Making an impeccable loaf of  homemade bread–by means of skill rather than accident–has been on my list of lifetime goals for a very, very long time.  (I can say decades now, though I don’t want to say decades because it makes me feel much older than 34.)  I  began my trek into this noblest of humble skills by following the  standard routine:  I followed a recipe, I was horrified at the results, I  consulted books and troubleshooting guides about bread making, I tried  another recipe, and once again I was horrified by the results.

You  might as well punch down your ego when you punch down that rising  dough.  The learning curve of homemade bread is pretty unforgiving.

Or  so it would seem.

Allow me to propose a solution:

Pizza.

Even when it’s bad it’s still pretty good and above all, it’s usually edible no matter what you do to screw it up.  It’s easy to add into your weekly repertoire, and the wealth of topping options makes it possible to disguise a less-than-perfect dough result while you’re learning the ropes.

There’s no way around it.  You have to just dig in and accept the fact that you are most likely not going to create perfect dough from your first efforts.  I didn’t and I spent two years working  in a bakery for God’s sake.

In order to help you incorporate this beautiful tradition into your own life, I’m offering the knowledge that has been passed to me from a variety of sources–my family’s secrets, tricks of the trade that I picked up working in a natural food store’s bakery, and tips and pointers handed to me by my co-workers there who have worked for places like this and this (thanks, G!).

To begin, we will be using my go-to pizza recipe, adapted from Horn of the Moon Cookbook’s Spinach Ricotta Deep Dish Pizza recipe (page 195).  I’ll be sharing the recipe that has morphed from the original and the techniques, step by step, over the next few days.  Baking bread is a slow process.  Learning how to do it with good results should be viewed as a process as well.

Next up:  Dealing With Yeast.

Related posts:

1. Making Grilled Pizza–A New Twist on an Old Favorite
2. the beauty of bread
3. The Show Is Finally Back On The Road
4. Tutorial 1: Making Your Own Cloth Diapers (Drafting the Pattern)