We are back to work tomorrow so we need bread for packed lunches. I popped on a loaf before going out for a walk. When we got home it’d pinged and as I lifted the lid there was a ripping sound – the bread was so huge it had risen right to the roof of the bread machine and welded itself to the lid. The ripping sound was the crust coming off the top of the loaf.

This isn’t even supposed to be a large loaf – its ingredients are for a medium sized loaf. As often as I can (when I have it) we bake the bread using water we’ve previously cooked potatoes in. The starch really helps the process, making the bread both more flavoursome and with a better rise. As we had mash for supper last night, there was a jug of potato water in the fridge hence we expected a nice big loaf, but this is exceptional.

All I did differently from normal was to add a generous quantity of thyme to the dough as it was kneading, simply by opening the lid and shaking the pot in. I wonder if there is anything in the chemical make-up of thyme that could have combined with the potato water and the yeast to give a super rise? I have a wonderful book about the chemistry of cooking and it has extensive coverage of the miracle that is bread but it doesn’t mention thyme.

I am thankful of my chemistry knowledge built doing my biology degree. That may sound mad but it’s true – you have to know quite a lot of basic chemistry to be able to understand subjects like cellular respiration and nutrition so it’s an essential part of studying biology. That background means I can appreciate and understand a lot of stuff these days that would once have been a mystery to me – though the mystery of the quaterbread will probably remain just that.