Easy White Bread Recipe

This is an easy recipe with great results.

Three hours end-to-end including prep and cleanup.

Yield: two loaves

Ingredients:

Dry Ingredients:

• 4 tsp (12 grams) Red Star Active Dry yeast

• 3 Tbl (40 grams) unrefined sugar

• 2 1/2 tsp salt (15 grams), sea or kosher

• 3 cups (456 grams) all-purpose flour

• 3 cups (456 grams) bread flour

• Optional ingredients: ground flax seeds, chia seeds, shelled hemp seeds for example.

Wet Ingredients:

• 2 cups (462 grams) water

• 1/2 cup (120 grams) buttermilk

• 4 Tbl (60 grams) unsalted butter (half a stick)

• Vegan substitutions in the notes

Directions:

1. Combine all of the all-purpose flour, 1 cup of the bread flour, salt, sugar, yeast in a large bowl.

2. Combine wet ingredients in a pan. Heat to 100 degrees Fahrenheit, stirring often.

3. Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture and stir well.

4. Combine some of the remaining bread flour 1/2 cup at a time at a time to form a soft dough.

5. Cover the bowl for 15 minutes.

6. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic: 5-10 minutes.

7. Form into a ball and place into a large, oiled bowl.

8. Cover and let rise until doubled in size, about an hour. (Less time during warm weather, a little more during cool weather.)

9. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface.

10. Divide the dough in half and form into loaves.

11. Let rise until doubled in size, about an hour. Same rising comment as above.

12. Preheat oven to 375 then bake: two regular loaves in pans -- 45-50 minutes; two round loaves -- 30-40 minutes.

Notes:

• Vegan: substitute vegan butter for unsalted butter; substitute soy milk + 1/2 Tbl white vinegar for buttermilk

• Use a digital thermometer to measure the temperature of the wet ingredients. The yeast will be killed if the wet ingredients get too hot.

• Substitute small amounts of different flours as you get a feel for making this bread. For example: whole wheat, Prairie Gold Montana wheat, spelt, einkorn.