“Do you want to bring a ‘starter’ over, or do you want us to start from scratch in my kitchen?”
This was my query to grandson Ian, who visits our house often this summer to mow and trim the lawn and help with other chores like car-washing.
“No, we can do it all at your house if you have flour, milk—and yeast, of course. You gotta have YEAST!”
And so we did, Ian and his Nana helping him to assemble the makings of two loaves of bread, one to share, and the other to take to Communion at our church.
Ian has the ingredients of bread-making in his head, but he obliged his Nana by writing down the recipe, so I could follow along.
First Ian assembled the ingredients on the counter top. Then he measured the water and heated it up in the microwave.
He added the yeast & water to the mixture of sugar and flour.
Next step: measuring the oil and stirring it into the flour mixture. He added flour to give the batter a more solid consistency.
The measuring and stirring went better with Big Band tunes from “Let’s Dance.”
It’s almost ready to bake. But wait . . . we need to knead!
Ian learned a trick passed down to me from his Great Grandma Longenecker: anointing wax paper with butter. That way, you don’t get your hands so terribly sticky.
After about 45 minutes at 450 degrees Fahrenheit, the bread is ready to take out of the oven, fragrant and flaky. It’s yummy with cherry butter or strawberry jam.
We ate one cooled loaf of bread with cherry butter. The other went to church with us one Sunday in July for the Communion service.
Oven-baked bread gives us daily sustenance. The Living Bread imparts life eternal.
. . . This do in remembrance of me. Luke 22:19
Do you like baking your own bread? Any special recipes?
Does a bread baker you know come to mind? Here’s a place to recognize their skill.
Good morning, Marian! What fun to bake with your grandson!
I have a photo somewhere of a making bread with my kids when they were very young–flour everywhere and all of us laughing.
I suppose I’m the bread baker who comes to mind! 😅 Our daughter bakes bread sometimes, too, and older child has baked bread, but not very often.
Ian is 14 now and an experienced bread-maker. Because I was more of an observer I cleaned up some flour “dusting” as we went along. I know you like to bake challah, especially during Hanukah and other special days.
I’ve baked many types of bread, but challah looks so pretty in photos. 🙂
Yes, I love the braided effect. 😀
Yeast – will get when I go shopping later. Looks delicious Marian. My daughter in law is a cordon bleu chef …. she often makes bread and there is nothing as delicious as hers. I’ve never made it but I may well give it a go. I love the scripture quote and this gives me further impetus.
I’m impressed at the “cordon bleu” chef in your family. Thanks for mentioning this, Susan, and for giving a nod to the quote from Luke 22:19 😀
Few things smell better than bread baking ~ and Ian has some serious baking skills! In 2018 I gave up kneading bread (arthritis) and bought a Zojirushi Mini Breadmaker that I’ve learned to love. In three hours Mr. Zo can magically produce a very respectable 1 pound loaf of bread.
Thanks for mentioning this time-saving/bread-kneading device. Maybe other readers will benefit. I appreciate your tuning in today, Lynn. 😀
That bread looks yummy. I remember making a ton of friendship bread back in the 90s when friends from church passed me the starter. 😊😊😊 I’d love to make some banana bread again. I like to make it with chocolate chips.
Just let those bananas get good and ripe, and you’re ready for banana bread, L. Marie. I used to make banana bread more when the kids were still in the nest. I’ve never made it with chocolate chips though, sounds extra yummy. 😀
Yes to the chips in banana bread, and then eat it with cream cheese and homemade strawberry preserves. Fabulous!
Thank you, Sarah! I just had a spaghetti lunch with salad. Now you are making me hungry for dessert. Yum!
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What a wonderful young man. I love that Ian is helping to keep the family recipes alive. Like L. Marie, I love banana bread with chocolate chips!
Jill, I guess I’ve been missing out, not adding chocolate chips to the bread recipe.
Lately, when Ian came over, he wanted to make pancakes with chocolate chips, but I couldn’t find the bag. Of course, it showed up after he left. So the bag of Baker’s Chocolate Morsels is sitting on the counter for the next go-round. 😀
This is awesome. A question: did he/you leave the dough rise, or doesn’t the recipe call for it. I’m sure it was enticing and wonderful … but am curious! You are lucky to have a helper so nearby. 🙂
The recipe didn’t require it. I was surprised that we didn’t have to wait for the dough to rise. The whole process didn’t take long. Thanks for asking, Melodie! 😀
Marian & Ian — Save some for me, I’m on my way!
Down the road, you and Luna can have fun with bread-making. Kids of all ages like to knead the dough and make a mess! 😀
I imagine doing anything with your grandson would be fun, but it must make you feel good that he’s contributing to your church. Cooking while enjoying music just go together.
