Anadama Bread

I have successfully baked my first two loaves of bread. Ever. It was thrilling to be perfectly honest. I am kind of odd about bread. I insist on buying bread that only has 6-7 ingredients. It is reassuring to recognize all the ingredients because let's be honest, most breads have plenty of things that have no business being in bread to begin with (take a look at the label on your bread at home). That being said - I never have actually taken it upon myself to make a loaf. Until now.
I was a little intimidated by the book when it first arrived at my door- and even more intimidated when the first bread was a two day bread. But in the end, it actually wasn't too bad. I may have to purchase a mixer that can handle bread, ie has a bread hook attachment, but for now I prefer to be kneading the bread by hand. It feels like bread making in its pure form. Or at least that is what I told myself when I was hoovering over the ball of dough for 15 minutes last night. I couldn't get the bread to pass the "windowpane test" but gave up and figured it was good enough.
And it was.
There were a few little hiccups along the way...At first I was worried because all I had was a darker molasses, but the taste didn't end up being to overpowering once baked (yes I sampled the dough - of course!). I thought it would be a good idea to grab the baking rack with my bare hand and now have the blisters to prove it. I under oiled my ceramic baking pan that I was using for the first time... and it was so pretty with the bread rising happily over it's edges. But the loaf itself was a little less pretty after I struggled to free it from its ceramic home. But it ended up basically intact and tasting lovely and the other load looked great.
All in all, a successful experience that I am looking forward to repeating every two weeks! Pictures to follow.
-K