Bread Baking Babes 3 Year Babe-eversary!

3 years!

What lasts 3 years anymore? Not much.

What started for me 3 years ago with this baking group became something important and inspiring in my life. A group of ladies from different countries, different lives, different ages, different experience levels became Babes and friends and made a forum where we can talk and share both our triumphs and tragedies in bread and in life.

To celebrate our Third Anniversary of our group we decided to take a walk down memory lane. Bake a bread from our archives.

When we first made the decision, I thought I might made 3 breads, one from each year of Babe-hood, but man. I hate to say I don't have the time or energy right now. So I picked one I was most proud of the first time around.

I chose to make Gorel's Brunkans Langa bread again.

What I love about this bread is the color, the rustic shape of the loaf, the hearty and just slightly sour taste. I also love that although this is a bread that takes time (5 days), it is not a difficult bread. It's an easy bread when you want to bake but don't have a day or large chunk of a day to devote.

My beautiful Babes, past and present! I raise my glass to you. Thank you for the last 3 years. Thank you for your kindness and friendship and support and inspiration. I can't wait to see what we'll do next.

Cheers!

Bread Baking Babes 3 Year Babe-eversary!

3 years!

What lasts 3 years anymore? Not much.

What started for me 3 years ago with this baking group became something important and inspiring in my life. A group of ladies from different countries, different lives, different ages, different experience levels became Babes and friends and made a forum where we can talk and share both our triumphs and tragedies in bread and in life.

To celebrate our Third Anniversary of our group we decided to take a walk down memory lane. Bake a bread from our archives.

When we first made the decision, I thought I might made 3 breads, one from each year of Babe-hood, but man. I hate to say I don't have the time or energy right now. So I picked one I was most proud of the first time around.

I chose to make Gorel's Brunkans Langa bread again.

What I love about this bread is the color, the rustic shape of the loaf, the hearty and just slightly sour taste. I also love that although this is a bread that takes time (5 days), it is not a difficult bread. It's an easy bread when you want to bake but don't have a day or large chunk of a day to devote.

My beautiful Babes, past and present! I raise my glass to you. Thank you for the last 3 years. Thank you for your kindness and friendship and support and inspiration. I can't wait to see what we'll do next.

Cheers!

Bread Baking Babes 3 year Babe-eversary....coming soon

Us Babes are celebrating 3 years together.  3 years of bread, 3 years of friendship, 3 years of rude talk, scotch talk, helpful advice, shoulders to cry on. 

To celebrate, we are looking back at what we've accomplished together:

2008 (from left to right)  February: Karen Royal  Crown Tortano (in Dutch) and in English:

March: Lien Coccodrillo 

April: Tanna Sullivan  Street Pizza

May:  Sher  - Poilane-Style  Miche

June: Mary Breadchick's  Dark Onion Rye

July: - in memory of Sher who  passed away July 20 2008;  this month we made something from her blog,  something that reminded us of the warm and witty personality Sher was. The news  of her passing shocked us. She is our Angel Babe.

August: Ilva Whole  Wheat Pita

September : Monique Sûkerbôlle

October : Sara Challah

November: Görel The  Rosendal Crisp Bread

December: Lynn Yule  Wreath

In our second year, the loaves of 2009;

2009 (from left to right):  January Katie Croissants

February Tanna Pane  ai Cinque Cereali con Nod (Five-Grain Bread with Walnuts)

March Sara Pane  Francese

April Mary Ethiopian  Injera

May Ilva Pane  di Pasta Tenera Condita (Italian Knot Bread)

June Lien  Asparagus  Bread (in English and Dutch)

July Natashya Sukkar  bi Tahin (Beirut Tahini Swirls)

August Görel Russian  Black Bread

September Karen Chinese  Flower Steam Buns

October Gretchen Tanta  Wawa (Peruvian Bread Babies)

November Monique Brioche  Mousseline

December Katie Viennese  Striesel

And our third year 2010;

2010 (from left to right)  January Lynn Curried  Naan

February Karen Ensaimada

March Mary Gluten  Free No Knead Hearty Seeded Sandwich Bread

April Sara Potato  Bread with Chives

May Natashya Tunisian  Spicy Breads

June Lien Korni  (in English and Dutch)

July Lynn Yeasted  Sprouted Wheat Bread 

August Tanna Sweet  Portuguese Bread

September Görel Brunkans  Långa

October Elizabeth Broa: Portuguese Corn Bread

November Susan Cornucopia

December Ilva Taralli  Pugliesi

How gorgeous is that?

