Bread Art

Eleanor and Olivia getting creative with bread dough.

My daughter Eleanor and I invited our friend Olivia over to make homemade French bread during spring break but our baking project morphed into an art project when the girls decided they wanted to shape bread characters instead of loaves.

With just a bit of flour to keep the dough from sticking, a knife and some raisins for eyes and other features, the girls created the most adorable characters.

Eleanor's work in progress.

Olivia's creation just needs to rise for an hour before baking.

Bread art is definitely something we are going to have to tackle again. The soft dough was easy to shape and the the results were fun to eat. It is important though to keep an eye on your creations as they bake since the baking times will vary depending on size.

Eleanor's art.

Olivia's art.

This is Anpanman which is a popular character in Japan. Translated, the name means "Bean Bun Boy." Eleanor shaped him and brushed him with an egg wash right before baking to highlight his eyebrows, nose and cheeks.

 Anpanman didn't stay intact for too long. Warm homemade bread is just too delicious!

Here's my favorite recipe for French Bread:


French Bread
(makes 4 loaves)
2 packages yeast
2/3 cup tepid water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
7 cups bread flour (additional may be needed)
2 tablespoons rye or whole wheat flour
4 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cups cold water
(cornmeal for sprinkling on sheet pan or parchment paper)

Combine yeast, sugar and tepid water. Let set for 5 minutes. Combine the remaining ingredients then add yeast mixture. Knead.

Let rise 40 to 60 minutes in a clean, dry bowl. Then deflate and punch into a 14-inch rectangle and fold into thirds.

Return dough to bowl and let rise 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Punch down the dough and shape into loaves, place them on baking sheets sprinkled with cornmeal or lined with parchment paper and let them rise for an hour.

Use a sharp knife to slash the top of each loaf in three places and place the sheet pans in a preheated 450 degree oven. Toss in 1/4 cup of water and quickly close the door. The steam makes for a nice crust. Bake the loaves for 20 minutes and then bake an additional 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

A loaf of just-baked French bread.

Walnut Bread

My husband asked me to bake bread yesterday and since I had a just a cup of whole wheat flour and some wheat bran and semolina that I wanted to use up, I decided to get creative and devise my own recipe.

So that's how this delicious Walnut Bread came about. I'm so glad I wrote down the recipe as I made it because I definitely want to make it again.

The bread is moist, slices easily and is full of healthy ingredients. From personal experience, I highly recommend eating a slice warm out of the oven with a bit of butter and honey. 

The recipe makes two loaves. Since I was planning on making homemade garden burgers for dinner yesterday evening, I made one loaf and eight hamburger buns.

Homemade hamburger buns.

Use a serrated knife to slice the buns in half.

Here is the recipe:

Walnut Bread
(makes 2 loaves)

1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/3 cup molasses
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 cups water
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup semolina flour
1/3 cup wheat bran
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
4 1/2 to 5 1/2 cups unbleached flour

In a small bowl dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup of warm water. Add the 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and set aside to proof for 5 to 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine the 2 cups of water with the molasses, olive oil and salt. Add the yeast mixture, walnuts, semolina, wheat bran, wheat flour and oats. Mix well.

Add the unbleached flour a cup at a time until a soft dough forms. Knead for 5 to 10 minutes, adding additional flour as necessary.

Let the dough rise, covered for 1 1/2 to 2 hours or until double in bulk. Punch down and let rise again until double in bulk.

The dough before rising.

Grease two loaf pans. Divide the dough in half and form two loaves and place in the prepared pans.

A shaped loaf that needs just 30 to 40 minutes to rise before baking.

Hamburger buns can also be made with the dough. Shape the dough into rounds and use your hands to flatten them on a baking sheet. I used a parchment-lined baking sheet but a greased baking sheet also works.

Let the loaves rise for 30 to 40 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees and bake for 40 to 45 minutes.

Remove the loaves from the pans and set on a rack to cool. Or, just get to it and enjoy a slice warm out of the oven.

Kalamata Olive Bread

Two loaves of kalamata olive bread made for less than $4.

Both of my daughters love kalamata olive bread and ask me to buy it for them at our neighborhood market. The price though is hard for me to swallow - $4.99 for a very small loaf.

Starting today, they'll get it more often because I found I can make it myself for a lot less - two large loaves for under $4.

The kalamata olives are the most expensive ingredient in the recipe. The best price I've found on them is a 12 oz. jar of pitted olives at Trader Joe's for $2.99.

The rest of the ingredients - flour, yeast, salt and a bit of sugar are under $1.

Besides saving money, baking your own bread is satisfying, makes your house smell great and you get to eat it hot right out of the oven. Yum!

Cook's treat! A slice of warm bread.

Kalamata Olive Bread
(Makes 2 loaves)

Sponge Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups water
1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast

At least 4 hours before you want to make the bread, combine the flour, water and yeast in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and leave out at room temperature.

Dough Ingredients:
Sponge mixture
1 cup warm water
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sliced Kalamata olives

In a small bowl combine the warm water, yeast and sugar. Let this set for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl combine the sponge, yeast mixture and salt. Mix well. Add the flour a cup at a time until a soft dough forms. Add the olives and knead them into the dough. Keep kneading until the dough is smooth and elastic.

Place the dough in a large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean towel and set it in a warm place for the dough to rise until it is double in bulk. This takes 1 1/2 to 2 hours.

Divide the dough in half. Shape each half into a loaf and place on a parchment lined or lightly greased baking sheet. Let the loaves rise for 30 to 40 minutes.

The loaves rising before baking.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and set aside a 1/2 cup of water.

When the loaves are ready to bake, place them on the middle rack of the oven and underneath toss in the 1/2 cup of water. Immediately close the door and leave it closed during baking so that the steam doesn't escape.

Adding the water to the hot oven helps the bread form a nice chewy crust.


Reduce the temperature to 400 degrees and bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until the loaves are a golden brown color.

French Bread

I have a wonderful recipe for French bread that I've been making for more than 20 years.

I don't even remember how or from whom I got the recipe. At some point, I did have the smarts to print it onto a sheet of paper.

There are also side notes for multiplying the recipe by five since I like to make it for the Wednesday Community Meal. For that, I usually make 10 batches of the recipe times five and still always run out because it's a great recipe and everyone loves homemade bread.

My bread recipe.

 French Bread
(makes 4 loaves)
2 packages yeast
2/3 cup tepid water
1/2 teaspoon sugar
7 cups bread flour (additional may be needed)
2 tablespoons rye or whole wheat flour
4 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 cups cold water
(cornmeal for sprinkling on sheet pan or parchment paper)

Combine yeast, sugar and tepid water. Let set for 5 minutes.

After 5 minutes the yeast foams and proves that it's alive.

Combine the remaining ingredients then add yeast mixture. Knead.

Let rise 40 to 60 minutes in a clean, dry bowl. Then deflate and punch into a 14-inch rectangle and fold into thirds.

Return dough to bowl and let rise 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Make loaves and let rise another  1 1/2 hours.

Place loaves on baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal or lined with parchment paper, slash and place in a preheated 450 degree oven tossed with 1/4 cup of water. Bake 20 minutes and then bake an additional 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

Slashing the loaves just before baking.

Warm bread!