Baking Bread

I have baked rolls and breadsticks for years, but up until this year I have never attempted to bake a loaf of bread. To be honest, I'm not really a "bread" person, and rarely eat a slice of bread in any form unless I'm forced to make pb&j for a picnic or something.

This changed a few months ago when I was intrigued by a newspaper article featuring a new book: 

LOVE this book.

I was particularly intrigued by the claim that natural yeast digests all the gluten in the bread, making whole-wheat bread actually gluten free. It was also interesting to note that synthetic yeast was made in the 1980s, and shortly afterwards celiacs, acid-reflux, and wheat allergies began to spike.

I received the cookbook for Christmas, and found a lot of the information fascinating. It's the first cookbook I've ever taken to bed to read.

Among other things, natural yeast:

--increases iron absorption

--helps us get beneficial bacteria

--changes the phytic acid found in wheat, from taking up vitamins and minerals away from us to instead taking up the free radicals

--lowers the body's glycemic response to all carbohydrates hours after eating it

--increases the body's source of minerals such as magnesium and zinc

I was determined to try it. I bought some nutritional yeast from the store and tried making a start out of it:

It looked like it had a lot of activity (bubbles and such) but I don't think it was rising the way it was supposed to. I tried making my first loaf of bread out of it (bread is tricky enough, without adding natural yeast to the mix!), and I'm not sure if the problem was the yeast, or over-kneading/over-flouring, or a cold kitchen temperature, but it looked like this:

It didn't rise. And a couple of weeks later, after neglecting my yeast while taking an extended weekend in Utah, it died.

I tried again, and this time I jump started my yeast start with pineapple juice. It made my start much more sour, but at least this time it raised!

View from one side, and view from the other ;) It really is unique bread, and the way the author instructs to shape it is by flattening it out then folding it, and my first ones turned out a little lopsided.

I think I didn't push it down enough when I folded it, thus the bubbles. I'm better now.

I'm very happy I am mastering this skill! And, what's even more strange, I'm becoming a "bread" person. I actually get out a piece of homemade bread and honey butter for a snack. And I got to cross this goal off my list for the year!