Hugo shared his favorite things for Christmas 2024 yesterday and a bread machine made the list. I was inspired! I made spaghetti for dinner last night and prepared a fresh, homemade loaf of Italian bread to go along with it. The house smelled amazing.
After slicing the loaf, I toasted the slices using the Ninja Foodi’s broil option and brushed on warm olive oil and spices. Right after that, I ordered a bread knife on Amazon. Dad’s old knife used to cut meat decades ago didn’t do such a great job. 🫤
Have a bread machine? Here’s the recipe for a 1 pound loaf:
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup cold water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 cups bread flour
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
Instructions
- Place liquids first, then dry ingredients – make a well in the flour and add yeast to it last.
- If you have a Italian Bread cycle, press that. If you don’t, select Basic Bread cycle. Press Start.
- The machine will now make the bread. Once it’s done baking, remove from the machine and serve.
Olive Oil & Spices
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- ½ teaspoon snipped, fresh rosemary or thyme, or 1/8 teaspoon dried rosemary or thyme, crushed (optional)
Instructions
In a small saucepan, stir together the olive oil, garlic, and the herbs. Heat just until warm, and the garlic sizzles. (You can also do this in a small, microwave-safe bowl.) Slice the bread and place on aluminum foil. Broil slices in an oven or Ninja Foodi until toasted (about 1.5-2 minutes per side). Brush warm mixture on bread slices and serve warm.
i had a back up plan…
If the bread was awful, I was going to rip it into pieces and feed the birds. Since it turned out great, I hung a feeder instead. Temps are supposed to drop and I figure we’ve got some hungry little guys and gals out here. 😉
Now you know: “All I Want for Christmas is You” by itself makes Mariah Carey $2.5 million each year.