Ian is a musician and attends Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, where he plays the tuba. He likes all kinds of music, but he picked out jazz to go with the bread baking. It fits!
Like you are doing, he is learning the value of volunteering, Pete. Thanks! 😀
Interesting bread recipe that doesn’t require rising. This might be just the thing for Owen to make for us at Christmas. I’ll try to remember to come back to this post then. Love the music, the baking-giving tradition, and of course the bread of life.
Great idea, Shirley! My website has a search feature, so when the time is right, you can simply type in “bread,” and this post should come up. Grandchildren add a third dimension to our lives, as well you know.. 😀
What a blessing to make bread with your grandson. More so to take to church for communion. I love to cook and bake. Yet never made bread. I want to make bread. I have everything at home to make it. Im going to try it when I get home. If all turns out good then I’ll get my grandchildren to join me. It would be nice to do it with them. Thank you again for a great post and picture. Ian is a very special young man that God will use immensely.
I sure know you like to cook and bake. After all, you owned a restaurant.
This bread recipe doesn’t require a lot of waiting in between for the bread to rise, so it’s super good to do with grandchildren, who generally don’t have a lot of patience. I will tell Ian what you said about him. Teenagers need all the encouragement the can get these days. Thanks for your reading and commenting today, Gloria. 😀
So nice that your grandson comes and helps with lawn mowing and enjoys baking in your kitchen, and actually is okay with you video taping him doing it! My oldest grandson, Ben, is a good cook and baker, but is very private and would be adamant I not video tape him doing it, or feature him in a blog post!
I bake “Zwieback” which is literally translated as “two bake” (two balls of dough stuck together). I wrote a blog post about it, (Sept. 3, 2016– http://ens-intransit.blogspot.ca/ )
and was also featured in the Canadian Mennonite, making these yummy little bits of bread. They would actually be good used in Communion because two people could each share the bread by breaking off the top one and handing it to the next person.
Yes, I do remember this blog post on zweiback and happened to be the first responder–ha! I found the actual link to refresh my memory: http://ens-intransit.blogspot.com/2016/09/zwieback-anyone.html
All of our grandchildren have been used to the camera lens since they were wee ones. The older three probably wouldn’t have the patience for such a stint now, preoccupied with going off to college. Ian was very cooperative and helped me put the photos in sequence for the blog, which helped him with his language arts skills. This morning when we looked at the blog post together he seemed a little bit bashful, but I think he felt (secretly) pleased. Thanks for tuning in again, Elfrieda! 😀
You and your grandson have inspired me to go back into the kitchen to bake homemade bread. What fun you had together. Love the jazz!!!
I’m glad this post sparked your interest. You could even make your own version of bread baking with a musical background. Just a thought, Rebecca! 😀
I feel a little sheepish to admit I have never baked a loaf of bread, and the photo of the baked bread at the end literally made my mouth water Marian. 🙂 Yum, what a great activity for you and your grandson. I’m very impressed with his knowledge and interest in cooking. I also love how he helps with chores. Of all the chores in the world, I helped my grandfather out with dusting and gardening. It’s a funny combination, but I loved it. 🙂
You probably realize that you loved dusting and gardening simply because you could have your grandfather’s full attention then. It’s amazing what a profound effect grandparents can have on their grandchildren. I think the “generation once removed” status takes some of the pressure out of the interaction. We can enjoy the fun and let the parents take over from there. Ha!
Ian and his brother have always liked cooking and baking. Their mom says she’s preparing them to take over in the kitchen, at least sometimes. They’re teenagers now, but when the time comes, they’ll have lucky wives. Ian’s older brother Curtis was featured years ago here: https://marianbeaman.com/2018/08/29/real-men-wear-aprons-make-flan/
Thanks for reading and commenting during this difficult time. I appreciate it, Melanie! 😀
Bob tells me he can’t remember how many loaves his mom made at one time, but the dough she kneaded was a BIG mound. FYI, she cooked for a family of eight. You need a lot of bread! Her baking oven was a coal-fired cookstove. Something many of us can’t picture or even remember. My mom never made bread; it was all store-bought. I’ve tried making bread but not with much success. Bob remind me the breadmaker did OK. To me, that doesn’t become included Ian’s kind of breakmaking.
I have a memory of a gentleman in our church who quite often made bread for communion. His loaves were considered artisan bread loves. We all got excited (if that’s permissible on Communion Sunday) if Bob John was as having brought the bread that morning. Unfortunately, Bob is baking bread in Heaven now and we know those saints above are as excited about his finished loaves as we always were!
Indeed your hymn and the verse of Scripture make a perfect lesson to go along with Breaking Bread and and All That Jazz.
