Bread Making Basics

When it comes to bread, french people do not mess around! While in America people try to eat less carbs, french people consume bread at every meal and don't shy away from it. A real French will actually tell you ''they can't have a meal without bread''.

Meanwhile, a french meal does not include that much sugar, sauce, soda etc... Also, the ingredients are different.

Needles to say my kids LOVE bread and instead of having to spend hours making it we decided to buy a bread maker. Also a good alternative to buying bread from grocery stores that actually have a book of ingredients!

It is extremely simple as long as you follow the quantities and put ingredients in the correct order, you can’t have a fail for a simple loaf of bread. 

An important tip is the quality of your flour and yeast. The flower should be organic and light for bread, you can mix 2 types of flours. The yeast should be a good quality one if not they often give a taste that I personally do not like. Remember, cooking is not only about the recipe but mostly the quality of your ingredients.

My kids love Baguette, which requires a little more attention but is still very simple! It is fun to make with them as you can incorporate any ingredients like parmesan, olive, chia seeds etc... Each kids get to make ''their own''.

A great activity, minimal mess and also the best for entertaining. Your guest will most likely be blown away when you tell them about your ''homemade bread''!

We use the Cuisinart bread maker, it comes with a little recipe book. (attached picture)

For Thanksgiving we made several types of Baguettes, once all the ingredients are in the machine you simply have to wait for your dough.

I told you it is very simple! Your machine does 90% of the work, for a regular loaf you don't even need to take the dough out it will cook in your bread maker.

Once ready cut it in 3 or more pieces depending on the size of your baguette. Work the dough so you don't feel any air in it, this makes it lighter.

Space them, add your extra ingredients, I like to make a little cut on the top and drizzle oil that way it has a nicer, thiner and prettier crust. Cook them for about 15 minutes but I suggest to keep an eye as it cooks pretty quickly.

Et Voilà!

The recipes are endless from a loaf to baguette but also jam, all this in the same bread maker! A great appreciation gift or a nice attention to bring if you are invited.

The smell in your house will also be a dream.

My mom always told me that the art of sharing starts with the one of cooking a meal for others. It does not need to be complicated, perfect or overwhelming, most of the time the simplest meals are the best!

Should your kids be helping they won't be perfect anyways. Make it fun!

Happy Holidays ❤️  

(I am not a chef, this is nothing professional! Just sharing ideas and tips. More photos on instagram)