Steinsbrot...and a new tradition

Rebecca and I have recently begun learning how to bake bread...we’ve always loved to cook and bake other things, but really good, crusty, soft, mouthwatering freshly baked bread that makes everyone want to come to your house and stay a while has always seemed like the final frontier in culinary creation - something always out of reach.

We both come from strong traditions of baking...her grandparents on both sides were masters of pies, Italian breads, and other treats. The story goes on my Dutch side that my great grand father, Andreas, forbade his sons to be bakers or singers (presumably because he never got to fulfill these dreams for himself). Well, my grandfather Dirk became both, and my father John became both. Not sure how this played out with Andreas...we can only assume there was a rift somewhere...

When I was a kid growing up my folks had a close friend and colleague named Karl Goldstein who played the piano. I’ll always remember when, at a concert of his when he adjusted his sitting position for an unusually long time before playing, my mom leaned over to me and whispered as a joke “he must have holey underwear!” Then in my youthful naivete after the concert, I said to Karl, “Hey Karl - my mom says you have holey underwear!” He we mildly amused.

Anyway, Karl used to make this wonderfully dark, rich brown bread (recipe below) which became a family favorite of ours...as poor musicians my folks began to make this bread every week and live on it. I’ll always remember my dad pulling a fresh loaf out of the oven and the aroma that filled the house. It was an exciting thing for me to see my dad bake - I did not know my grandfather well but he owned and ran the Towne Talk Bakery in Butte, Montana where my dad grew up...there was something special for me about seeing my dad carry on this tradition.

Well, recently I decided to contact Karl and see if I could pick up where he left off. I would not have been surprised to get a simple email recipe or something equally uninspiring which is the norm these days...instead he sent this lovely hand-typed recipe, complete with some musings on baking bread. Rebecca and I have tried this recipe several times each time with some enhancements...basically you can’t add enough wheat berries or malt...and you can spruce it up with other things like sesame seeds, walnuts, cheese, or other flours like oat or corn...also - don’t be afraid to add more yeast if it comes out too dense. Just make sure the water from the wheat berries is not too hot (should be between 105 and 115 degrees) or it will burn the yeast.

This was the start of a beautiful thing! Now Rebecca and I try a new recipe every week, and we always have the aroma of fresh bread around the house. There is nothing more relaxing than baking bread...letting it rise overnight, kneading it, waiting for a second or third rise...it’s an all day affair. It makes your Sunday.

If you don’t already...please start baking for everyone's mental health! We need more nutritious and grounding food out there. And if anyone wants to come over for a freshly baked slice just let us know. We’ll toast to Karl.

-md