Come back and visit us on the 16th to see our celebration!  

Bread Baking Babes 3 year Babe-eversary....coming soon

Us Babes are celebrating 3 years together.  3 years of bread, 3 years of friendship, 3 years of rude talk, scotch talk, helpful advice, shoulders to cry on. 

To celebrate, we are looking back at what we've accomplished together:

2008 (from left to right)  February: Karen Royal  Crown Tortano (in Dutch) and in English:

March: Lien Coccodrillo 

April: Tanna Sullivan  Street Pizza

May:  Sher  - Poilane-Style  Miche

June: Mary Breadchick's  Dark Onion Rye

July: - in memory of Sher who  passed away July 20 2008;  this month we made something from her blog,  something that reminded us of the warm and witty personality Sher was. The news  of her passing shocked us. She is our Angel Babe.

August: Ilva Whole  Wheat Pita

September : Monique Sûkerbôlle

October : Sara Challah

November: Görel The  Rosendal Crisp Bread

December: Lynn Yule  Wreath

In our second year, the loaves of 2009;

2009 (from left to right):  January Katie Croissants

February Tanna Pane  ai Cinque Cereali con Nod (Five-Grain Bread with Walnuts)

March Sara Pane  Francese

April Mary Ethiopian  Injera

May Ilva Pane  di Pasta Tenera Condita (Italian Knot Bread)

June Lien  Asparagus  Bread (in English and Dutch)

July Natashya Sukkar  bi Tahin (Beirut Tahini Swirls)

August Görel Russian  Black Bread

September Karen Chinese  Flower Steam Buns

October Gretchen Tanta  Wawa (Peruvian Bread Babies)

November Monique Brioche  Mousseline

December Katie Viennese  Striesel

And our third year 2010;

2010 (from left to right)  January Lynn Curried  Naan

February Karen Ensaimada

March Mary Gluten  Free No Knead Hearty Seeded Sandwich Bread

April Sara Potato  Bread with Chives

May Natashya Tunisian  Spicy Breads

June Lien Korni  (in English and Dutch)

July Lynn Yeasted  Sprouted Wheat Bread 

August Tanna Sweet  Portuguese Bread

September Görel Brunkans  Långa

October Elizabeth Broa: Portuguese Corn Bread

November Susan Cornucopia

December Ilva Taralli  Pugliesi

How gorgeous is that?

Come back and visit us on the 16th to see our celebration!  

Bread Baking Babe-aversary

The Bread Baking Babes anniversary is coming up in February and we'd like YOU to pick the Anniversary Bread recipe for February 2011.

* What's your favorite bread?
* What bread haven’t you ever been able to get to turn out the way you want?
* What bread scares you the most?
* What's the bread recipe you’ve baked the most?
* What bread do you dream about baking?
* What bread do you...?

Scour your bread-baking cookbooks, recipe boxes and bread-baking sites to make your choice. We’ll ask you to submit your desired recipe soon. And after we've narrowed the list down to a manageable number of choices, we’ll ask you to vote on one for us to bake and post for our anniversary in February.

Please email your bread recipe/link to me at iliketocook AT shaw DOT ca

Cheers!

Bread Baking Babe-aversary

The Bread Baking Babes anniversary is coming up in February and we'd like YOU to pick the Anniversary Bread recipe for February 2011.

* What's your favorite bread?
* What bread haven’t you ever been able to get to turn out the way you want?
* What bread scares you the most?
* What's the bread recipe you’ve baked the most?
* What bread do you dream about baking?
* What bread do you...?

Scour your bread-baking cookbooks, recipe boxes and bread-baking sites to make your choice. We’ll ask you to submit your desired recipe soon. And after we've narrowed the list down to a manageable number of choices, we’ll ask you to vote on one for us to bake and post for our anniversary in February.

