Bulk Bake - Bread & Bagels

I am not a big fan of baking when it is really hot outside, until I get a solar oven anyway! I just don't like heating up the house! So it has been a while since I have been able to bake a good bulk batch of goodies. Today presented a beautifully cool day as well as wet and drizzly. Since it was so wet I knew we wouldn't have much outside playtime so I thought we would make the most of it and have a good "inside playtime"!

Henry and Addie love to help in the kitchen. Yes, sometimes they are not the best "helpers", but they sure do make it alot more fun...and messy, definitely more messy! I love getting to experience the desire for knowledge that my kids show and their pure excitement over the little things in life. They both love to know how things are made and how they work. Bread is always exciting for them to participate in because we start from whole grain wheat berries, put them through the wheat mill and they get so thrilled to see it turn into flour. Then the real excitement begins because they get to see how the yeast and sugar react together in water! As we mix the wheat that they just ground in with the "exciting yeast mixture" they love to get involved with kneading and forming the dough. And when you have 2 kids involved who needs to set a timer for the dough rising portion? They both take off to play and about ever 2 minutes they love to run back and see how much its grown! Addie jumps up and down almost every time in joy that the yeast is actually doing what it is supposed to be doing...it raising!!! Once its done raising we all start forming our special loaves. And what is more exciting and rewarding for a child (well, adults too for that matter) than to see their hard work turn out to be their very own food!! Ive never seen these kids eat as well as when they get to help make it!

This morning we made 8 dinner loaves, 14 cinnamon cranberry bagels and 12 plain bagels. A few will be eaten right away :), some will make it to the dinner table tonight and then the rest will be frozen for another day. It is nice to have some homemade loaves in the freezer ready to be thawed and served for dinner on a hot day when I don't want to bake anything, or on those days that are just too busy for baking!