Baking Bread...

Part of my concept includes baking my own breads for my sandwiches as well as making my own cinnamon rolls (and biscuits too).  The breads that I'll be baking are Artisan type breads.  Well, in order to 'perfect' my recipes and procedures and such, I've got to try things out...over and over and over again and again and again.  Don't get me wrong, I don't mind doing the baking and experimenting and such - it's fun for me (and I guess it ought to be since I'm about to open my own place).

So, over this weekend, I've been baking bread and cinnamon rolls...that was kind of a mistake - because everything was sooooo good!!  Baking 'Artisan' type bread at home in our own oven?  Yes - with a baking stone and adding steam to the baking process (it's the steam that helps get that nice good crust).

I baked two loaves of regular (white...well, kind of...) bread and then a loaf of rye bread - oh...the rye bread was soooo good!!!  I'm kind of a rye fanatic as two of my favorite sandwiches are a Rueben and a Patty Melt - yes, both of those are on rye bread.

I also made some cinnamon rolls...well, ok, they really weren't "rolls" as more as they were, well...a blob.  The dough was way too wet (I'm using a different process in preparing my dough) and, well, the dough was simply too soft to 'roll' it up and cut the cinnamon rolls.  So instead, we just plopped (literally) the 'somewhat rolled dough' into 9x13 cake pans and baked it.  I think I came up with a new product - cinnamon roll cake - hah.  I'll have to say that the cinnamon roll project was a failure as far as getting them to 'look' like cinnamon rolls, but the dough - sooooo good!!!  That's on my list to do again to get the dough right this time.  I've been trying a lot of different cinnamon roll recipes (as my family can attest to - and no, they are not complaining) and I think I've found my recipe...well, as long as I get the dough right.

Anyway, I've done a lot of testing with a number of different things here at the house - it's been fun.  I'll continue to do more testing to get the recipes down that I'll be using once I'm open.  That's the update for now.