Bake Your Own Bread

For the past month or so, I've been baking my own bread. It's one of those things I always said I wanted to do, and once I started, I had no idea why I hadn't done it sooner. Fresh baked bread is a zillion times tastier than store-bought, it's inexpensive to make, and it's easier than you think. Not to mention, you know exactly what's in it - and perhaps more importantly, what's not. Try looking for a loaf of bread in your local supermarket that does not contain high fructose corn syrup, and you'll see what I mean. Even the "healthy" choices contain far more ingredients than are necessary. All you really need is some basic baking supplies, a loaf pan (cost is generally between 8 to 10 dollars), and a good recipe (free recipes abound on our friend, the internet). Stand mixers and bread machines can be handy appliances if you know you will be baking bread regularly, but they're not at all necessary to produce delicious homemade bread.

I have tried numerous bread recipes, and they all came out pretty delicious, but my current favorite, this honey wheat bread, comes from one of my go-to recipe sites, Weelicious.com. This recipe also makes excellent hamburger buns, by the way! Just shape the dough into large rolls, bake, and cut in half with a bread knife after they cool.

Another tip: Hang on to a couple of plastic bags and twisty ties from your store-bought loaves. Use them to store your homemade bread to keep it fresh and soft.

Search the web for appealing bread recipes and experiment until you find your own favorites. Homemade bread is so addicting, you're never going to want to buy the stuff at the grocery again!