8 Breads Actually Worth Baking from Scratch for Thanksgiving (and Why)
Browse our lineup of from-scratch bread recipes from Food Network that are actually well worth your time on Thanksgiving Day.
Ryan Liebe, 2014, Ryan K. Liebe
There’s nothing like freshly baked bread on Thanksgiving Day — and nothing quite like the look on your guests’ faces when you tell them you baked it yourself. But, on a day that’s already packed with nonstop cooking, it’s a lot to ask to add bread-baking to your list of tasks, especially if you aren’t into the baking-your-own-bread thing year-round.
That’s why we came up with a lineup of eight fresh-baked bread recipes that are actually well worth your time on Thanksgiving Day. Each one toes the line between easy and completely OMG-inducing. Here’s why.
Why They’re Actually Worth Your Time: Why make them? Just look at these golden, coiled beauties. Flecked with coarse sea salt, each shiny, gorgeous roll boasts the savory depth of sourdough, plus the delectable saltiness of a street-cart pretzel.
Tara Donne
Why They’re Actually Worth Your Time: These plush beauties exemplify the iconic dinner roll, and they’re perfect for stacking leftovers on the next day. Double win.
Why They’re Actually Worth Your Time: You better bet this particular Thursday will involve all kinds of mayhem. Luckily, Ina Garten’s flaky, cheesy and top-rated biscuits are easy to prep the night ahead so that all there’s left to do is bake when it’s go time.
Kate Mathis, © 2016, Television Food Network, G.P. All Rights Reserved
Why It’s Actually Worth Your Time: It puts the “quick” in quick bread, and a touch of buttermilk makes it ultra-tender.
Why They’re Actually Worth Your Time: The oven will be hot all day anyway, so it’ll be extra-easy to fulfill the one must-do task for perfect popovers: using a piping-hot pan so that the batter becomes light, puffy and golden as it bakes. After the turkey comes out, keep the oven on and pop your muffin tin in to get it hot before you pour the batter in, and eat the popovers straightaway when they’re done.
Con Poulos
Why It’s Actually Worth Your Time: It might look (and taste) like you bought this crusty loaf at the bakery, but you so didn’t. Though the recipe list consists of only five ingredients and the prep is relatively easy, this low-maintenance loaf tastes a whole lot more complex. “No-Knead” really translates as “Yes, you need.”
Why They’re Actually Worth Your Time: Plush, doughy and delightfully sweet, these classic all-American rolls deserve comfort-food status. Adding one cooked and pureed baking potato to the mix is enough to give these rolls a moist texture and light crumb. Hey, you bought potatoes anyway this week, right?
Tara Donne
Why It’s Actually Worth Your Time: Studded with tangy dried cranberries and flecked with orange zest, a slice of this sweet and citrusy quick bread will offer a delightfully fruity reprieve from all the heavy, savory fare weighing down your plate on turkey day. Plus, this festive fruity loaf can be wrapped up and presented as a matchless edible holiday gift.
Get more ways to fill your Thanksgiving bread basket right here.
