Buy Our Bread, We Knead the Dough

One of the most satisfying aspects of breadmaking is kneading the dough. Much has been said and written about therapeutic benefits of kneading, which range from the physical exercise to the emotional release, the psychological workout, and the personal satisfaction. In a bakery the bread is rarely kneaded by hand but in large mechanical mixers with bowls that move one way while the dough hook turns the opposite direction. The therapeutic benefit is not part of professional bread baking. Every step that a machine can do in place of hands makes the bread easier and cheaper to produce. At some point the bread becomes simply a product rather than a loaf, a commodity rather than a work of art or craft. If done correctly, however, the end result is still a delicious loaf of bread, as good as if hand-kneaded. So what is the big deal about kneading?