HBin5: A Whole Grain Artesian Free Form Loaf

 Today's post is the official start to the new bread baking club that is baking their way through the new cookbook Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes a Day. You may remember that back in November and December, we were given the bonus recipes of Pumpkin Pie Brioche and Cranberry Orange Challah breads to wet our whistle. Except remember, my challah was made with chocolate chips. Ooh, the warm memories!

Anyway, were starting off the year with the Whole Grain Master Recipe. With this basic dough, we were to make a regular free form loaf of bread, an Epi, (a shaped loaf to resemble a wheat stalk), and Spicy Whole Grain Crackers.

 Can I first tell you how easy this is? It literally took me 5 minutes to mix some flour, yeast, salt, vital wheat gluten, and water in my dough bucket, Then you leave it for a couple of hours to grow.

 At this point you can use it right away or refrigerate it for up to 14 days. I choose to refrigerate it because it makes the dough easier to handle. Then you just form your loaf and bake. Bread baking does not have to be intimidating anymore!

 This was my first loaf. Basic but beautiful!

My next loaf I topped with a mixture of poppy, sesame, flax, and sunflower seeds. I really like the way this one looked and tasted with the seeds on top.

My third loaf was made for a friend as part of her Christmas present. Since she cant have seeds and nuts due to dietary restrictions, I sprinkled her favorite Italian seasoning on top. This is her first loaf in the bread of the month club that she will be receiving. I gotta share that bread baking love!

I didn’t make the epi, but I did manage to get the crackers baked. These were habit forming. Impressive yet easy, if I may say so myself!

I topped my crackers with an assortment of toppings.

I used;

• Chili powder and kosher salt
• Johnny’s Garlic Spread Seasoning
• Grill Mates Montreal Steak Seasoning
• Black Hawaiian Sea Salt
• Salish Alder Smoked Sea Salt

A great big thank you to Michelle from Big Black Dogs for hosting our bread baking adventure. You can check out her blog for all the information and for a list of participants.

You can also check out the Artesian Bread in 5 Minutes A Day blog where you can find step by step instructions and the Whole Grain Master Recipe. They also have a lot of good recipes and ideas so take a look around. I want to make the Pizza Lollipops!

To order your own HBin5 Cookbook, Click on the above cookbook!

To win a free copy of this book,

go to Simply Daily Recipes! Jill has 4 more copies to giveaway. Winner of the second book will be announced January 22. Good Luck!

I hope you enjoyed my adventure in bread. Wait till you see what we have cookin’ for the end or the month. Something tells me your gonna like it. Just a little tease!