That saying- man cannot live by bread alone? Maybe it's because I'm a woman, but I think I probably could (if I could tolerate all the gluten, heh).
Growing up, bread just was not something that was typically purchased at the standard grocery store. Oh, no- bread was purchased at a bakery, usually on Saturday mornings. The smell walking in is perhaps the strongest part of the memory.
My dad was (still is) quite the gardener, and summers would yield ripe tomatoes that would top sandwiches oftentimes two meals a day- and all summer long, year after year, we would never tire of that fresh bread.
Less often the bread would be homemade, but my mom certainly taught me bread making technique- I'm talking REAL bread making; no bread machines, no fancy mixers. And those are the techniques I still utilize- and some of the tips and tricks that I'll share here before we proceed.
BREADMAKING 101:
If you don't know by now, I'm a huge science nerd with degrees to prove it. Breadmaking is essentially a chemistry experiment. Yeast is crucial in breadmaking- it's a single celled fungus and its fermentation both generates flavor and creates gluten elasticity to as your dough rises. You want warm- not hot water- to dissolve the sugar that the yeast will feed on (your yeast will die at 138 degrees F and you'll have a MAJOR bread fail on your hands!)
Bread rises best somewhere warm: start to preheat your oven on the lowest setting, and then turn it off after a couple minutes. This will provide the perfect location to let your dough rise.
Do not break the dough into pieces when you're kneading it (think of those beautiful glutenous bonds forming)! Kneading it simply means folding, and punching down, and then folding, and repeating. The only time the dough should be “broken” is if you are dividing it for two separate loaves
For dividing into loaves: dough divides most easily immediately after rising/before kneading
Do not over-knead your dough after the first rise.
Alright, here we go!
Easy, No Fail Homemade Bread:
Yield: 2 Standard Loaves
INGREDIENTS:
2 cups warm (not hot!) water
1/2 cup sugar
1 1/2 Tbsp active dry yeast
1/4 cup oil (olive oil or vegetable oil); or 1/4 cup butter melted; plus extra for oiling bowl
1 1/2 tsp salt
5-6 cups flour (you may use AP flour, wheat flour, bread flour, or any combination of these flours)
Optional: savory seasoning (such as Rosemary or Italian seasoning; to taste or garnish)
DIRECTIONS:
Add 2 cups warm water to a large bowl. Stir sugar briskly into water to dissolve.
Add yeast and stir. Wait about 5 minutes: a frothy, yeasty smelling mixture should result.
Add oil and salt to bowl with yeast mixture and stir.
(Optional: if you want savory/ more rustic loaves of bread, here you may add a couple tsp or so seasoning of your choice, to taste. You may also just choose to garnish on top.)
Next, you will add your flour one cup at a time. You may use a mixer with bread hook, or stir/knead by hand.
You'll know you've added enough flour when the dough is cohesively sticking together and not to the bottom of the bowl. The dough may have a slight tackiness to it, but should not be sticking to your hands when you knead it.
Knead dough by mixer for at least 6-7 minutes, by hand for at least 10 minutes.
Place about 1 Tbsp oil in the bottom of the bowl (or a comparably sized bowl). Place your dough in the bottom, then turn it over several times to coat completely in the oil.
Cover the bowl with a warm, damp kitchen towel and set a timer for 60 minutes.
At the end of the 60 minutes/ first rise; dough should have approximately doubled in size. Separate into two approximately equal halves. Punch down. Knead each dough gently for several turns and shape gently into a bread loaf, placing into standard sized pans (I gently spray or oil- and personally love silicone bread pans!).
Place pans next to each other, cover again with towel, and allow to rise for 30-35 minutes, or until your dough is peaking about an inch above the rim of your pan(s).
Place in oven, preheated to 350 degrees F.
Bake for 35-40 minutes. I like to check at 30 minutes and brush the top with butter or olive oil, and if you choose; sprinkle with a savory seasoning of your choosing and bake for the remaining 5-10 minutes.
After cooling, brush the top with additional butter if you choose. ENJOY!
Did you make this? Tweak this? I'd love to know!
xx, Ruth
Optional: