Last year I set myself the challenge of baking one bread per month. It was tricky to find the time to do so, and often I ended up baking it on the last day of the month, running out of time… but I’m happy I managed to complete this challenge, it was certainly gratifying to enjoy many breakfasts with home made bread. Some things I loved most about this challenge are what I love most about baking: seeing how things transform in the oven and being embraced by a wonderful aroma coming from the oven.
Baking bread seemed a scary en-devour, I was afraid my wiggly arms would not be able to knead the dough properly. But it turned out most of the breads were decent enough. The difficult part in my opinion, is not so much on the effort that kneading might require, but in finding an easy recipe, as several recipes ask for absurd amounts of time for the dough to raise and rest.
My friend Pawel who is an accomplished baker, advised me to focus on one recipe and perfect it, but I thought it would be more amusing to choose a different recipe each month. Thus, several times the bread did not turn out as tasty or beautiful, but many other months I had luck and the bread was surprisingly good. Another advise I got from Pawel, was to make my own “starter” culture, and I have that on my to-do list. In the last weeks I noticed yeast being sold out in the supermarkets here in Helsinki, we are living crazy times… so, perhaps I will do the “starter” this year, who knows…what I know is that bread making is definitely a hobby I’m keeping, and I want to encourage you to try it! Kneading can help you distress and most importantly the aroma of bread and its fluffiness will bring some joy to your home.
The first bread I made was a lucky punch, from then on I was less lucky, and from May onward the breads were mostly good. Many pictures are not of the best quality nor aesthetic, but this is not instagram, so its fine hehe. Anyway, without further ado, here are the recipes and results from my bread making challenge:
January: Classic crusty bread
I was positively surprised with this being my first bread, not bad at all for a beginner! the texture was good and the smell when freshly baked even better! it was irresistible not to eat a slice as soon as it came out of the oven.
This recipe was quite simple, and perhaps the only one (from this list) that uses fresh fast action yeast. The recipe is from the book “What to bake and how to bake it” from Jane Hornby, a great book that got me into baking and has kept me baking since 2014.
Bonus points: 9/10 a great recipe, you should get that book if you can!
February: unknown whole wheat bread
This recipe was as you can see a big failure! I did not like it at all, so I did not even bother to keep the link for the recipe of this bread. The texture was so dry and the taste, what can I say? horrible? perhaps the problem was that the recipe asked for some wheat bran, and I messed up with the proportions of ingredients, as I was intending to only do half of the amount.
Bonus points: 0/10 what a disaster!
March: no bread?
March of last year was super hectic as I attended the “orange battle” in Ivrea (Italy) and then went to a conference in Rovaniemi, so I did not bake any bread nor anything else, as far as my picture records tell me.
April: unknown bread and an “opilla” cake
Another strange bread by the looks of it, I’m not even sure how it tasted or if it was really baked in April, but let’s imagine it was. In a non bread related, but remarkable bake, you can see I made an “opilla” a traditional Basque cake for my god-daughter. The result is quite “kitsch” according to some witnesses hahaha. I like it because it is the beginning of a tradition, where I am supposed to bake a cake every 25th of April, until my god-daughter turns 18. This year that will be challenging due to travel restrictions…but when it happens, the cake will have two eggs and two ornaments as my god-daughter turns 2 years old this September.
There is an article in Spanish wondering if this tradition will die, I hope not and I will try to keep it alive, even if the cake I make is kitsch and might not be considered a true opilla by some. Article in Spanish: “¿Peligra la tradición de regalar las ‘opillas’ de San Marcos?
May: Sweet molasses brown bread
From May onward, I was more careful at keeping track of the recipes, and luckily I did because many of the ones below are definitely worth to bake again. This sweet molasses bread was absolutely wonderful!!! the texture was fluffy and the taste was sweet indeed, I loved it! Definitely worth a try!
Bonus points: 10/10
Recipe from House of Nash eats
June: Seeded wholemeal soda bread
This bread did not leave a big impression on my mind nor in my palate, but it was interesting to add so many seeds. It’s healthy I guess.
Bonus points: 5/10
July: Fig nut and seed bread with ricotta
This fig and hazelnut bread was one of the most memorable breads from last year, it was quite chunky and every bite was a nice surprise with the nuts and figs interspersed. The recipe gave a serving suggestion: top a slice of bread with ricotta cheese and fruit, which was quite a nice way to add some novelty to my breakfast time.
Bonus points: 10/10 worth a try! and does not need any kneading if I remember well.
August: Stout and apple wheaten bread
This bread was quite fluffy and I managed to make it look decent. I’m not so sure about the flavor, because I made a big mistake! I forgot to add the muscovado sugar! so it could have tasted better than it did. But I remember the apple bites added a nice touch to it.
Bonus points: 7/10
September: Easy Lithuanian dark rye bread (Rugine Duona)
I was very impressed with the result of this bread! the taste and texture were on point! The recipe proportions are quite generous, so I ended up with two big loaves of bread. I took some bread to my office and my colleagues liked it as well!
This is definitely a recipe to keep, the rye bread is perfect for anytime of day, or at least it was for me, but it might not be your case if you don’t like the taste of caraway (Persian cumin).
Bonus points:10/10
October: Light rye bread with caraway seeds
The recipe from September got me hooked on baking rye bread, so for October I chose another similar recipe. I also chose it because as I do research on caraway, I thought it is important to discover the culinary uses of its seeds.
The recipe on the link below might not be the actual one I used, or at least by the look of the pictures it seems. Someday if time allows, I need to figure out why mine turned out so dark, or perhaps did I use another recipe?
Bonus points: 8/10 the taste and texture were wonderful, but I had to deduct some points for not being sure if the picture above matches the recipe below.
November: Three egg Sabbath bread
This was the most fun bread to bake, I definitely enjoyed the kneading and even more threading the braid, as well as coating with the eggs and poppy seeds. You can tell I still need to improve my kneading as the dough does not look so airy, but anyway it was fluffy enough for being a beginner bread maker. This bread was a great to eat with a hot chocolate, the perfect combo for a November rainy day.
Bonus points: 8-9/10 the flavor could be improved
December: Lussebullar (Swedish saffron “Lucia” buns)
I’ve always wanted to bake “Lussebullar” , the traditional buns that are done for the 13th of December in Finland and Sweden. This recipe was daunting to me, as I was sure more strength was needed for kneading to achieve the fluffiness of a true bun. Luckily I had the help of my baking master, Anne. She is an ace in the kitchen and can do anything from brioche to macaroons, to lots sophisticated French dishes that are always tasty. These Lucia buns turned out very well because she did most of the work hahaha, while I enjoyed chatting along and probably only helped to melt the saffron and shape some of the buns.
Bonus points: 11/10 it is Anne’s merit of course.
I hope you have enjoyed reading this, or just watching the pictures. Please do try at least one recipe! or set yourself some other type of challenge, to do something new and improve your skills while we endure this difficult times.
Bonus Points 