What influenced you to get into baking?

GadgetGuy

GadgetGuy

(Formerly Shermie)
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The year was around April, 1968 for me. I was 17 & I was reading a cookbook. Forgot the name of it, but the pictures of the finished baked products were in black & white. It was homemade yeast bread. At the time, I wanted to try it just to see how it would work. I made 2 loaf pans for plain white bread! The basic recipe.

As the bread was baking in the oven, everyone loved the aroma. There's nothing like the pleasure of smelling bread baking in the oven!! It smelled so good that i couldn't wait to try it!! When it was done, the whole family looked at it & just marveled with joy over how it looked!! Letting it cool down a little, getting a slice of it & putting some butter on it was just one of the most flavorful things that you've tasted!! After that, I've made dinner rolls & cinnamon buns & braided bread.

My whole life had changed, now that I knew how to make bread. I made it by hand back then. Today, I do it with one of my mixers!! They all have dough hooks, so it's not a question of which one to use. I still love to make bread even today!! Guess it is something that stuck with me for many years!!! I'm always told that baking is a science & that everything has to be fresh. From the yeast to the flour & butter, you can't go wrong when it comes to making good homemade yeast bread!!!! :whistling:
 
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What influenced me?
Hey, I'm still trying! I've had a go at making bread, with mixed results, although I make a mean focaccia. My bread never seems to rise enough.
Pies? Yep, they seem to work because my mum taught me how to make wonderful crumbly pastry.
Cakes? that's a project which is still developing. I've made a few cakes which seem to work. The problem is, I still don't understand WHY they work, so there's always that doubt in the back of my mind ("will the cake rise enough? Will it be mosit or dry? etc.)
 
Baking and cooking always get separated out, and I guess I get that, but when I was a kid and first getting interested in cooking, baking just seemed an extension of that - it was all just “cooking” to me.

My mom made lots and lots of pies, by which I mean fruit pies. We always had pies sitting around, so I probably learned how to make basic pie dough first.

She also made (American) biscuits pretty much every morning, first thing, so maybe I learned that through osmosis, but she didn’t make a lot of breads or cakes, unless it was from a box mix.

The first thing like that I ever made was…pizza dough from a packet mix, and I also moved up to bread loaves from box mixes.

I think I started really concentrating on bread about the time we moved to Ohio, 2004 or so. I probably enjoy making bread as much as I enjoy making anything, but I don’t make much now, since MrsT started Weight Watchers. I miss it.
 
TastyReuben said:
Baking and cooking always get separated out, and I guess I get that, but when I was a kid and first getting interested in cooking, baking just seemed an extension of that - it was all just “cooking” to me.

My mom made lots and lots of pies, by which I mean fruit pies. We always had pies sitting around, so I probably learned how to make basic pie dough first.

She also made (American) biscuits pretty much every morning, first thing, so maybe I learned that through osmosis, but she didn’t make a lot of breads or cakes, unless it was from a box mix.

The first thing like that I ever made was…pizza dough from a packet mix, and I also moved up to bread loaves from box mixes.

I think I started really concentrating on bread about the time we moved to Ohio, 2004 or so. I probably enjoy making bread as much as I enjoy making anything, but I don’t make much now, since MrsT started Weight Watchers. I miss it.
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Our mom baked as well, but she always did quick breads such as cornbread & biscuits. I never witnessed her do yeast breads. :unsure:
 
GadgetGuy said:
Our mom baked as well, but she always did quick breads such as cornbread & biscuits. I never witnessed her do yeast breads. :unsure:
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Yep, lots of cornbread, too. That was a favorite of mine growing up, leftover cold cornbread crumbled up in a glass, buttermilk poured over, and a couple of shakes of black pepper on top, eat it with a spoon.
 
My Grannie got me into baking. I loved her cheese scones and the pikelets she made, so she taught me. It just went from there. I used to make the most amazing birthday cakes for my brother and sister as they were growing up. One day I might actually find the film photos and scan them.... maybe.
 
I think the first baking I ever did was an apple pie
These days I bake bread and bread like items like focaccia, pizza etc
I bake because I can ;)
And because the local bread is pretty pathetic (just white, and very very soft. There is brown bread, but that looks almost as white as white bread)
 
TastyReuben said:
Yep, lots of cornbread, too. That was a favorite of mine growing up, leftover cold cornbread crumbled up in a glass, buttermilk poured over, and a couple of shakes of black pepper on top, eat it with a spoon.
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My favorite was back then, & still is, is stuffing made with cornbread!!! Love it!!!! :whistling:
 
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