Mused: Mmm Bread

I have a weakness for bread.  Seriously.  I love nothing better than bagels or a good loaf of wheat bread.  Growing up it was always white sandwich bread, but I didn't care much for it.  But I would always try to get the 'other' kinds of bread at the store.  French bread, mini baguettes, etc.  But I've always felt like making bread from scratch, not bread machine, was hard and I couldn't do it.

But this week I was proven wrong!

I found this great recipe on It Starts with Me for hamburger buns.  My mom had mentioned grilling out (in the cold) later that night when I came over to do laundry, so I thought I would whip up some buns for us.  This recipe was simple to follow and simple to do.  And the buns tasted pretty yummy too.

Then, I rented Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day from my local library again.  I had read it before but never put it into practice.  I was put off by the amount of material I thought I needed, most especially the container.  But my friend and I scoped out a couple different stores in our shopping spree and found the perfect container.  Yes, it's plastic, but it's a plastic that will not be thrown out when I am done.  And I don't think it was coated in plastic wrap either.

So I finally followed the recipe in the book and made this fantastic bread.  It's very yummy and even more simple than the hamburger bun recipe.  I am definitely enjoying having an easy way to make my own bread and to get away from the plastic wrapped store bread. 

 

This weekend when I make up a new batch of dough, I think I might make it an herb bread.  I think I'll also make smaller baguettes and make meatball subs for my son.  I'm excited!

Do you have something that you make at home rather than buy?  Where do you get your recipes from?