The Knead to Bake Bread with Mary Lynn Owen
I read an article yesterday titled "Loneliness Is a Modern Invention. Understanding That History Can Help Us Get Through This Pandemic." It was all good food for thought, pun intended, and I'd recommend the read. So then I get to the part of the article that says "companionship is not just about touch; our connection to the world and to others includes a wide range of senses, including touch, smell and taste. Maybe that’s why so many people have turned to baking bread," and am taken back to one of my favorite shows I've seen us do at the Alliance- Knead by Mary Lynn Owen.
Knead was a deeply moving play that we did on the Hertz Stage around the holidays during our 50th Anniversary Season. The synopsis alone takes you on a journey: "In the wee hours, a woman bakes bread, determined that her mother’s incomprehensible recipe will finally work. But something is different about this night. The ingredients of time and memory keep interfering, and the bread-baking process – the kneading, rising, shaping, and baking, all in real time – becomes a journey into the unpredictability of, well, just about everything. What can you do when life doesn’t go according to the recipe? Owen, the granddaughter of Cuban immigrants on her Mother’s side, mixes the ingredients of her life – love, loss, and Cuban food – into a night that rises and falls with loaves that somehow end up in the oven. Just like life – who knows how it will turn out? Originally developed as a project from the 3rd Reiser Atlanta Artists Lab and a semi-finalist for the 2017 O’Neill National Playwright’s Conference."
Here is a quick trailer of the production that does a good job of reinforcing its charm in case you were unable to see it:
So now we are all caught up. And find ourselves in need of connection. Mm... bread. We thought it may be a good time to share Dahlia, or Dolly's, recipe with all of you in case you'd like to bake your own loaf with Mary Lynn.
MLO shared her mother's original document, and has helpfully transcribed and tweaked it, which you will see below. Enjoy your journey.
Dahlia’s Bread – with ML’s tweaks
This recipe makes 4 loaves
4 pkg. Rapid Rise Yeast
½ cup warm water (110 – 115 degrees)
1 stick butter
1 qt. milk
½ cup honey
2 tbsp salt
10 (or so) cups unbleached bread flour – can be whole wheat or white or a mixture of the two. King Arthur is best.
For whole wheat bread, use 2 extra Tbsp of honey
Optional: ½ cup wheat germ (adds a nutty flavor)
This is an old-fashioned recipe that I’ve adapted some, but not much. Many yeast breads start with a dry mixture, but if you have time and a thermometer I like starting with liquid.
In a large bowl – or a mixer bowl - dissolve the yeast in the warm water. The yeast will proof (it will become very bubbly) and sometimes I add a tsp of honey to help it along. Temperature very important here – water too hot can kill yeast!
As the yeast is proofing, melt butter in a medium-sized saucepan over low heat. Add the honey, milk and salt to the butter. Take care not to overheat, keeping liquid mixture lukewarm – about 110 - 115 degrees.
Add the lukewarm milk/honey mixture to the proofed yeast.
Using a wooden spoon, stir in about 4 – 5 cups of flour (and wheat germ, if you like) to the liquid. I measure my flour with a spoon, scooping into the measuring cup. This keeps it at about the right amount, not over-packing the measuring cup. As you stir, don’t worry about lumps in the dough, that’s perfectly fine.
Keep adding/stirring flour until dough won’t take any more flour and leaves the sides of the bowl. Now you should have big fat dough.
Turn the dough out on a floured surface. Let rest about 10 minutes.
Butter a large bowl.
Knead dough about 7 – 10 minutes until elastic. Kneading is a folding/twisting combo.
Place dough in the buttered bowl, cover with dishtowel or plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm spot until about double. With Rapid Rise yeast, this should be about 45 - 60 minutes.
Perform a monologue. (Just kidding.)
When dough has risen to about double, punch down. Kids love this part. Punch punch punch!
Using a knife or a slicer, divide dough into 4 sections, kneading each one just a little.
Allow the loaves to “rest” while you butter your 4 loaf pans.
Then, using a rolling pin, form each mound of dough into a long rectangle, about a foot long. Starting at the bottom of the rectangle, roll up the dough – a jelly roll move – and at the end of the rolling, tuck the ends of the dough over each end – like closing the lid on a package.
Place loaves in the pans – brush with melted butter. Cover with dishtowel and place in warm spot.
Let rise once more, about 45 minutes.
Heat oven to 375 degrees.
Bake loaves for 15+ minutes, then cover with foil, and bake for another 20 minutes. If you like the loaves a little browner, you might go a minute or two longer.
Remove from pans immediately. Cool on a wire cooling rack – or some kind of ventilated bottom.
Wait as long as you can – at least 30 minutes! – and then enjoy! (the longer the bread cools, the better the taste and texture…)
Variation: stir about 1.5 to 2 cups of raisins into the dough before kneading. When shaping into loaves, sprinkle the rectangle of dough with cinnamon sugar and then jelly roll. Makes a beautiful tasty cinnamon raisin bread!
XOXOX