My Grandma L. had a coal-fired cookstove too, but I don’t think she did much bread-baking although she made wonderful pies. Cliff’s mother was a baker and made sandwiches with home-made bread. Cliff was embarrassed about the big holes in his mother’s bread, which he pulled out of his lunchbox. He wanted Wonder Bread like his class-mates. Too late he learned how unhealthy such bread really s.
Home-made bread seems appropriate for Communion. Before the Sunday homemade loaves were served, we put up with tiny wafers sealed on top of a sip of grape juice. Everyone seemed to appreciate dipping chunks of home-made bread into the “wine” carafe. I hope we do it again.
I’m glad you (and Bob) chimed in today! It’s always good to hear from you. 😀
Now, if young Ian were coming to my house to bake bread, he would need to qualify “YEAST” with “UNEXPIRED.” My mother baked her own bread from when I was growing up until she went into assisted living. I also baked bread for a while, although I don’t anymore. The best part of the process (aside from eating it, of course) was punching down the dough after it had doubled in size.
Liz, I’m glad you have personal experience with bread baking–and memories of your mother’s punching down the dough. What fun!
The back story: At church the previous Sunday, a basket of fresh yeast packets was available to congregants, encouraging bread baking. I’m sure the packets of yeast were unexpired. 😀
When my son was young, we made hot cross buns every year. Now that I think of it, I cringe, but my memory is that at least one year we set the dough on the toilet and turned on the bathroom heater to help it rise. Thanks for inspiring that memory.
You’re welcome. I’m glad this post sparked that indelible memory. I’m reading Julia Cameron’s The Right to Write. One thing she mentions is honesty in writing: graphic detail helps writing come alive. Your comment is a great example of that. Thank you, Linda! 😀
Hi Marian, how lovely that your grandson likes to make bread. Michael also likes to cook and I think its a great thing for men to be independent in that way. A lovely post.
You and your budding boys are definitely bakers extraordinaire. Readers, Robbie is an author and blogger who often bakes goodies into her blog posts. I especially like the recent Strong Man: https://writingtoberead.com/2022/08/10/growing-bookworms-interactive-books-for-children-part-1/
Thanks for visiting today, Robbie! 😀
How wonderful. He knew exactly what he was doing. I was surprised the bread didn’t have to rise before baking. It looks so good. What an ipressive young man.
When we began, I knew Ian was pretty experienced with bread-making. What I didn’t know is that we didn’t have to wait hours for the dough to rise. The whole experience was smoother than I expected. I guess I’ll continue to learn new tricks from the next generation, a good thing. Thanks, Darlene! 😀
What a wonderful grandson, coming to bake bread with his Nan. Looks delish. And the cherry butter sounds more delish! 🙂 x
Debby, you have a sharp eye. I forget about the cherry butter which is delish. I have a sinking feeling the jar’s been pushed to the back of the fridge by now. I have to find it so I can slather some on my toast tomorrow morning, but it won’t be homemade. Thanks! 😀
Lol, I’m glad I read this at breakfast. It gave me a craving for fancy strawberry jam. 🙂
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What a great time you two had baking bread and it looks delicious, Marian! I’ve never had cherry butter but it sounds like it would be great on a slice 🙂
Thanks for commenting here and for “liking” my video. Inadvertently, I have created two YouTube channels. “Mennonite Daughter” was the title I began initially, but then one fine day I forget about that one and created “Marian Beaman.” I’m sure my subscribers are as confused as I am. “Mennonite Daughter” has more subscribers, so I’m in a quandary. Oh, my. . .
Regardless, I appreciate your support here, Barb, the only blog name I’ll ever use. And that’s a promise! 😀
Haha – it gets confusing with so many platforms!
YUM! I love this post. It’s fun to see bread being made– and to learn about “anointing wax paper with butter.” Never knew this, so thanks for the tip.
My mom would be astounded (and probably embarrassed) about all the people knowing her baking tips. Mother was a farm girl and happily worked in her garden dirt, but she didn’t like getting her fingers messy (schmutzich!) when was a baking. You’re the first to mention this. Yay, Ally! 😀
My husband is the bread baker around here. Oh, it smells SO good in the oven!
Welcome, Priscilla, and congratulations on your debut novella. Quite an accomplishment! You are fortunate to have a husband at home in the kitchen. Maybe he makes meals too when you are up against a deadline. Thanks for the comment. Do visit again! 😀
Love it!
Thank you, Bette! 😀
Yum! I love fresh bread. We haven’t had an oven since we were sailing, which has been so long ago that I don’t remember my recipe anymore. We actually have been craving an oven so much that Mark is researching putting a small one in our current camper. Enjoy your grandson’s cooking!
Liesbet, when the oven arrives, either you or Mark can put this recipe together. Bread requires no “rising” time. Yeast, sugar, salt, flour, water, and olive oil–and you’re all set. Sounds serendipitous to me! 😀