Making you own bread

[Book Crazy]

I would like to start getting back into making my own bread. It has quite a few years since I made any home made bread and I'm not sure where to start.

What is a good recipe for white bread, the kind that you can slice and make snadwiches with. (My family are not too keen on whole wheat.)

Where is a good place to buy flour and yeast. Also, what flour and yeast are the best kinds to buy?

What are some of your favorite recipes for french bread, irish soda bread and any other kind that you like.

Thanks
Sarah

[Sunny]

http://www.hillbillyhousewife.com/beginnersbread.htm

I use this website, and this is an easy bread recipe, easy white bread that makes delicious toast and sandwiches.
We buy bread flour at Costco. We buy bulk yeast at the grocery, where I can buy it more regularly without it going bad, but in better quantity than those packages. Sam's Club used to sell a good quantity of yeast, I haven't found it at Costco.

Don't have other recipes. I just adjust this one, to add a bit of wheat flour or honey.

[DIY-DY]

I would like to start getting back into making my own bread. It has quite a few years since I made any home made bread and I'm not sure where to start.

What is a good recipe for white bread, the kind that you can slice and make snadwiches with. (My family are not too keen on whole wheat.)

Where is a good place to buy flour and yeast. Also, what flour and yeast are the best kinds to buy?

What are some of your favorite recipes for french bread, irish soda bread and any other kind that you like.

Thanks
Sarah

I love making bread. I'd always been afraid of it, as my mother claimed to be one who "just couldn't make a loaf of bread". But now, it's one of my favorite "me" things - just something I enjoy.

I get good general bread w/ all-purpose flour, but I get *great* sandwich bread with bread flour. After using the two, I started buying mine in the 25# bag at Sam's. Love that stuff.

I also get my yeast there, in 5# bulk. We make all of our own breads and bread products, so we go through it quickly and none of it has ever gone bad. Just starting out, though, I'd look for bread flour and the little jar of yeast (Fleishmann's has always been good for me) at your regular grocer.

My everyday bread recipe comes from The Wooden Spoon Bread Book, by Marilyn M. Moore. It's called "Perfect White Bread", and I'll include it here. (She's a bit more of a perfectionist than I am, so I'll include my notes in another color.)


To soften yeast, combine in a large bowl:
2 c. warm water
2 scant tbsp. yeast
1 tsp. sugar

Allow yeast to proof. (This is pretty obvious - the yeast starts to puff and fluff and smells fantastic!) Stir in, in this order:
1/3 c. sugar
1/3 c. oil
2 tsp. salt
3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour (I use bread flour 99.9% of the time for this recipe - it's really great stuff!)

Beat well. To make a stiff dough, gradually add:
3 to 3 1/2 c. flour (And boy, does she mean "gradually"!)

Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth. (Til it's smooth and elastic. About ten minutes of kneading by hand. I just let my stand mixer do the kneading on this part, and it takes about five minutes. But the kids also like to do it by hand.) Place in a greased bowl, turning dough once to grease the top. Cover and let rise until doubled in bulk, 45 to 60 min. (You can tell it's risen enough by poking it w/ two fingers - if the indentations stay, then it's good-to-go.) Knead dough down in bowl and divide in half. Shape into oblong loaves and place in well-greased 9x5 in baking pans. Cover and let rise until almost doubles, 30 to 45 min. Bake at 275' for 35-40 min. Cool on wire racks. Makes 2 loaves.

I tend to split it into thirds rather than halves. I get one big loaf and two med. loaves (that I bake in 8.5x4 loaf pans) - they are perfect for the kids' lunches, for making mini-pizzas in the broiler, etc. and then I can serve the big, lovely loaf w/ supper and make the hubster smile. :)

This recipe is also fantastic for substitutions and additions. Try using olive oil rather than veg. oil, add some spices to the flour before you mix it in. Makes a wonderful savory loaf.

Or add 1/2 c. grated cheese and some garlic salt for a delicious cheese bread.

OR, for fun, add a bit more sugar, a little milk, and then when you form it into a loaf, roll it into a rectangle, slather w/ butter and a cinnamon/sugar blend and roll it into a loaf. Sprinkle the top w/ cinnamon and sugar and bake as usual for a delicious breakfast treat!

It's easy to play with and find some truly unique creations your family will love - and all for very little actual effort. (It freezes well, too.)

HTH,
Dy

[Dana in OR]

a book worth its weight in gold. I make bread every day now, mostly their basic white bread recipe unless I am making pizza. The dough is easy to mix and requires no kneading at all. I use Gold Medal unbleached flour (this is unbleached white flour). The results I am getting are amazing. I did need to get a pizza stone (largest one my oven would hold, rectangular) and a peel (www.superpeel.com (http://www.superpeel.com)). Also a big rubbermaid container to keep the dough in the fridge.

The basic "boule" (free form round bread - "bowl") can easily be sliced up for sandwiches or toast.

I am not kidding, my family would mutiny if we ever went back to store bought bread.

[nukeswife]

I used to buy the King Arthur bread flour but then I found a giant flour bucket for $25 at King arthur's online store and now I buy my bread flour from Sam's in a 25lb bag. I buy my yeast from Pleasanthillgrain.com as I prefer the SAF instant yeast. I also use a receipe that came from Pleasant hill with my Bosch mixer. It is for use with Whole wheat flour but I just use my bread flour and knead for a different amount of time. We've been eating home baked bread since New Years (when my mixer came) and my dh swears we'll never go back to store bought "Fluff" bread. My kids love the bread I make too, even my former bread hating son. I use honey in it instead of sugar and buy bread bags from Pleasant hill to store the loaves in. I bake 4-6 at a time and then freeze. I bake more the day the last loaf comes out of the freezer. I also use the same dough to make pizza crust. I will just freeze the balls of dough and then when we have pizza night I just thaw the dough and roll out. Sometimes I make Hamburger, hoagie or hotdog buns with the same basic bread dough.

HTH

[Cathy in IL]

I find my bread stays extra soft longer if I add in oatmeal. On baking days I make a big pot of oatmeal for breakfast. Then I add about three or so cups to the basic bread dough recipe before I add the flour. I use a little more flour to get right consistency, and I get three loaves out of a two loaf recipe. I have also added leftover cooked rice to make a more "multi-grain" loaf that is still white. Milled flax seed added in doesn't change the flavor but adds nutrition. Those are my little bread making secrets.

[beansprouts]

I like the recipes at breadbeckers.com

[Karen FL]

I would commend the DVD Video Bread. It is super. I borrowed mine from the library. The DVD gives step by step instructions. There is a website: www.videobread.com (http://www.videobread.com). Instructions are given for breads of all diffent shapes using varied pans. He also covers pies, pizza, and sweet rolls.