Carbohydrates? Yes Please

Okay, so I have a little confession to make:

When I was growing up i LOVED Little House On The Prairie;
 I always thought Laura Wilders was totally living the dream.

Sometimes i believed that i was born in the wrong era, and that i was really meant to churn my own butter
and ride around in the back of a wagon all day with my dog running along side.

Really.  I wanted to be Laura Ingalls.  

Well, except for the bonnet wearing part, hmm, not so much....

So while i may not make my own butter, ( yeah, about that cow milking bit... )

i do love me a homemade loaf of bread.  Really - who doesn't.

And every now and then i try to find some time to flour and knead and rise and bake...

I use this recipe for Quick French Bread from this super old 

House & Garden cookbook that i pretend i inherited from someone's great grandmother.

(Laura Ingill's perhaps????)

And it turns out every. single. time.

i like that in a recipe.  Hell, i like that in life, period.

And i might even venture to say that Pa might have liked this bread too... ; )

{ Recipe: }

1 Package yeast
2 cups lukewarm water
11/4 tbsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar
5-6 cups flour
Oil, Cornmeal

Stir together yeast and warm water, add salt and sugar.  Stir till dissolved.
Beat in flour one cup at a time, adding as much flour as needed to make a smooth dough.
Knead until smooth, brush with oil, cover and place in a warm cozy spot to double in size.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and shape into two long loaves.
Place on a balking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal and let stand to rise 5 mins.
Slash the tops, brush with water and place in a cold oven.
Turn the oven on at 400f, and place a pan of boiling water in with the loaves.
Bake 40 - 45 minutes, until crusty and hollow sounding.
Eat it all day long.

I like to add different things, like sea salt or flax seeds on the top, just because : )
Enjoy!




{ Full Plate Thursday }