Since I began baking in the Bread Baker’s Apprentice Challenge six weeks ago, I’ve received some great response from a lot of my readers. Namely, I’ve had people ask me: what in the world do you do with all of that bread?
Seeing as I live alone and try to eat from food groups that don’t consist solely of “unbleached bread flour” you are correct in assuming that I don’t consume all of the bread that I bake.
So for your reading pleasure, here are a few things I’ve done with some of the breads I’ve baked since beginning the challenge:
I give it away
It would be nice if I could tout my selflessness here and say that I’ve donated homemade breads to local homeless shelters or community agencies but that’s not quite the case. It turns out that homemade bagels make a great hostess gift and I haven’t walked into my mother’s house in ages without being greeted by “what kind of bread are we getting?”
I say no to store bought bread
I’ll admit to Pepperidge Farm and anyone else who’s interested that it’s been a long time since I’ve purchased store bought bread. It’s not just that I think homemade bread is ten times more delicious so why buy what you can make better, but since I’ve had an excess of bread in the house lately, I’ve crossed the staple off my list and have had toasted brioche with my eggs, turkey sandwiches on sesame seed bagels.
I freeze it
At any given time, if you open my freezer, you’ll be greeted with a few things: a container of ice cream, usually half-to-three-quarters eaten, a stack of freezer-safe Ziploc bags full of soup that I made back in March and a plethora of aluminum foil-wrapped packages, all oddly misshapen and unlabeled. Unless I’ve recently cleaned out my freezer to make a donation to Hungry Family or Friends, I have bread in my freezer, usually enough for any occasion.
As you might have guessed, this week’s featured bread was Challah, a traditional Jewish braided bread most commonly enjoyed on holidays like Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashanah.
My flour was a little dry so the dough was hard to shape but turned out better than I expected.
I’ve never been able to braid my own hair – but go figure, I can braid bread.
20 Comments
ATigerintheKitchen
June 30, 2009 at 10:49 amNice job! Great coloring on the bread …
Lisa
June 28, 2009 at 3:10 amOK..I just read aout the BBA challenge, very loose and no deadlines, blogroll anymore etc. So, if I happen to bake something from the book, I’ll just link it to the BBA challenge and that’l be it! 🙂
E.P.
June 27, 2009 at 11:35 amI’ve never had Challah before, but it sounds fascinating. I bet I would enjoy making it simply for the braiding part. While I cannot braid my own hair, I’m all about braiding others.
Julia @ Mélanger
June 27, 2009 at 3:16 amI love challah. I definitely want to make this bread soon. This one looks lovely!
Cora @ Cora Cooks and Prairie Wood Kitchen
June 26, 2009 at 11:02 pmChallah is such a wonderful bread and I just love to braid the dough. It is perfect for making my Insanely Delicious French Toast, a wonderful comfort food dinner with maple syrup and homemade sausage. Mmmmm . . .
Jamie
June 26, 2009 at 9:09 amI love Challah and used to make it every Friday and a special sweet Challah for the Jewish New Year. It has been so long since I have stopped and seeing your gorgeous Challah I wonder why!
I have also started giving away bread and cakes to friends, my husband brings it to work, etc. But sharing is part of the joy, isn’t it?
RCaitlin
June 25, 2009 at 8:26 pmWow your food looks delicious!
Juliana
June 25, 2009 at 6:42 pmNice challah…love the way you braided…I’ll try to do the same next time I bake a bread. Nice pictures!
A M Y
June 25, 2009 at 12:46 pmYour future husband is going to love you madly
Melissa Chapman
June 25, 2009 at 3:55 pmThis blog is making me SO hungry- that Challah looks perfect! If you EVER need to get “rid” of any extra food- let me know;)
Erin
June 25, 2009 at 1:39 pmWOW! Great job!
grace
June 25, 2009 at 1:37 pmyep, my freezer is LOADED with bread–i won’t need to buy any for a loooong time. there’s no challah, though, which incidentally is one of my favorite words to say. 🙂
Daniel
June 25, 2009 at 11:58 amI too give it out to friends, and co-workers, who are always happy for the bread, but have, as of late started demanding it. This is why I don’t give out my homebrewed beer!
Nice work on the Challah!
Haley J.
June 25, 2009 at 11:52 amLooks wonderful! I really enjoyed reading what you did with the bread. We have also quit purchasing sliced bread. I am hoping soon that we can cross buns and the like off the list and make those at home too!
kat
June 25, 2009 at 11:14 amWow, it looks amazing! Its been so long since we’ve bought bread too, homemade is the way to go
Tammy
June 25, 2009 at 10:31 amvery nice! Love the photos. I braided a round challah. It was a lot of fun and tasty!
Kate
June 25, 2009 at 9:32 amChallah has always been one of my favorite breads. I worked in a bakery for five years that made awesome challah, and it’s so perfect for french toast or a grilled cheese.
I too have a freezer full of breads and I love it. I slice them before freezing so I can pull out only as much as I need. Makes morning toast so much nicer!
Laurie Ashton Farook
June 25, 2009 at 6:22 amYour challah looks great!
And if it’s any consolation, I just learned how to brain my own hair this past year. But I have no problem braiding bread either. Go figure.
Daryl
June 25, 2009 at 4:56 amIt was as good as it looks!!!
Susie
June 25, 2009 at 4:15 amNice braid.
Loved reading what you are doing with all the bread. We are eating most, giving some away and I’ve never froze bread.
I’ve gained a few pounds so need to give more away. 🙂
Great baking along with you,
Susie