January- Bread Month

When I was little I begged for the soft goodness of wonderbread. I would eat the crust and wad the center up in a ball or smash the rest as flat as I could get it and nibble slowly like a mouse so that I could savor the flavor. It was weightless and absolutely delicious to me. Unfortunately my family never ate wonderbread and it became like candy to me whenever I went to a friends house. They thought I was a little weird for wanting a slice of bread rather than cookies or sweet treats. Well, they didn't have a mother that made homemade bread. Not like my mother that is. Luckily for me my aunt Jan taught me that homemade bread didn't have to be tasteless and heavy enough to anchor the titanic. When she finally convinced me that the bread we ate every time we traveled to their house in Montana was homemade I realized I had some learning to do. About the time we hit Helena my mouth would start watering and I just couldn't wait the remaining 3 hours for the hot loaves that would be coming out of the oven just in time for our arrival. It has taken me a while to feel confident that someone may be just as excited about my bread. Once I got my BOSCH however, it was a whole new world. Now we make bread quite often, especially during the cold winter months. January tops the chart of cold here in Idaho so it seems only appropriate to consider this month bread month. From sandwich bread to sweet bread, It warms us up all through the winter. Try a few of these recipes when you want to cozy up your house a little. If they don't come out right the first time keep trying. These are tried and true and my favorite bread recipes for January.