Bread is one of my favourite things to eat- shocker, I know. However, I rarely buy bread; I don’t only find artisan loaves to be unexplainably expensive, I mostly love making my own. And for the annoyingly impatient person that I am, this is a big deal. Bread needs patience, time and quite a bit of work. And yet, I enjoy every single step: mixing the yeast with liquid, allowing it to froth, slowly adding flour and a touch of salt, adding different bits and pieces, kneading (immensely therapeutic and probably my favourite part of the process), allowing the dough to rise, kneading again, shaping the loaves and prepping my oven for a perfectly crunchy, golden crust- I just can’t get enough! These are some of my current favourites- when you find yourself with a bit of extra time, I highly recommend giving them a try- the smell of freshly baked bread alone is worth every minute!

Sourdough is probably my favourite bread; making a started is a pain, but Mindy has proven herself a genius once again, coming up with this super easy sourdough bread.

Every time I go back home, in Athens, I manage to eat at least one koulouri (small sesame covered breads, shaped like rings) a day; and they’re not even as round, chubby and perfectly shaped as these– once I discovered the recipe, I knew I was in trouble.

You can never go wrong with a baguette– it’s the one bread I buy quite regularly, mostly because I love strolling with the baguette in hand, imagining I’m in Paris, wearing high heels and a Breton top (one time though, I got home and noticed that half of the baguette was missing- it must have been cut off somewhere along my strolling and day-dreaming; I still live my fantasy though, every time).

This no-knead cinnamon raisin bread is ideal for breakfast- it requires quite a bit of time, but you’ll have a perfect loaf at the end. No brainer.

Kalamata olive bread– yes! It reminds me of summer holidays, grabbing some freshly-baked bread from a bakery and heading to the beach, not one care in the world! Even away from the beach and filled with cares, it still has the same effect on me.

Happy baking!