Please email your bread recipe/link to me at iliketocook AT shaw DOT ca

Cheers!

bbb fail!

i can't believe i did it, but i did.  i totally forgot about the december bread baking buddies bread this month.

my apologies to all, especially to Ilva, the kitchen of the month.

please visit the babes, listed over there on the left to see their beautiful "Taralli Pugliesi".

bbb fail!

i can't believe i did it, but i did.  i totally forgot about the december bread baking buddies bread this month.

my apologies to all, especially to Ilva, the kitchen of the month.

please visit the babes, listed over there on the left to see their beautiful "Taralli Pugliesi".

Bread Baking Babes - Cornucopia

This will be a brief post as I have a sorta-sick little baby curled up in bed next to me, slowly worming his way on my side of the bed, pushing me off.

This months Bread Baking Babe hostess with the mostess is one of our new members, Susan, from Wild Yeast. Since it's American Thanksgiving soon, she chose a decorative bread, the Cornucopia.

I initially wasn't going to make the bread as we Canadians have already had Thanksgiving and if I put out any sort of decoration on the table, Pax will just throw his lunch at it, but I thought it might be sort of fun to try to make an edible version.

Now I am not in the least bit artistic. At all. I nearly failed Art when required to take it in school. So be warned, what is below is not pretty.

My initial idea was to make mini cornucopias and fill them with salad, but I realized when I was halfway through making the second one that they were too big to be individual servings.

Sunday when I made these was kind of a weird day and I ended up pulling out a bag of mixed nuts to try to dress up my sad little corni for a photo.

See?  So not pretty.

But other Babes have made some pretty spectacular ones.  So check them out, their sites are listed over on the right, and visit Susan for instructions if you'd like to make your own, here.

Bread Baking Babes - Cornucopia

This will be a brief post as I have a sorta-sick little baby curled up in bed next to me, slowly worming his way on my side of the bed, pushing me off.

This months Bread Baking Babe hostess with the mostess is one of our new members, Susan, from Wild Yeast. Since it's American Thanksgiving soon, she chose a decorative bread, the Cornucopia.

I initially wasn't going to make the bread as we Canadians have already had Thanksgiving and if I put out any sort of decoration on the table, Pax will just throw his lunch at it, but I thought it might be sort of fun to try to make an edible version.

Now I am not in the least bit artistic. At all. I nearly failed Art when required to take it in school. So be warned, what is below is not pretty.

My initial idea was to make mini cornucopias and fill them with salad, but I realized when I was halfway through making the second one that they were too big to be individual servings.

Sunday when I made these was kind of a weird day and I ended up pulling out a bag of mixed nuts to try to dress up my sad little corni for a photo.

See?  So not pretty.

But other Babes have made some pretty spectacular ones.  So check them out, their sites are listed over on the right, and visit Susan for instructions if you'd like to make your own, here.

Bread Baking Babes - Portuguese Corn Bread

This month the bread for our Bread Baking Babes was chosen by Elizabeth from blog from OUR kitchen. She picked a Portuguese bread called "Broa". The bread is made with cornmeal and corn flour, with about a jillion, or maybe around 6 risings.

But it's a pretty straightforward bread. I was a little worried about how mine would turn out as my dough seemed a little more....solid than the recipe wrote. Elizabeth talked about sloppy dough, and having to use a scraper to move the dough, but mine was very.....doughy.

But it seemed to be behaving and rose well. I slashed the dough before I baked it, as I have become quite interested in slashing. The slashing came out not too bad, could have been worse, could have been better.  As for the bread itself - I liked it.  A nice crisp crust and a delicious, slightly corny interior. 

Wanna be a Bread Baking Buddy this month? Head over to Elizabeth's for the recipe and make the bread and send her a link by October 29.

Cheers!

Bread Baking Babes - Portuguese Corn Bread

This month the bread for our Bread Baking Babes was chosen by Elizabeth from blog from OUR kitchen. She picked a Portuguese bread called "Broa". The bread is made with cornmeal and corn flour, with about a jillion, or maybe around 6 risings.

But it's a pretty straightforward bread. I was a little worried about how mine would turn out as my dough seemed a little more....solid than the recipe wrote. Elizabeth talked about sloppy dough, and having to use a scraper to move the dough, but mine was very.....doughy.

But it seemed to be behaving and rose well. I slashed the dough before I baked it, as I have become quite interested in slashing. The slashing came out not too bad, could have been worse, could have been better.  As for the bread itself - I liked it.  A nice crisp crust and a delicious, slightly corny interior. 

