I've been thinking about buns. Fresh baked, still hot from the oven, butter melting, heavenly smelling, buns. My mom used to bake bread and buns when I was a child and I can still remember what a treat it was for the senses to come home from school on the days when she baked. The smell of fresh bread has always whispered home to me.When I was a young mom I used to bake as well. Occasionally I baked bread, but more often I made buns. I still have recipe cards written in Mom's handwriting for Air Buns and Overnight Buns and lately they've been calling to me.
The challenge is this kind of baking is an all day commitment. From making the dough in the morning, waiting for it to rise and punching it down a few times throughout the day, forming the dough into balls, waiting for them to rise, and then finally baking the buns, it's not a task that a working woman can take on very often.
A few years ago bread makers were very popular and we bought one. It worked pretty well and I turned out some pretty tasty treats, but it felt almost like cheating.
It's summer, the house is warm, I can manage to be home all day on a Saturday now and then, I'm thinking that there are some fresh buns on the horizon for us!
I'm also toying with the idea of getting a KitchenAid mixer. Gerry is trying his best to talk me into it, but I'm concerned that I won't use it often enough. That dough hook that comes with it is making it more attractive at the moment though. I haven't kneaded dough for many years, and I'm wondering if a dough hook would be the way to go. Then again, if I used the KitchenAid it wouldn't be the old traditional method that I'm longing for.
Hmmm....so many things to think about on this Saturday morning.
9 comments:
Making your own bread is a wonderful occupation, given the time. The smell of the bread when it comes out of the oven is mouth-watering too. I wonder why you've been thinking about bread just now? See my Blog for the answer:
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Blessings Star
I had a bread machine years ago and finally passed it on, when I found I only used it for pizza dough and cinnamon roll dough, and very rarely at that. So, a couple months ago, I bought another one at a garage sale, thinking I'd try it again. (For $5, it seemed worth it.) You're right. I feel like I'm cheating! I do have a Kitchen Aid and I will have to try the dough hook attachment. I love it for all my other mixing!
I admire anyone who does that kind of baking. You should absolutely get a KitchenAid! I assure you you'd use it often, for cakes, cookie dough, etc.
I love making bread! I could eat a loaf in one sitting! Yummy! I now use a my Kitchen Aid mixer and my bread machine. Now one knows that I'm not kneading my way through hours in the kitchen. I guess when you get old you can cheat more!
I've always loved baking bread. There is nothing better than that smell of bread in the oven. I wish I still had the recipe I used to, but I guess I can always find a new one...I think I might have to bake some bread tomorrow!
Did you say buns, bread, butter? Now you've got my attention!
What a wonderful, creative outlet. "From scratch" is going the way of crocheting, or flower arranging. I'm so glad someone still kneads dough!
Holler when it's ready. I'll be over.
Be blessed,
Kathleen
My mother used to be make homemade bread, too. Oh, how yummy it was warm with a slice of butter!
I made some homemade rolls last week and froze some for later. I love to smell them and am addicted! But to me they are easy to make --a few minutes to mix, rise a few times and voila--shape them onto the pan.
I must have been in the Ladies' Room when the gene for loving to knead sticky dough was passed out, but I got a double serving of desire for fresh-baked bread -- especially whole grain.
KitchenAid to the rescue. I don't use it for anything else, because I no longer bake anything but bread.
Yesterday a friend brought her two young granddaughters over for a "Girls Night Out". I used my KitchenAid to mix up "real" pizza dough. The girls got to pat out their own crusts, smear the sauce, sprinkle cheese -- they had never eaten pizza made from scratch, at least not outside a restaurant.
They shaped the left-over dough into buns to take home to their mommy. They really liked the explanation that the bubbles in the dough were made when yeast critters burped ...
What fun we had!
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