There’s a great scene in
the Pixar movie Ratatouille wherein Colette (voiced by the delightful Janeane Garofalo)
explains to Linguini that good bread can be known not by smell or sight, but by
the sound of the crust. It makes a glorious crackling cripsity (quiet,
it’s a word) noise that tells you without a doubt that when you rip into it the
insides are doughy and soft with a flaky crust. It just begs for a dip
in olive oil and herbs, or to have a layer of hummus spread over it. And
it’s WONDERFUL.
Not my image! I claim nothing!
Bread unifies us in ways
that a lot of foods don’t. We don’t talk about breaking beans together,
or being the meat winner of a family, or potatoes and water. It’s
bread. And I should note that I’m not
talking about that flaccid, sugar-laden crap you find at the store. Yes,
there is a time and place for a simple piece of white bread (I’m thinking
grilled cheese, which can only be made with American cheese slices,
thankyouverymuch), but real bread is the stuff of dreams. The fact that it now has a bad rap because of
the carb crazy infuriates me to no end.
This is bread, people. This is
life.
The following recipe is
not only super-easy, but incredibly delicious. When I tried it for the
first time my husband and I ate about half the loaf before it was an hour out
of the oven. I’ve made five loaves since
then, and this is the fastest I’ve ever gone through a bag of flour. When I brought it into work it had rave
reviews and people asking for the recipe.
It’s also sparked discussion about food in general, the best local
bakeries, Bosnia groceries I didn’t know existed, French presses and coffee
grinders. Food brings us together, and
bread is the center.
Slightly related, I
really need to open a damned bakery.
Enjoy!
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