I made my first loaf of bread today and it turned out pretty good. The only dislike was it came out too small for sandwhich bread so I guess I did not make the loaf big enough? I went back and combined my remaining loaves and made them bigger will see how the next one turns out. Anyways I was hoping to use this bread for sandwhiches, toast etc.. So my questions.... Do I slice the bread ahead of using it or slice as needed. Does it matter? I know it seems like a simple question but I want to do whatever I need to keep it fresh the longest.
Also, if you have any tips or can tell me how to turn this into cinnamon rolls I would appreciate it.
Thanks moms1
only pre slice if you plan on freezing it- frozen bread doesn't slice so well! That way you can just grab a couple of pieces when needed and pop them into the microwave or toaster.
Good luck! I love homemade bread!
~C.
Man, I love home made bread. It's raining here today, if I had the ingredients I think I would make a loaf.
Whenever I make it I never have used it for sandwiches or toast, we just eat it with butter and its more like a treat rather than a useful loaf for doing normal things with. I always slice it as you go. Since it doesnt have the preservatives that store bought bread does it will dry up much quicker if you slice it. Make sure to wrap it tight in a plastic bag if you have any left over. Warm from the oven bread doesnt usually last very long in my house.
Mix yourself up some ground cinnamon and sugar, toast your bread, butter it and then sprinkle with the cinnamon sugar, it will be de-lish.
Have a wonderful Martha Stewart day ! :)
to turn into cinnamon rolls...
after the first rising roll into a 13x9 inch rectangle (as best you can. it is a little tough) then put your filling in. there are soooooo many fillings you can do. Most simpley is cinnamon and sugar with butter. I mix my softened butter with 1 cup brown sugar 1 cup reg. sugar and bout 3 tablespoons of cinnamon. lather it on and leave a 1 inch border along oneof the Long edges. you can add a little nutmeg if you want. here you can also add rasins, crasins, nuts, which ever you like. then along the long edge w/o the border start rolling up when you get to the end pinch the border to the roll to help seal it. then you can use a serrated knife to slice into rolls. Place the rolls into a 9x13 inch pan that has been greased with butter. You can sprinkle a little sugar on the butter too. now they need to rise again. You can place them in the fridge overnight if you want. I make them the night before christmas and put them in the fridge. then I take them out an hour before baking to rise. Once they have risen a second time you can bake them. 350 for about a half hour to 45 mins. I top mine with cream cheese frosting made with cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter and vanilla. Super yummy! enjoy! i pretty much use paula deens recipe but i use my own icing: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/paula-deen/cinnamon-ro...
To make cinnamon rolls, using a rolling pin roll the dough out flat. Spread it with butter and sprinkle on sugar and cinnamon. Then roll up the dough and slice. Place, leaving an inch or so between slices, in a buttered pan. Let raise and then bake at the same temperature as for bread, I think. I suggest 350.
You can make the rolls the night before, place them in the refrigerator and then bake them in the morning for fresh from the oven breakfast rolls.
I don't think that slicing the bread ahead of time will affect the freshness of the bread except that depending on how you store it it may dry out faster it if it sliced. As far as making cinnamon rolls. you can roll out your bread dough until it is shaped as a large square. Then put some butter (some people use melted butter, other use softened butter) across the entire surface of the dough. Then spread a mixture of brown sugar and cinnamon on top of the butter to cover the entire surface of the dough. Then starting at one side of the dough gently roll the dough into a log. Pinch the ends of the log to seal. Then take a sharp knife and slice the log
to get individual cinnamon rolls. Put the rolls into a baking pan. Some people like to let the dough rise again at this point. You can let the rolls rest for about an hour until they are doubled in size. Then you you can top them with more cinnamon sugar if you like that kind of topping then bake them or you can bake them first and then make a cream cheese confectioners sugar glaze for the top. there is a great recipe on the food network site that I have used. These are the general directions but the recipe will tell you the exact amounts of each ingredient to use.
Don't pre-slice it. It will get exposed to air and become stale that way.
Definitely slice it as you go. In my experience, the bread will keep unsliced for a couple of days since the crust keeps it from being exposed to the air. Once it's exposed, it will dry out quickly.
My mom makes her own bread, and we always just cut it when we needed it. I believe Mallory is correct it will expose it to air. keep it in a container. also remember if you made it from scratch, and if you milled your own wheat remeber it only has a shelf life of only 3 days, before the wheat germ dies. so eat it up. :)
