Bread update

Well, let's say, we had no fresh baked bread for dinner last night...let me explain:

I used the Fleischmann's master bread dough recipe, cut in half. As I was doing the half recipe, I was wishing I had just made the full recipe because if nothing else, I could have froze half the dough in the freezer (the recipe gives good instructions on how to do it, but basically, after you knead, you put the dough into a baggie and place in the freezer. They suggest making it into a disc which is a good idea to save freezer space. It also gives good directions for thawing). I kneaded, and kneaded, and...well, you get the idea :) I saw on another blog that I plan to add later on, that you know when you are done kneading by taking a golf-ball sized piece of dough and sort of stretch it out. It sort of reminded me of stretching a pizza dough. If it doesn't tear, your dough has good elasticity and it done. I used this technique yesterday and it really worked. I realized I probably had not been kneading my doughs long enough by the look of the pretty dough I had made yesterday. It was lovely-smooth, elastic-y, lovely :) I was going to take a pic, but my batteries we not ready yet, but I promise, it was gorgeous!!

So, I let my dough rise. Now, I always put my dough on the back of my stove. It is warm back there and it always rises nicely. Well, I have to tell you, I have a new bowl. I got it after Christmas marked half off. Just a plastic bowl, really big, with snowmen decorating the outside egde :) I guess it has a thinner bottom than my other plastic bowls. When my dough had risen (and it looked weird, but I didn't know why at first) I realized it was crusty at the bottom. Hmmm--Im thinking "I know I put a nice layer of oil all over this thing to prevent crust-this happened last time. What is going on?".....Ha! My bread has slowly started to bake! So, I had to throw out that dough :( I guess I am glad I did not waste all those ingredients by doing the whole recipe :)

I might bake more today-we will see. Today they are going to put in the furnace, which I won't be needed to help I don't think, so I might make bread-use it for breakfast in the morning with some eggs :) I am charging the batteries right now for my camera, so hopefully I can post pics as I go along this time.