Early Morning Baking

Fiance's work occasionally requires him to wake up at 5  in the morning.  Being the heavy sleeper that I am, I usually don't even remember him leaving.  Once in a blue moon however, I wake up when he does and can't get back to sleep.

Hence my GREAT IDEA to attempt making bread at 5:30 AM this past weekend.  Raisin bread, that is.

Baking From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan.  I love this cookbook.

She advises steaming your raisins to make them more plump.

Mixture of cinnamon, sugar, and cocoa powder.

The dough after being mixed, kneaded, rising for 1.5 hours, and firming up in the freezer for 45 minutes.

Yeast is the craziest thing.  The dough ball doubled in size after rising.  Then I wrapped it in plastic wrap and put it in the freezer.  It got even BIGGER and burst out of the plastic wrap.  Yeast scares me.   Also, it's called "ACTIVE YEAST."  It's like it's ALIVE. 

ROLL OUT.

Did I use more butter than directed by the recipe?  Yes.

The filling.  Notes the visible chunks of butter.

My dough baby.  So cute.

It rises again for another hour after this wherein it OVERFLOWED OUT OF THE PAN.  SO SCARY.

MMMM freshly baked bread smell is the best.

There's nothing like the first slice of fresh-from-the-oven bread.

Was pretty happy with my first attempt at bread making.  Next time I will try a savory cheese bread.