There is something so satisfying about a kitchen filled with freshly baked bread-especially when some of it is going into the freezer to make future meals easier.
For this big bread baking day, I made two loaves of fresh-milled whole wheat bread, four 12-inch par-baked pizza crusts, and two loaves of French bread.
That wasn't exactly my original plan!
I had planned to make pita bread, English muffins, and bagels too, but my allergies were really bothering me. Instead of pushing myself to finish everything I had planned, I pivoted and turned the remaining dough into two easy loaves of French bread.
Progress over perfection!
And in the end, I was pretty happy looking at everything I'd accomplished.
Watch the Video
In the video, I'll take you through the entire baking day and show you how I made the whole wheat bread, prepared the pizza crusts for the freezer, and turned the remaining dough into French bread.
Fresh-Milled Whole Wheat Bread
This is the whole wheat bread I made during my baking day. I used freshly milled whole wheat flour, but you can use the flour of your choice.
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups water
- ¼ cup oil
- ⅓ cup honey
- 1 tablespoon yeast
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 1 tablespoon vital wheat gluten
- 7 cups freshly milled whole wheat flour, or flour of your choice
Directions
Prepare and knead your dough.
Let the dough rise for about 50 minutes. I put mine in the oven with the oven turned OFF and just the oven light on. It creates a nice warm environment for the dough.
After the first rise, shape the dough into two loaves and place them into loaf pans.
Allow them to rise again, approximately another 50 minutes or until they're ready to bake.
Bake at 350°F for approximately 35 minutes.
Allow the bread to cool before slicing.
One Batch of Dough, Two More Uses
For the remainder of my baking day, I used Scratch Pantry's Perfect White Sandwich Bread recipe.
I doubled the recipe, but instead of making sandwich bread, I turned the dough into four pizza crusts and two loaves of French bread.
This is one of my favorite ways to work in the kitchen. A basic recipe doesn't always have to be used in just one way.
Par-Baked Pizza Crusts for the Freezer
I divided part of the white bread dough and made four 12-inch pizza crusts.
Roll or press each portion into a pizza pan and par-bake at:
400°F for 10 minutes
You're not trying to completely bake the pizza at this point. You're simply giving the crust a head start so it's ready for toppings later.
Once cooled, the crusts can be wrapped and stored in the freezer.
When you're ready for pizza night, add your favorite sauce, cheese, vegetables, meat, or other toppings.
Bake the topped pizza at approximately:
425°F for about 15 minutes, or until the crust is finished baking and the cheese and toppings are cooked to your liking.
That's homemade pizza night with much of the work already done!
Easy Homemade French Bread
With the remaining white bread dough, I made two loaves of French bread.
Shape the dough into two long loaves and allow them to rise for approximately 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
Before baking, I made four slashes across the top of each loaf with a razor blade. A very sharp knife will work too.
I brushed the loaves with an egg wash and sprinkled Everything Bagel seasoning over the tops.
Bake at:
425°F for approximately 25 minutes.
The loaves came out beautifully browned on the outside, and this ended up being such an easy way to use the dough.
Stocking the Kitchen a Little at a Time
One of the reasons I enjoy baking days like this isn't just having homemade bread for today.
It's knowing that I'm also preparing for tomorrow.
Those pizza crusts can become a quick dinner. Bread can be frozen for another week. And having homemade basics on hand means there is one less thing I need to buy at the grocery store.
You don't have to spend an entire day doing it, either. Make what you have the time and energy to make.
My original list included pita bread, English muffins, and bagels. None of those happened-and that's okay.
I still ended the day with two loaves of whole wheat bread, four pizza crusts, and two beautiful loaves of French bread.
I'd call that a productive day in the kitchen.
Progress Over Perfection.
Items I Used
Here are a few of the items I used during this baking day:
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