joys of baking

i baked bread.

something which i have never done, nor thought i could do before. but it was surprisingly and wonderfully simple to make. i followed jules' no-knead yeasted bread recipe on stonesoup with some slight tweaking: i used fresh yeast in place of instant and 50/50 of '00' flour and wholemeal stoneground spelt flour.

i felt a sense of accomplishment when the finished product was revealed, which turned to undeniable pride when i bit through the crunchy crust into the chewy, but light bread i'd baked myself.

i think there is great joy to be had in doing something productive and creative. the act of baking a delicious, nourishing loaf to share is so gratifying to the soul. there's also something satisfying in making something that takes hours. i will often throw food together simply out of a desire for instant gratification, but investing time and effort into food - like anything, really - makes the end product that much more pleasing.

and i am very pleased with this bread.