Toast and Jam

You may remember from a recent post I'm on the search for healthy breakfast options.  During my search I stumbled upon this recipe.   English muffin bread is delicious.  All it's little "nooks and cranies" goodness.  So many little divets for just the right amount of butter (and tabasco for some people) to puddle itself into. Yum!  So needless to say, I was very excited to give this recipe a go.

It's always a good day when I get to bring out the Kitchenaide! This was another wedding shower gift given to me 13 years ago and it's still as wonderful as ever. You can read about more of my Wedding Shower favorites here.

 

There are only 5 ingredients needed for this recipe: water, flour, yeast, sugar and salt.  That's it!

AND one recipe gets you 4 loaves of bread!  How economical is that!  I am all about being frugal these days.  Being a stay at home mom means living on a tight budget.  But I also want to give my family healthy foods.  Making my own breads, for example, is one way I know what's exactly in the food they are eating; and not paying inflated prices for commercial brands.  Ok, I'll digress about the economy for now. :)

 

 

In making one batch of the bread, you need 11 cups of flour.  I don't think I've ever seen my Kitchenaid so full!

 

 

The dough is VERY sticky!

 

 

I couldn't help but laugh at myself and the dough while getting it out of the mixer and into the loaf pans!  Sorry this picture isn't quite focused, but you can imagine how tricky it was getting this shot!

 

 

Once I got the sticky dough into the well greased pans, I covered them with a towel and let rise for about 2 hours.  The recipe doesn't state exactly how long this process is, I just timed it.  This is the only time you need to let the bread rise ( as long as you use the rapid rise yeast) ; in the pans.

 

Once the dough has risen to the tops of the pans, it's time to put them in a 350 degree oven for 45 minutes.

 

When there is only 10 minutes left of baking, brush the tops of each bread with butter.  I used Earth's Balance to keep it vegan.  Look how gorgeous those loaves look!  And the aroma coming from my kitchen...I can't even explain it.  So good!

 Look at these 4 golden beauties!

A slice, or more, of this toasted with jam or honey.... or butter and tabasco.....and a cup of french press coffee.  I, for one, am ready for breakfast!