Mmmm Bread.....

I was busy this weekend...

I decided to make my own bread. It all started on Friday night. I whipped up the dough and set it aside to rest and rise... It rested all night and part of the morning on Saturday - and then after a few more steps and a few more naps - it was ready for baking.

I am very proud to present - my first homemade bread!




Isn't it gorgeous!





It was tasty too - fresh and hot out of the oven - we ate it with butter and honey. Wow - I felt like I had died and gone to bread heaven!

Later we made bird's nests with it - oh so good!





and of course - we ate it with every meal!





(It was especially good with my last bottle of V Sattui Family Red - yum!)





Lately - I have been inspired by the amazing baking of my friend Jen and I couldn't resist trying to bake some bread for myself.

I was a little nervous about making this particular bread - it's the No Knead Bread recipe that has been sweeping the internet lately - because I didn't have a large covered pot to cook it in. So - I improvised....

I used my pizza stone and covered it with a large ceramic bowl (I made sure it was oven safe first!) This provided the natural steamy environment that the bread needed.





It worked like a charm and the bread come out looking just fabulous. I was so happy with the results - I immediately ran out to the bookstore to get a Bread book I have been eyeing...





So what's next? Bagels, Ciabatta, Naan, sourdough - you name it - I'm going to try them all! I'm addicted!