Far from the prettiest but I was quite proud.
this post was submitted on 23 Feb 2026
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Bready
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They all look the same at the end.
It's the taste that really matters so how was it?
Very basic, nothing special! A little bit (or a lot) of butter, honey, or peanut butter made it delicious though. Already keen to try out different recipes.
Awesome prepare yourself for a delicious addiction.
My favorite baking tools are a kitchen scale, proofing basket and a dutch oven.
your ancestors would be proud, I feel like everyone should bake at least one loaf in their lives just as a connection to our past (and one of our favorite foods)
may your dough always rise and your loaves taste great!
I'd recommend letting the next loaf rise for maybe double the time as this loaf. General rule is you want the shaped dough to expand to 3x its size before baking.
So this would be the second proof, you mean? After I've put it in the pan?
Doesn't have to be in the pan, but yes, that would be a second proof.
Cheers, thanks!
the first one is free
congrats feels good
Nice job.
The crumb looks a little dense to me. I'm guessing due to shaping issues. Did you do this freeform or did you use a loaf pan? Loaf pan is generally preferable for beginners because the pan provides a lot of support. With freeform loaves if it's not shaped correctly it will often collapse. Generally when you're shaping you want two things: internal structure, and a tightly stretched skin over the top. I think a lot of beginner recipes don't teach this very well, since I often see first loaves that look like they were assembled into a shape but not really using proper techniques.
I did use a very, very simple video tutorial for my first loaf. It involved practically no shaping, and because I kind of did this on a whim (genuinely stopping after work to buy the yeast and flour to make it that night), I did not have a proper loaf pan. I used an 8" square pan instead haha.
I have since acquired a loaf pan! And a dough scraper/cutter.
IT BEGINS . . .
King Arthur has great videos on shaping. Here's a short one on how to form a sandwich loaf. You can see that there are several internal folds which create structure, and the folding and sealing creates tension on the outer layer which traps gas inside the loaf as it rises and later cooks. Good luck!
If you want to get into it, the only advice is to make a lot of bread. It's a simple dish so experimenting is very satisfying.
If it's just a one time thing, congrats too!
I have already made it a few times since and bought more accessories and different flour to try different things 😅
Cool! Awesome! The flour can be tricky. Some of them can really ruin a bread or need some special process.
A couple of years ago I got into bread, but I decided to try to make the least complicated bread that tastes good. So to do that I stick to the same flour and make other little adjustments. Maybe I'll experiment more at some time 😁
Looks tasty if a little dense. I'm proud of you and I bet your next loaf will be even better!
It was certainly dense, and also tasty.
Same as my first loaf. Dense boi.
Learned from it.
My father made his first loaf of banana bread ages ago... It was so dense you had to get into it with a serrated steak knife.
My father made his first loaf of banana bread ages ago… It was so dense you had to get into it with a serrated steak knife.
this is wrong to me on a visceral level, lol
Good work! Looks amazing
I'm barely a year into my bread obsession. It's one of the only obsessions my wife has ever fully supported.
In addition to a dutch oven, as others said, I recommend picking up some diastatic malt powder. Add 1-5% of your flour content to a loaf.
It really helps develop a nice crispy crust and adds a ton of flavor.
Where does one get diastatic malt?
I've been making bread for almost a decade and the only secret I have found is having proper hydration.
Flour, Water, Salt, Yeast.
Online or from brewer supply places. I got mine through Amazon. It's pretty cheap.
Diastatic malt powder is sprouted barley that is then milled; those enzymes help break the starch down to sugar so the yeast can feed more easily.
It is definitely not required as the basic ingredients are the four you listed. But it's a nice thing to add.
Man it took me way too long to see this photo correctly. I was like "did he cut a peice off of the top and then put a blunt on it? What am I even looking at?
You're looking at a very amateur loaf with one end cut.
Oh yeah I figured it out eventually. My eyes were playing tricks on my. It may not be the most beautiful loaf in the world, but if it tastes good, that's what matters the most.