Yet I was inspired to try again with a different recipe.
So when I saw this, I was ready to give it a whirl.
So glad I did!
This was easy and delicious! Even better, it makes two loaves so I can freeze one for later while enjoying one now...
Ingredients:
2 cups lukewarm water
2 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp dry active yeast
2 Tbsp butter softened (I totally forgot to soften, so I just cut it apart into lots of pieces and then worked it into the dough) and cut into small pieces
5 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
Directions:
Whisk the sugar into the water.
When the sugar is dissolved, add the yeast in, stir thoroughly, and then walk away. In about 10 minutes, the yeast and water will hopefully have created a nice little "foam".
Toss the flour and salt into the yeast mixture. Add the butter.
Mix together. Knead the dough for 3-5 minutes either with a mixer or by hand. (I just did it by hand. It is really relaxing to me)
Round the dough into a ball and cover in a lightly oiled bowl. I actually used one bowl for the process and I didn't spray it or anything. It was fine. Place in a warm spot (I just put mine on the stovetop under the microwave light and sometimes turn the oven on to warm). Hopefully if it is a warm enough spot, the dough will double in size in about an hour.
Once it has doubled in size, punch the dough down and knead it a little more. Form into a ball and place on a floured surface. Cut or tear it apart to make two equal portions. Knead each half and roll into a loaf shape (though it will look like a small loaf :) and place in a one pound lightly greased loaf pan. Cover again and let it rise for about an hour.
After about 45 minutes, preheat the oven to 350.
The dough should have doubled again in the pan.
Remove the cover and place in the oven and let them bake for about 35-40 minutes until the crust is a beautiful golden brown color.
Once the bread is done, remove from the oven and let it sit for about 5 minutes in the pan. Then dump it out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling. It is highly suggested that you wait until the bread cools to cut it.
After it was cooled off, I wrapped one loaf up and placed it in the freezer. The other loaf I wrapped and placed in the fridge until our breakfast for dinner night. Then I sliced it and toasted it. And it was good stuff. Yummy. In fact, I am not sure I will ever be able to go back to store bought again!
Happy baking!
Reba
I have been making bread (in a bread maker) for a few months now, but the biggest problem I have is making the slices manageable. When I'm using it to dip into soup or with dinner it doesn't matter, but I haven't been able to accomplish toast or sandwiches with it. Any suggestions?
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