Baker's Shop: Bread Baking Tutorial

Open a baker’s shop in your own kitchen with your sweet little baker’s help!

I consider baking bread an intuitive practice rather than artisan baking. I don’t worry so much about measurements or perfection, but instead treat the process as alchemical magic. Don’t worry about following this recipe perfectly. Smear some honey butter on your finished product and you can’t go wrong!

Ingredients

5 cups of flour (At school we use whole wheat spelt. Here I am using all purpose flour since that’s what’s in my mama’s kitchen. Any flour will do. You could even play with mixing flours.)

3 tbs honey

3 tbs olive oil

2 tbs salt

1 tbs yeast

A baker needs an apron!

If your child has an apron, awesome, have them wear it. If not, tie an old t-shirt around their waist or an old sheet around their torso and let your child imagine that they are wearing an apron. Invite your child into the imagination of being a baker. The apron is less about the baking and more about the imaginative activity that it brings to the experience.

Put on your soap gloves

Our new favorite thing to do, wash your hands well.

Sticky Bun Recipe

Pre-heat your oven to 350.

Take out all of the ingredients so your child can see each individual element. Expose them to the process. (Ms. Aliya made the featured wooden spoon when she was in Waldorf school many moons ago.)

Add 1tbs of yeast and 1 tbs of honey to mixing bowl. The honey is for the yeast to eat. Even yeast likes a tasty treat!

Add 1/2 cup of warm water to the yeast and honey. Ouch says the yeast! Not too hot!

Tuck in the mixture to have a little rest (5-7 minutes or so)

When the yeast wakes up from it’s little rest, it will look all fluffy and happy.

Add about 2 cups of warm water. Add 2 (ish) tbs of honey. “Don’t be shy”, says honey, “I really like bread.”

Add 1 tbs of salt. “Not too much,” says salt, “I like bread but not as much as honey.”

Add 2 tbs (ish) of olive oil. “I love bread just like my friend honey,” says olive oil.

Whisk the liquid bread potion until all mixed together.

Add 5 cups flour, mix in the flour one cup at a time.

Fold in the flour.

Add more flour as needed until your bread dough begins to have some form.

Now it’s time to knead the dough:

Stop and smell the bread dough. Isn’t that delightful?

Prepare your baking pan by pouring some olive oil onto it (perhaps in a swirl shape). Your little baker can spread the oil over the pan with their very clean hands.

Welcome to the bakery, bakers!

Put the sticky buns in the oven until the tops are golden brown. (Apprx 20 minutes).

Serve with honey and butter, yum yum!