Homemade 1 Hour Bread

20.2 Megapixels, vari angle LCD Display with touchscreen, up to 7 pictures per second, Full HD 1080p Video or a built-in Wireless Connectivity....

Those are the things that currently keep me around cloud 7.895.385.398.....934 - UNIMAGINEABLE!

After approximately two years of regular working and keeping all most pennies I've finally got it:
my new camera!! I first noticed the Canon EOS 70D a few months ago and immediately fell in love, 'cause it had everything I've wanted, for a price in my budget (or at least one I was willing to work for even harder ;-)).



I will never need any (psychedelic) drugs: the first pictures absolutely killed it! No comparison to my (still) beloved Canon EOS 1000D which will hold a place in my heart but for now also on the shelve... Sorry, I'm getting melancholic :-P.



If you've ever bought something similar (saving anything and everything for a long time for this ultimate goal) then you quite possibly can relate to my current state: dancing around, bawling out christmas songs (sorry to my dear neighbours, but the first snow this week just increased my need for all things christmas-y) and randomly hugging everyone in sight (you know: family and friends, 'cause I'm not thaaat weird - or at least I think so...).
So we can sum up: I'm in love!



Add a wakeful hour at 4 am in the morning to the impatiently wait to try out my new darling (like really, why do batteries always have to charge over night when they're new?) and we'll end up with something fresh-made in the morning, to soon be the first "victim" for my horrible skills with getting to know new cameras ;-P.

And what's easier then an 1 hour homemade bread, using half whole wheat and half all purpose flour to be devoured for breakfast? Yep, not much :D I sadly just managed to take some photos of it in the early afternoon, so the light was already fading and the pics got quite dark :-/.



But I don't want to bother you any longer with how weird I can act out in person, just one last ultimate tip on how to enjoy fresh bread - which in my opinion is the only way you should ever choose (!!) - Sorry to be so direct guys, but I'm trying hard to inherit this to all my friends, who mostly just see bread as bread instead of a piece of art made of flour and water with optional add-ins - you see I have a really personal relationship to things - and yaa I'm one of these crazy people who speeks with objects, don't judge me!



Back to how to eat bread (okay, that sounds weird, like who doesn't now how to eat...): take (fresh) bread, the best olive oil you can get your hands on and some good quality grainy sea salt. Slice the preferably still warm bread and either drip the oil on top of a slice and sprinkle with the salt, or first dip the bread into the oil and then the salt = HEAVEN (sorry butter, but for me you just have to move over, nothing tops fresh steaming homemade bread with aromatic oil and luxury salt). When you have the chance to get some fancy variations of oil and salt (the black sprinkles on top of the slice in the pictures isn't pepper, it's actually black hawaiian salt :-O totally addicting!) this makes a nice unique appetizer when guests are around - really quick preperation and you have enough time to share with them instead of nervously whirling around in your kitchen.

Homemade 1 hour Bread
- makes one medium sized loaf (serves 5-6 people for breakfast)
- 300g/ 2 and 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour (can be substituted with All Purpose, it just makes the bread a little heartier)
- 325g/2 and 3/4 cups All Purpose Flour
- 2 tsp Baking Soda
- 1 and 1/2 tsp Salt
- 500 ml/ Buttermilk

1. Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F. Mix all dry ingredients, then add in the buttermilk, stirring with a wooden spoon until a thick and wet dough resembles.
2. Line a baking pan (I used a ~30x12cm pan) with parchment paper, then spoon in the dough.
3. Bake in your oven for 1 hour, until bread sounds hollow when tapped. Take it out, let cool for 10 minutes on the countertop, then remove from the pan and let cool for at least a further 5 minutes. Serve fresh bread with olive oil and sea salt. Enjoy!