prize for not complaining. And chewing the bread itself was exercise for the jaws -- obviously no problem for my chatty kids.
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| Rye bread attempt, #1 |
My 2nd and 3rd attempts went effortlessly as I tweaked the recipe to include less rye flour but more bread flour. Ah, to witness the glow of gratitude and pleasure in the hubs' and kids' eyes was rewarding. I proceeded to make a potful of Kaya and the kids and I lived on that for the next few mornings. Nothing harkens Singaporean memories more than thickly lathered kaya on a warm toast.
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| Rye bread attempt, #2 |
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| Rye bread attempt #2, sliced. |
I then decided to venture further into more grain worthy breads. I attempted a no-gluten bread that used 100% sprouted grains but the barley I used was already hulled and polished and hence, no sprouting emerged. I did, however, cultivate a great stink in the kitchen having left the barley soaking for 2 days. Having no ready access to unpolished barley, wheat, quinoa etc, I've suspended my efforts to try out the no-gluten bread recipe until I get my hands on some unadulterated grains.
My next baking mission --oat bran flax seed bread yielded an incredibly moist and tasty loaf. Actually, so far, all the bread recipes have churned out breads with robust flavours. And it wasn't as time consuming to make compared to the sourdough rye bread. Still, a 2-day effort.
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| Whole wheat oat bran bread fresh out from loaf tin |
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| Sliced whole wheat oat bran bread |
On Sunday last, I decided to try baking a simple whole wheat bread. We had it fresh out of the oven that night with some baked beans and bacon for the kids. Even as the hubs and I were impressed by the texture of the baked bread, we were both unenthused by its flavour. It was too blah and bland for our complicated tastebuds.
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| Whole wheat bread fresh from loaf tin |
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| Whole wheat bread, sliced |
What next? As yet, I'm happy with the 2 tried and loved recipes -- the sourdough rye and oat bran breads, so until my small baking hands are itching to maul and knead dough, those 2 will do for now.
