Hi all - jumping out of lurkdom on the honey issue as it relates to
infants. 1. It's not really safe for small children over the age of one
either, so be careful and consult your pediatrician of course. 2. It's my
understanding that this relates mainly to uncooked honey, as baking the
bread should kill the spores.
I baked for years before kids both by hand and with my kitchenaid. But I
stopped after my second child was born - no sense of time, no tolerance for
extra mess. Now I'm lazy and have two small kids and a very large dog, so I
have given up on making bread outside the abm. However, I've managed to
stop buying bread at all by getting pounds and pounds of flour at a time
from good old king arthur and when the delivery arrives, dh gets to be in
charge of the kids while I package it all up as bread mixes. I select 4 or
5 recipes, and make between 3-5 of each into mixes, including the name on
the outside, and a small slip of paper inside with what still needs to be
added [usually just liquid and yeast] Those with cheese etc go in the
freezer, the rest are stored in the cabinet. Another big help is that I
learned I could substitute 1 T water plus 1 T soy flour for each egg in the
recipe - I can't detect a difference in the finished bread although someone
here might be able to, but I use it in most of our breads and no one here
is unhappy :). I will say that it makes a big difference in cookies,
although it's still very good. I find they come out crisper and with a
slightly nutty flavor - my mom likes it so much better she only eats
cookies made that way now. So now I don't have to worry about eggs in the
mix and can use my timer setting without issues and wake up to fresh bread.
Now, here's a basic abm oatmeal bread that has become our favorite toast :)
Oatmeal bread
Makes 1 1/2 pound
1 1/4 c warm water
3 T brown sugar
1 1/2 T butter
2 1/2 c Flour
1 c oats
1 1/4 t salt
2 t dry active yeast
Put in your bread machine in the order listed and set for 1 1/2 lb.
light or dark loaf, or remove and shape to bake in oven.