Don’t ask me what got me on a massive cooking and baking kick, but I have to say I’m happy to get back into what used to be one of my favorite pastimes.

After my “Big D,” (divorce) I just kind of took a break from it, since my kids generally prefer plain noodles. Making a whole meal for myself isn’t that practical, and I get bored quickly with leftovers!

I saw my bread machine sitting, sad and lonely, in the bottom of my pantry recently and hauled that behemoth out to make a pizza crust. Just for kicks, I Googled a recipe for white bread.

The recipe is easy to follow, and contains exactly six ingredients: Water, oil, flour, salt, sugar and yeast.

It probably costs 25 cents per loaf, too.

I throw all of these things into the machine, and put it on the bread dough cycle. I’ve never been a fan of the bread baked right in the machine. 1 hour and 30 minutes later, I have perfect dough. I throw it into my stone loaf pan, let ‘er rise, and bake it for 26 minutes at 390 degrees. The result is a delicious white bread with a crusty… Um.. Crust.

Yum. It tastes even better than it looks.

Behave yourself and let it cool completely before cutting. If you do it too soon, your lovely loaf will be smooshed flat. Never fear, because even flattened bread can make good french toast!

The best thing since...

Speaking of french toast, I have been making huge batches of it, then freezing the slices we don’t eat right away. It’s a quick and easy breakfast for weekdays! From the freezer to the microwave, it tastes almost as good as it does the first day.

Easy French Toast Recipe: Whip together 3 or 4 eggs, some milk, a dash of vanilla, a dash of cinnamon. Dip your bread and fry it up in a skillet of hot oil. Sprinkle with powdered sugar and top with maple syrup!

Don't forget the bacon!

| | | | | |