bread

I remember being a young mom with 3 tiny kids.

A lady from church had 10 kids (8 were girls - sound a bit familiar?!), and I thought she was one of the neatest ladies!

My husband had a few of her daughters in seminary and I remember asking a lot of questions about how they ran their household of 12.  (Actually, her last baby was born just as the oldest was leaving for college - oddly similar!)

I also remember hearing from many of the people at church about her amazing homemade bread.

I asked her one day to teach me how to make bread so she invited me and my littles over for the day.

She lovingly taught me all her secrets and I enjoyed the time with her so much.

She may never know the impact she had on me that day.

I know now how busy she must have been, but she took a whole day to teach me an important life-skill.

I have since perfected my own bread recipe (she taught me how to make white bread, but I make wheat).  It's taken a lot of trial and error to tweak this recipe.

It's the spongiest, fluffiest, softest, and most delicious tasting whole wheat bread I've ever eaten.

Recently the sweetest lady in the world asked me to teach her how to make bread, so today she brought her 2 tiny little girls over and we made bread. It was a delightful afternoon!

Just paying it forward!  Maybe someday she will be able to teach someone how to make bread, and the cycle can continue!!

This is for my 2 sweet friends who asked me for my recipe recently - Annie and Liz.

Ferrara’s Famous Bread Recipe

6 cups freshly ground white wheat flour

1/2 c. gluten flour (from Winco bulk)

2 T. yeast

Mix together in a mixer and add 4 cups very warm water.  Mix for 30 seconds making sure it is fully mixed and sticky..  Let sit for 20 minutes to soften up the yeast.  (A very important step - I had a friend who had almost exactly the same recipe I have only she didn't let hers rest..... her bread didn't fluff up and get so spongy).  

Add:  1/3 c. oil, 1/3 c. honey and 1 T. salt.  Start mixing while adding:  3-4 more cups of flour (add until dough doesn't stick to side of bowl).   Knead 10 minutes.  

Spray non-stick spray on counter and on hands and separate dough into 3 even pieces.  Roll out one piece until smooth and turn over, then roll up (like cinnamon rolls) pushing in the sides and pinching it together at the ends.  Put in a large bread pan that has been sprayed with non-stick spray and stick in oven (preheat oven to lowest setting) to rise.  Repeat with other two loaves.  

Let rise until double and turn oven to 350 degrees and cook about 20 minutes until bread is a nice golden brown.  Remove from pans and set on a cooling rack.  Roll a stick of butter on top to make it shiny!  Yummy!

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