How To Make Homemade Bread

Posted 2/25/2009 @ 10:22:50 am by todaysbaker.com

The basic ingredients of bread are flour, salt, yeast, and warm water. Optional ingredients include sugar, honey, herbs, and butter. It is best to use a high gluten bread flour; it will rise better and make a better loaf of bread all around. You can use regular flour if you don't have bread flour. Always use fresh yeast; it will have an expiration date on it, and keep it stored in the refrigerator so it doesn't go bad.

First, dissolve the yeast in water between 110 to 115 degrees and let stand until dissolved. Mix about half of the bread flour in with the yeast water, then add salt and all of the optional ingredients. Mix well by hand or in a stand mixer. Slowly add the remaining flour until a dough forms. Keep adding flour while kneading until dough forms into a ball, about ten minutes by hand. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning to grease the top of the dough so it doesn't dry out, and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let rise until it doubles in size, about 1-2 hours.

Next, punch the dough down and knead on a floured surface a few times. Form dough into a loaf on a cookie sheet or put into a greased loaf pan and let rise for 45-60 minutes. Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes. You can add a cornstarch/water mixture over the top during baking for more of a crust on the bread. After you're done baking, let stand for 30 minutes before slicing.

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