Wanna be a Bread Baking Buddy this month? Head over to Elizabeth's for the recipe and make the bread and send her a link by October 29.

Cheers!

Bread Baking Babes - Brunkans Langa

I will give you a direct quote from Gorel, our Babe of the Kitchen this month, on the bread she chose:
"Brunkan is a nickname for Brunkebergs bageri (the bakery of Brunkeberg, situated in Stockholm), and ”långa” means ”the long one”. When they bake this bread at the Brunkeberg bakery, it is more than two feet long – hence the name. The owner of this bakery is Heléne Johansson, an IT consultant who decided she needed a career change and thus started her own bakery in 2002. This proved to be very successful, and she has now started a second bakery and also taken on catering as a business. A true babe, isn’t she? This bread is from the book ”Bröd” (Bread) that Heléne published last year and which contains the most popular breads in her line."

Is that not a great and intriguing introduction to this months bread? Well then let me tell you more. Not only does the bread require a starter because it's a sourdough (yipee!), the starter is made with graham flour, which I've never used before. And shockingly, could actually get my hands on!

My story does not have a good beginning, however. I went to the 2 "largest" health/natural food stores here, which happen to be about a block away from each other. The first was closed, so we walked to the other. I scoured the flour aisle but could not see graham flour. A clerk asked me if I needed help and I told him what I was looking for. I followed him to a different aisle, where he waved his arm towards.....a bunch of cookies. No no, I said, I need graham flour. Just take the graham cookies and grind them up! he replied.

Even I knew that probably wasn't right.

The other store managed to open on a weekday and I found the flour there within seconds. Graham flour is actually a type of whole wheat flour, with both finely and coarsely ground components. And you thought I didn't know anything!

So, you make your starter, which takes at least 3 days. After which you can either store your starter and occasionally feed, or make the bread. But then when you mix the dough, it needs an overnight rise in the fridge. We had some last minute company who would be leaving the day the dough would be ready to bake, so I figured the day before I'd make the dough and then it could sit in the fridge until they left, at which time I'd bake it.

They decided that last morning that they'd stay another day if that was ok with us. It was, and I told myself that I was sure the dough would be ok in the fridge for another day. But then I opened the fridge.


The dough was massive! I was truly afraid that if I left it any longer it would end up stuck to the sides of the fridge. So I baked it that morning.


What a bread! The sourness was very light but lovely. If you wanted it stronger you could certainly leave the started longer before you bake, but I loved it just as it was. I gave one loaf to my parents and we motored thru that second loaf in less than 2 days. It was easy and lovely and very impressive.


A word of warning - this is a big dough. So unless you have a really big mixer (not a regular kitchenaid as that is what i have), mix this by hand!

Please visit Gorel for the recipe, and the rest of the Babes (listed over on the left) to see how their breads turned out. If you'd like to be a buddy, bake the bread and send a link to your post to Gorel by the 29th.

Bread Baking Babes - Brunkans Langa

I will give you a direct quote from Gorel, our Babe of the Kitchen this month, on the bread she chose:
"Brunkan is a nickname for Brunkebergs bageri (the bakery of Brunkeberg, situated in Stockholm), and ”långa” means ”the long one”. When they bake this bread at the Brunkeberg bakery, it is more than two feet long – hence the name. The owner of this bakery is Heléne Johansson, an IT consultant who decided she needed a career change and thus started her own bakery in 2002. This proved to be very successful, and she has now started a second bakery and also taken on catering as a business. A true babe, isn’t she? This bread is from the book ”Bröd” (Bread) that Heléne published last year and which contains the most popular breads in her line."

Is that not a great and intriguing introduction to this months bread? Well then let me tell you more. Not only does the bread require a starter because it's a sourdough (yipee!), the starter is made with graham flour, which I've never used before. And shockingly, could actually get my hands on!

My story does not have a good beginning, however. I went to the 2 "largest" health/natural food stores here, which happen to be about a block away from each other. The first was closed, so we walked to the other. I scoured the flour aisle but could not see graham flour. A clerk asked me if I needed help and I told him what I was looking for. I followed him to a different aisle, where he waved his arm towards.....a bunch of cookies. No no, I said, I need graham flour. Just take the graham cookies and grind them up! he replied.

