I used to be frightened of yeast. I'm not quite sure why. I vaguely recall my mother once mentioning that yeast can be...difficult. Perhaps that is where my hesitancy with yeast stems from. Perhaps I assumed that the reason why most people buy bread is because it is so hard to produce good results at home.
I made my first loaf of bread when I was 15 years old. I am not sure what compelled me to put aside my fear of yeast; but I remember that first awkward attempt at kneading. Pulling the wet, sticky dough from the mixing bowl, bits of it stringing down from the pile in my hands. PLOP, onto the "lightly floured" counter top.
This is it, I told my self, and dove in. My hands pulled, pushed, and stretched the dough. I slowly added flour, my hands covered in the gooey mess. The more I kneaded, the stickier it seemed to get. More flour--too dry, more kneading--too sticky.
This is never going to work. Rocking, pulling, pushing, stretching. More flour, more kneading. Slowly to dough came together. My hands still a mess, my hair covered in a light dusting of flour. But there, on the counter, a not-so-perfect ball of dough, smooth and...roundish?
I think everyone should try their hand at making bread. There is something about working the dough that just feels so natural and basic. For the few minutes you are spending with the dough there is nothing else in the world. Just you and that yeasty mixture.
Or maybe it's just me...
