A handful of this and a pinch of that

Anne has asked me for some bread recipes. The truth is that I don't have any; I use the ingredients I happen to have at hand and experiment quite a lot. So far I haven't got anything inedible — if you don't like your bread you can soak it in water and use it next time you bake. (Not all of it one new loaf, of course!)

Start with a very simple recipe and change something every time until you get the hang of it.

• I like to use stone ground flour.
• Use about half wheat flour.
• You can use any liquid, tea, juice, potato water, stock or what you have at hand - I usually use water and never milk as it takes 1000 liter of water to produce one liter of milk!
• Try to add different spiced and herbs — I like to use savory beside the more common anise and fennel. Try whatever you like rosemary, basil, oregano.....
• Things to add:
• all kind of nuts and almonds
• fruit, dried or fresh, in chunks, mashed or grated
• flax seeds
• sunflower seeds, poppy seeds, sesame seeds
• cracked wheat, cracked rye
• buck wheat, cracked or whole
• wheat germs
• rolled oats, rye flakes

A basic bread recipe
For each loaf use:
1 cup liquid
1 tsp oil
1 scant tsp. salt
1 tbsp. sugar or honey
1tsp. dry yeast
3 cups flour

Mix all ingredients but hold back a bit on the flour as it depends on the flour and the weather if you should add it all — or add some more. When you have a soft dough that you can handle, knead it vigorously with both hands (or machine) 5 to 10 minutes. Let rise covered in a bowl (out of draft) to rise until double. Knead lightly and shape a loaf — or put in a 1½ l loaf pan and let rise again about 30 minutes. Bake 30 to 40 minutes in 175◦C

You find a conversion calculator here.

I'll try to remember what I put in my apple butter and hope to put it up tomorrow.