Even I knew that probably wasn't right.

The other store managed to open on a weekday and I found the flour there within seconds. Graham flour is actually a type of whole wheat flour, with both finely and coarsely ground components. And you thought I didn't know anything!

So, you make your starter, which takes at least 3 days. After which you can either store your starter and occasionally feed, or make the bread. But then when you mix the dough, it needs an overnight rise in the fridge. We had some last minute company who would be leaving the day the dough would be ready to bake, so I figured the day before I'd make the dough and then it could sit in the fridge until they left, at which time I'd bake it.

They decided that last morning that they'd stay another day if that was ok with us. It was, and I told myself that I was sure the dough would be ok in the fridge for another day. But then I opened the fridge.


The dough was massive! I was truly afraid that if I left it any longer it would end up stuck to the sides of the fridge. So I baked it that morning.


What a bread! The sourness was very light but lovely. If you wanted it stronger you could certainly leave the started longer before you bake, but I loved it just as it was. I gave one loaf to my parents and we motored thru that second loaf in less than 2 days. It was easy and lovely and very impressive.


A word of warning - this is a big dough. So unless you have a really big mixer (not a regular kitchenaid as that is what i have), mix this by hand!

Please visit Gorel for the recipe, and the rest of the Babes (listed over on the left) to see how their breads turned out. If you'd like to be a buddy, bake the bread and send a link to your post to Gorel by the 29th.

Bread Baking Babes - Sweet Portuguese Bread

I'm back in the bread making saddle again. We had a rainy cooler day here so I was able to get into the kitchen to make this months bread - Sweet Portuguese Bread from Tanna at My Kitchen in Half Cups. This is a bread that Tanna came up with for her neighbor whose Mother used to make this bread when she was young.
What a rich bread, with eggs, butter and brown sugar. Oh, and some ground flax added for health. :)
This was a great bread to play with. The dough was lovely and fragrant from the sugar and lemon. Tanna suggested we customize the sweetness of our bread - from 30 to 100 grams of sugar. Tanna preferred 30. I went with 70 which was very nice; when I made it again I might try a little more.

The only problem I had was with the shaping. I guess I didn't press in hard enough with my rolling pin. After the final rise you could hardly see the lines. Scott wanted me to slash them in with a knife but I didn't (and I should have), so the loaves came out basically smooth on top. To disguise that I brushed them with butter and sprinkled with more sugar.





This is truly a delicious bread! Delicious toast and even more wonderful French Toast. Yum yum. Yes, I think I'll be making this again, scorching temperatures or not.

***Edited to add***

I did make the bread again, I wanted to see if I could do a better job with the design. Although the dough got off to a great start, it hardly rose in the oven, leaving us with 2 loaves of bread barely a couple of inches high. I went with less sugar the second time, as I wanted to use them as "multi purpose" loaves of bread. Oddly in addition to the shortness of the bread, they were also very dry. Strange, considering I baked them less time than the recipe calls for.

The design came out a little more pronounced though. No pictures, cause I'm bummed about the height.

If you'd like to be a Buddy, make the bread, and send your post to Tanna by August 29.

Recipe here, at Tannas.

Bread Baking Babes - Sweet Portuguese Bread

I'm back in the bread making saddle again. We had a rainy cooler day here so I was able to get into the kitchen to make this months bread - Sweet Portuguese Bread from Tanna at My Kitchen in Half Cups. This is a bread that Tanna came up with for her neighbor whose Mother used to make this bread when she was young.
What a rich bread, with eggs, butter and brown sugar. Oh, and some ground flax added for health. :)
This was a great bread to play with. The dough was lovely and fragrant from the sugar and lemon. Tanna suggested we customize the sweetness of our bread - from 30 to 100 grams of sugar. Tanna preferred 30. I went with 70 which was very nice; when I made it again I might try a little more.

The only problem I had was with the shaping. I guess I didn't press in hard enough with my rolling pin. After the final rise you could hardly see the lines. Scott wanted me to slash them in with a knife but I didn't (and I should have), so the loaves came out basically smooth on top. To disguise that I brushed them with butter and sprinkled with more sugar.





This is truly a delicious bread! Delicious toast and even more wonderful French Toast. Yum yum. Yes, I think I'll be making this again, scorching temperatures or not.

