HELLO!!! I guess now is a good time as any to start blogging again since people are needing to know how to make homemade bread. I have missed working on my blog but I am so grateful to be able to stay home with my two littles and there's just not much time left for other things. I wanted to make blogging something I regularly do this year and with that said, I've been working on content the last couple of months but I figured in the current state of things homemade bread would be a good recipe to start off with.
Homemade Bread is special. It takes me back to my childhood and makes me think of my grandma. There's not anything much better than a fresh slice of bread, smeared with butter.
I know it seems like a lot of work or challenging to make your own bread but it's actually quite easy. Homemade bread can seem like a time consuming task but waiting on the bread to rise and to bake are the two things that take the most time. Oh, and trying to refrain from cutting into the bread as soon as it comes out of the oven feels like forever, but trust me. Let the bread cool to room temperature and then cut off a slice.
There are lots and lots of bread recipes but many of them require milk and or eggs. Using milk in bread recipes can yield great texture. However, during the current state of most of the world, it's important to have a bread recipe that doesn't require milk or eggs. I played around with some recipes and made some changes and I'm excited to share that I've got a delicious homemade bread recipe that only uses 5 ingredients. Well, six if you count water. I hope you find this recipe helpful and delicious.
Here is the loaf pan I use. Amazon sells a similar one that I've heard great things about. You also want to make sure you're using a serrated knife to neatly cut your bread.
Homemade Bread
Ingredients
- 1 â…“ cup water heated to 110 degrees
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter melted
- 3 ½ cups all purpose flour-*see notes*
- 2 ÂĽ teaspoons rapid or instant yeast *active dry can be used- see notes*
- 2 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- Heat oven to 200 degrees. Once temperature is set maintain heat for ten minutes and then turn off the oven.
- Whisk honey, water and butter together in a 4-cup measuring cup.
- Using a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine flour, yeast, and salt on low speed. Slowly add water mixture and let dough come together, about 2 minutes. Increase speed to medium and knead dough until smooth. Scrape sides of bowl as needed. Remove dough from bowl and knead by hand for a few seconds on a lightly floured surface and shape into a ball. Place dough into a large, lightly greased bowl; cover tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm oven until doubled in size, 40-50 min.
- Grease a 9x5- inch loaf pan. Transfer dough to lightly floured counter and press into a rectangle about 1 inch thick and no longer than 9 inches. Roll dough toward you into a firm cylinder, keeping roll taut by tucking it under itself as you roll. Turn loaf seam side up and punch it closed. Place loaf seam side down in prepared pan, pressing gently into corners. Cover loaf loosely with greased plastic and let it rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in size, 20 to 30 minutes. While dough is rising in loaf pan, preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake until crust is golden brown and loaf registers 195 degrees. Transfer pan to wire rack and let it cool for 5 minutes. Remove loaf from pan, return to rack and let cool to room temperature, about two hours before cutting.
Notes
*It is important to use warm, but not too hot of water. I use a thermometer and look for the water to be between 110-115 degrees. If it's too hot to touch then it's too hot for the yeast and it will kill it. If it feels too cool then that won't allow the yeast to proof.
*Flour* If dough is too sticky and not pulling away from bowl then add an additional 1 tablespoon of flour until it isn't so wet. Adapted from Cook's Illustrated
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