BBA Challenge: Brioche Muffins

It’s been a month since I last posted a BBA Challenge bread, a deliberate decision on my part. Our air conditioning was out for 29 days and since the kitchen is the hottest room in our house even with functioning air conditioning, I just couldn’t bring myself to turn on the oven and add to the heat. In the winter I bake all the time and it helps keep the house warm, but we didn’t need that in the heat of summer without any air conditioning for relief.

The next bread for me to tackle in the challenge was the brioche, a decadent bread with plenty of eggs and butter and a rich flavor. Of the three options—Rich Man’s, Middle-Class, or Poor Man’s brioche—I chose the Middle-Class version, which has less butter than the ultra buttery Rich Man’s version. Read more

BBA Challenge: Whole Wheat and Rye Bagels

My first attempt at Reinhart’s bagels ended with flat wrinkled hockey pucks, so this weeks BBA Challenge was a welcomed opportunity to improve on my previous attempt. I made a whole wheat starter with one cup of rye flour in the final dough, and shaped my bagels in a small two-ounce size, perfect for little appetites. For the toppings, I used Alaea sea salt from Hawaii, poppy seeds, and sesame seeds, and then we left some plain for the boys.

For more bagel inspiration, check out the BBA Challenge photos in the BBA Challenge Flickr photo group.

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BBA Challenge: Christopsomos (Greek Christmas Bread)

Even though it was originally intended for Christmas, this is a bread I would gladly bake any time of year. The BBA Challenge bread for this week was Artos, Greek celebration breads, and I chose the fruited Christmas version, Christopsomos. My family adored this orange and spice flavored bread, and I can easily imagine making a delicious bread pudding or French toast with this loaf.

For more bread inspiration, check out the BBA Challenge photos in the BBA Challenge Flickr photo group.

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BBA Challenge: Anadama Bread

Last week when Nicole of Pinch My Salt casually tweeted about starting a challenge to bake every single bread in Peter Reinhart’s masterwork The Bread Baker’s Apprentice, I didn’t even think. My subconscious took over and my fingers seem to type of their own accord, “I’ll take on that challenge.” I’ve had the book in my personal collection for a few years and have attempted several of the breads, some on my own and some as Daring Baker’s challenges. His Napoletana pizza dough has become a regular in our kitchen and every time I make it I want to break into a rendition of That’s Amore or Funiculì, Funiculà. Though I’ve failed the first time around on some of his formulas (er, the bagels), I now have a chance to redeem myself…hopefully.

Well, there’s a bunch of us doing what we now call the BBA Challenge, about 200 to be exact. Yes, the challenge went viral, but we decided to be relaxed about it and just have fun. We’re working loosely on a schedule of one formula per week going through the book in order from beginning to end. The first challenge is the Anadama bread.

Each week I will post a photo journal of the loaf or loaves I made that week. After today, my posts on the challenges will be mostly wordless posts, merely an opportunity to show what we’ve been working on. For more bread inspiration, check out the BBA Challenge photos in the BBA Challenge Flickr photo group.

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Honey Wheat English Muffin Bread

We’re continuing our quest to convert some of our favorite recipes to a whole grain version, and this family favorite turned out very well. I started with the Meyers family English muffin bread recipe and substituted whole wheat flour for part of the all-purpose flour, and honey for the sugar. The boys could hardly contain their excitement as I sliced it up for photos and their little hands reached out eagerly for a piece. Top Gun and Monkey Boy wanted jam on theirs and Builder Guy wanted butter, also my choice. For the rest of the afternoon they followed me from room to room, begging for more and to save my sanity I promised more slices with dinner. They finished off the first loaf for breakfast the following morning and enjoyed every bite.

It’s an easy yeast bread to start with if you haven’t made yeast breads before, just mix and plop the stiff batter into prepared loaf pans and let the loaves rise in the pan, no shaping or kneading required. You could say English muffin bread is the original no-knead bread. Read more

Banana Bran and Toasted Walnut Muffins

A couple weeks ago I scored a deal on bananas—14 overripe bananas in a bag for $1—and bought a bag with plans to make muffins, smoothies, and freeze a few, only none of them made it to the freezer because we used them up. I had wanted to try this banana bran muffin recipe from The Sweeter Side of Amy’s Bread, and this was the perfect opportunity. (Cookbook reviewed at Andrea’s Reviews.)

The recipe made a large amount of batter and I had to abandon the usual instructions about filling a muffin cup 2/3 full because the cups overflowed with batter. The baked muffins were large and hearty with a lot of texture, and one was more than enough for my breakfast or a snack, though my hungry crowd seemed to disagree. Read more

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