***Edited to add***

I did make the bread again, I wanted to see if I could do a better job with the design. Although the dough got off to a great start, it hardly rose in the oven, leaving us with 2 loaves of bread barely a couple of inches high. I went with less sugar the second time, as I wanted to use them as "multi purpose" loaves of bread. Oddly in addition to the shortness of the bread, they were also very dry. Strange, considering I baked them less time than the recipe calls for.

The design came out a little more pronounced though. No pictures, cause I'm bummed about the height.

If you'd like to be a Buddy, make the bread, and send your post to Tanna by August 29.

Recipe here, at Tannas.

Again, I am not a Babe. Again.

Ugh. 2 months in a row I've not baked the bread of my Bread Baking Babes. I'm not going to let it hit 3.

Please check out the Babes (listed over on the LEFT now) and see what they thought of this months bread - Yeasted Sprouted Wheat Bread from Lynn at Cookie Baker Lynn. It seems like a really interesting bread, and I hope we get lots of Buddies that try it.

Now, 2 pieces of news about the Bread Baking Babes.

First, we've committed ourselves to a schedule. So every month we'll be posting about the bread on the 16th, and every month buddies have until the 29th. Very sensible.

Second, we've grown! Please say a big hello to our 4 new Babes -
Elizabeth from blog from OUR kitchen
Elle from Feeding My Enthusiasms
Astrid from Paulchens FoodBlog
Susan from Wild Yeast

We're getting bigger, better and funner!

Happy Friday

Again, I am not a Babe. Again.

Ugh. 2 months in a row I've not baked the bread of my Bread Baking Babes. I'm not going to let it hit 3.

Please check out the Babes (listed over on the LEFT now) and see what they thought of this months bread - Yeasted Sprouted Wheat Bread from Lynn at Cookie Baker Lynn. It seems like a really interesting bread, and I hope we get lots of Buddies that try it.

Now, 2 pieces of news about the Bread Baking Babes.

First, we've committed ourselves to a schedule. So every month we'll be posting about the bread on the 16th, and every month buddies have until the 29th. Very sensible.

Second, we've grown! Please say a big hello to our 4 new Babes -
Elizabeth from blog from OUR kitchen
Elle from Feeding My Enthusiasms
Astrid from Paulchens FoodBlog
Susan from Wild Yeast

We're getting bigger, better and funner!

Happy Friday

Bread Baking Babes - Tunisian Spicy Breads

This month our hosting Babe is my fellow Canadian Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. She picked a spicy bread for our spicy group - Tunisian Spicy Breads from from Savory Baking from the Mediterranean by Anissa Helou.


This is a quick, savory, fiery little bread made with semolina and filled with a spicy filling of onion, tomato, peppers and harissa. The dough, which requires very little rising time, is rolled out, cut into rounds and the filling is sandwiched between 2 pieces of dough.


Traditionally these breads are pan fried, but Natashya gave us the option to pan fry or bake them. Since I'm trying to cut back on fat, I baked mine.


Thanks Natashya for a great bread this month! Please visit her blog Living in the Kitchen with Puppies for the recipe.

If you'd like to bake along this month as a Bread Baking Buddy, you've got until May 24 to get your post to Natashya.

Please visit the other Babes, listed over on the right, to see what they thought of the bread.

Bread Baking Babes - Tunisian Spicy Breads

This month our hosting Babe is my fellow Canadian Natashya of Living in the Kitchen with Puppies. She picked a spicy bread for our spicy group - Tunisian Spicy Breads from from Savory Baking from the Mediterranean by Anissa Helou.


This is a quick, savory, fiery little bread made with semolina and filled with a spicy filling of onion, tomato, peppers and harissa. The dough, which requires very little rising time, is rolled out, cut into rounds and the filling is sandwiched between 2 pieces of dough.


Traditionally these breads are pan fried, but Natashya gave us the option to pan fry or bake them. Since I'm trying to cut back on fat, I baked mine.


Thanks Natashya for a great bread this month! Please visit her blog Living in the Kitchen with Puppies for the recipe.

If you'd like to bake along this month as a Bread Baking Buddy, you've got until May 24 to get your post to Natashya.

Please visit the other Babes, listed over on the right, to see what they thought of the bread.