I make my own bread by hand

Although I missed this week as I ran out of time over the weekend.

Will make one on Sunday though.

That only works if you don't place any value on your time. Even at minimum wage levels I'm guessing you spend 10 minutes making a loaf...

That would be the case if it was a chore to do. I actually quite enjoy doing it and it doesn't take too much time to do. Most of the time is spent waiting for it to prove or to rise etc...

I can accept that but I quite enjoy it, and if your time is so valuable who do you get in to cook for you?

""Sehnsucht" in German, similar to "Saudades" in Portuguese. It is a lifelong yearning or desire that is highly unlikely to be fulfilled, the feeling of intensely missing. Even when you do fulfill such inconsolable longing, it is often bittersweet. It is more complex than desire because it comes with both positive and negative feelings, and the person often don't know what it is, who it is or where it is. Mixed with a feeling of nostalgia .. argh, Impossible to translate. It is pretty much what C.S. Lewis's writing is all about.

for Germans, they pretty much understand that it is something unattainable. In a way, they are more at peace with unfulfilled life.

Every time I learn a new language, I feel like it changes the way I think!"

I read that and thought of this thread.

I am going to be pedantic and ask if you do actually spend any time waiting for it to rise or prove, or if you just leave it to do whatever it does and do other things in the meantime...

LOL, no, I normally go about other things, work, washing, etc...

Home-made bread is fun to do because there's no end of variations. I might make mini-pizza, a focaccia or two and some curry-pan from one batch.

I still buy sliced bread though. It keeps for longer. I find home made goes stale because it doesn't have the "special chemistry" you find in the bagged loaves.

On the macaroon front, I've had them at a five star afternoon tea from a proper pastry chef where everything was to die for and I just felt the macaroons where a bit meh. Everything else was outstanding.

Wrong. I use my Kenwood Chef to mix the dough. It came with a dough hook and so it would be stupid not to use it. Then when it is mixed I stick it in bread tin in the airing cupboard. The problem is remembering to take it out, but setting up the halogen oven and then doing other stuff in the kitchen helps, otherwise I forget it is rising. Once it has risen I then stick it in the halogen oven, because it turns itself off it is safe for me to use. I have to wrap it in foil because the first attempts were great on top and uncooked below. After the 30 minutes of cooking I unwrap it and brown the top.

This was what I was wondering. Breadmaking is a fairly long process (as has been discussed) and I was wondering how you dealt with that given your particular situation.

Course traditionally you'd leave it to rise twice with a short knead in between. If you're only doing it once that would make it easier to manage.

Jon

I like hand kneading bread, it's good to do when you're a bit tense
Have you made Brioche or enriched doughs yet?

I've got a mate who makes pizzas for a living, he is the most laid back person I know!

The memory does make it problematic but I never attempt anything unless it is safe. It takes me ages to find a way round some problems. The loaf has overflowed a few times but I just pour it back into the tin. It did not seem to effect the taste. If I do it twice and leave it in the mixing bowl it would be harder to overflow. I might try that next time.