Plaquemines Parish : Christmas 2006
Ray McGlew
So, we set up. Using a sweet dessert bread recipe... lots of eggs, sugar, flour, yeast, etc.. A couple of kids show up, kinda curious. Most have never seen bread made from scratch, but hey, it looks like fun. More show up. I try to create some kind of order. “Take turns” I say, with some effect. Some measure the flour, some crack the eggs, others pour in the milk. More spoons to mix the dough. Flour everywhere. Dough splatters everywhere.
Time to knead the dough. “One at a time, please”. By this time over a dozen kids, from 5-15 are helping. Hey, this is something different. Even boys join the fun. Later you can tell which kids helped by looking at their clothes, white splatters everywhere. Ok, let’s split the dough into a couple of small loaves to knead. “Let’s keep it on the clean space” I say. “When will the bread be ready?”, one kid asks. I try to explain that we have to wait for it to rise before we bake it. We scrape the dough off of hands, bowls, the table and fashion a lump. “Can we bake it now?” It’s not like a cake... it takes time.
photo by Ray McGlew
The kids wander off, play some basketball, stop by every once in a while to check it out. Some stay and help clean up. The lump slowly rises. After a while we fire up our “oven” and use the warmth to speed the process. We finally gather a couple of kids to punch it down, and form a loaf. The oven isn’t quite as hot as I’d like it to be... but it’s the only one we have. The loaf slowly bakes and we pass it around while it’s still warm.
I came back a couple of day’s later with a different game plan (hint... bring plenty of small bowls so each kid can knead their own piece of dough and then re-assemble it). With a movie to distract them during the rising and baking it went smoother.
I thought I was the teacher... but I was the one that learned so much. I hope the kids remember some of the experience... I know I will!
Challah for Christmas
I love to bake bread... especially sweet bread for desserts and such. While at the Emergency Communities site in Buras I made some Swedish Tea Rings and cinnamon rolls which were very well received. I spent some time teaching two of the volunteers that worked in the kitchen how to make bread from scratch.
Amanda, a very sweet Jewish girl about 20 years old, had never baked any kind of bread, and certainly any challah even though she is observant of the laws and holidays. She was so excited and wanted to learn. The only day left was Christmas as she was leaving the day after.
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