I love baking bread. There's something inherently wholesome and natural about it. The smell of the yeast as it rises, the smell of the bread baking in the oven. These are things that Sean and I have come to love. A little over a year ago, I decided that I was going to start making bread for our family as a regular occurrence instead of a special treat. Fast-forward 13 months, and I wouldn't have it any other way. It's not just for taste and enjoyment of doing something on my own; this is a nice cost-saving measure. I've estimated each loaf costs me around $2 apiece. This bread is comparable to Great Harvest, which charges around $5-$6 per loaf. So I get better bread with less money. Let's get to work.
Get your mixer and dough hook. You can do this by hand, but I prefer a mixer to save time and my achy joints. You'll start by putting the cup of warm water (not hot), 1-2 tablespoons of yeast, and honey into the bowl. Philosophical note: some bakers think that using too much yeast is a big problem. I haven't noticed a difference in the quality of this bread whether I use a teaspoon or two tablespoons of yeast. So until I see a problem, I will continue to do it this way because it rises better in a much shorter period of time. As you'll read many, many times in this blog, I'm in a hurry.
Then stir it up with a fork and allow it to rest for ten minutes or so.
While you're waiting for the yeast to feast on the honey, take some time to get your other ingredients ready. You are going to need four cups of flour. The bread I'm making today is light wheat. That means I will add 2.5 cups of bread flour, and 1.5 cups of whole wheat flour. I am very pleased that I am grinding my own wheat flour now. If you have the option, it's a great idea. Freshly-ground flour (this was ground on Wednesday) makes a big difference.
On flour: yes, it has to be bread flour. It cannot be all-purpose or, heaven forbid, cake flour. Bread flour has a higher protein (gluten) content. If you use a flour that has a lower protein content, the consistency of your bread will not be as nice and it will not rise as well. The bread flour I prefer is King Arthur Unbleached Bread Flour. It has a protein content of 12-14%. The wheat flour I use (or if you wanted to by some King Arthur or Bob's Red Mill) has a similar protein content.
Optional Substitutions: I have made four different varieties of this bread with the same basic recipe. First, you can use all bread flour and make a white loaf. Second, you can do as I'm doing and make light wheat (2.5 cups bread flour, 1.5 cups whole wheat flour). Third, you can do the same, only use oat flour instead of whole wheat. Finally, you can use exclusively whole wheat flour. Although I have found this last variety usually translates into one loaf instead of the two you'll get from the other varieties. If you want to double the recipe, it will work easily for the first three varieties. I have a KitchenAid Pro 600 series mixer, and my mixer has timed out mid-knead the couple times I've tried to double this recipe when making bread using only whole wheat flour. Better to make it twice then try to force your mixer to accommodate eight cups of whole wheat flour.
Now, you'll crack the eggs into a separate bowl. And it seems the good folks at Nichol's Farms don't want me to forget the expiration date:
Crack them into a separate bowl, making sure to remove any tiny pieces of shell. (You can see a tiny piece on the upper left side of this bowl. I did remove that before they went into the mixing bowl.)
Your yeast mixture is ready when it looks like this, nice and foamy.
Pour the eggs in and start the mixer, around setting 3. Add half the flour quickly, and allow it to start to mix together.
Slowly add the second half, 1/4 cup at a time. Optional Substitution: if you'd like to add butter to this recipe, now is the time. If I want a bread that is nice and butter for rolls or hamburger or hot dog buns, I will add two tablespoons (1/4 stick) of softened, not melted, butter. Please note that you may need to add up to a half-cup more bread flour to get the right consistency.
As the dough starts to pull together, it will begin to pull away from the sides of the bowl. At this point, only add a tablespoon or two of flour at a time, waiting until it is fully incorporated to add more.
This is what it looks like once it's fully mixed. You can see that it's almost pulled completely away from the bowl and the dough hook.
When you press into the dough with your fingertip, it should spring back reasonably quickly and not be sticky. If it's still very sticky (i.e. you pull your finger away and there's dough all over it), add more flour and resume kneading.
Once you're done, transfer it to a bowl that has been sprayed or oiled and floured and cover it with a damp cloth. I often use the same mixing bowl, and just sprinkle some flour on top of it. Let it rise until doubled, which should take 45-90 minutes depending on the flour and how warm your house is.
Yay, it's doubled! I used a smaller bowl for this, so if you left it in a large mixing bowl it might not look this big. Just look for it to have doubled in size.
Now we're going to knead it. I just collapse the air out of it and then just kind of smash it in a ball with my hands for as long as I can stand it. I usually knead for a minute or so. Some recipes say you must knead for 5-10 minutes each time. So far, I haven't found a problem with the consistency of my bread. That could be that I let it rise two times before proofing, I'm not sure.
Now, I use a pastry separator to split the dough into two. Put them in two pans that have been sprayed or oiled and floured, and cover again with a damp cloth. Wait until they have doubled.
Now, they've doubled.
Grease and flour two loaf pans to accommodate them.
Next, stretch out the dough slowly. If you see it starting to tear, you're pulling it too far. Stretch it into a rectangle and then roll it up the long side. This allows for a more consistent texture for the loaf. Place the roll into the pan. The last stage of rising is called "proofing." Allow it to rise at least to 0.5-1" above the rim of the pan. These are a little small today, so that will be more than double. When they're almost done, preheat your oven to 350.
They're ready to go in the oven!
You might consider doing a wash for the top. A water wash (don't use too much! Just a light brushing) will create a soft crust. A butter wash will create a flakier, brown crust. An egg wash will create a harder, darker-brown crust. For the butter wash, just melt a tablespoon of butter into a bowl:
Then, brush it on gently with a basting brush.
If you want to do an egg wash, just beat a single raw egg in a bowl and brush it on the same way. When the oven is preheated, put them in the oven (same rack is fine, middle level) for 25 minutes.
They're done! You can tell they are done by tapping on the crust. If it sounds hollow, you're good to go. These ended up a little smaller than usual. I can usually expect the loaves to be similar to regular store-bought sandwich bread, in size. It took less flour to reach optimum elasticity today, so I'm guessing that's the culprit. Allow the loaves to cool as long as you can stand it. Then, enjoy!
If you're wondering what this might look like with an egg wash, here you are. Coincidentally, this is the first time I ever made this kind of bread, and the first bread I'd baked in several years. The fact that it turned out so well and so beautiful on the first try ought to demonstrate that this really is an insanely easy recipe with great results.
Light Wheat Bread Recipe
1-2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 cup warm (not hot) water
1/3 cup honey
Put these three together and let them sit in the bowl for about ten minutes until it starts to get foamy on top. Then get out the other ingredients.
Three eggs
1/2 t. salt
4 cups bread flour (or 2.5 cups bread flour, 1.5 cups whole wheat flour; or 4 cups whole wheat flour)
Mix it all together with a bread hook (or knead by hand) until it is nice and elastic. Put it into a metal bowl that has been greased and floured. Let rise covered with a damp towel until doubled. Punch down, knead for as long as you can stand it. Let rise covered again until doubled. Divide in half, put in loaf pans that have been oiled and floured (or just on a cookie sheet, for artisan-bread style). Let rise one more time, this time uncovered. Bake at 350 until it's golden brown, around 25-30 minutes.
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