THE DAILY BREAD

My goodness, how I love to bake bread! It was top of my list of things to learn to cook long before I even had my own kitchen. I lived with my ailing Nan for a time before I was married. Her parents had owned a bakery so she was on hand to give advice. Just as well she was so placid as I had dough up the walls, over the floor and flour spread from one end of the house to the other. I even had the buckets in which I’d mixed the dough filled with soapy water and sitting in the bathtub — trying to soak off the crusted mixtures from my all too many unsuccessful attempts.

I was nothing if not determined and tried recipe after recipe, listened to advice from everyone and persevered. At last I managed to gain a measure of success. I was ecstatic, for what is nicer, more homely and inviting than the aroma of fresh bread baking in the oven. I love the feel of dough, that magic of watching it rise, coming to life from a few simple ingredients.

I’ve baked breads in many a stove now, some without the luxury of a thermostat, a testament to the fact that bread is actually very obliging once you learn its few basic rules. Best of all is bread baked in my old slow combustion woodstove, Carmichael. In the manner of all such stoves, it needs to be coaxed along a bit but, once fired up, can cook like no other. Robert has just completed an outdoor bread oven. It’s been six months in the making and more in its planning, but it is something to behold. It is huge and I will be able to indulge my passion for baking bread all the more, using it to supply the roadside stall at the gate of our property.

My love of baking bread has not declined over the years. So if you’ve never tried making your own, do give the easy bread recipe a try and then branch out to the others — you will soon see how simple it is.