Airy White Bread Recipes

Steps:

• In a small mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the milk, the butter or margarine, 4 cups of the flour and the salt; stir until well combined. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes.
• Lightly oil a large mixing bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and put in a warm place to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into two lightly greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
• Mist loaves with water and bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until the loaves are golden brown and the bottom of a loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast. Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.
• Mix salt and oil into the yeast. Mix in flour one cup at a time. Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth. Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat. Cover with a damp cloth. Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
• Punch dough down. Knead for a few minutes, and divide in half. Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans. Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.
• Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Stir in lard, salt and two cups of the flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• Lightly oil a large bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into two lightly greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
• Bake at 375 degrees F (190 degrees C) for about 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

Steps:

• Note: If you do not have powdered milk, you can heat 2 cups of milk, or 1 cup milk and 1 cup water; whichever you prefer, in a small saucepan to 120 degrees on a candy thermometer and omit the 2 cups of water.
• Grease a large mixing bowl and set aside. In another large mixing bowl, add the yeast, salt, sugar, oil, and hot water. With a mixer, mix all those ingredients for 2 minutes. Add 2 cups of flour and the powdered milk. Mix for another 2 minutes. With a wooden spoon, stir in 3 cups of bread flour. Remove the dough from the bowl out onto a lightly floured counter top or table.
• Begin to knead the dough. You may need to sprinkle a little flour on your dough or counter top a couple of times as you knead until it doesn't stick to your surface any more. Knead the dough for 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
• Take dough & place in the greased bowl; flip the dough over so greased side is up. Cover with a piece of plastic wrap; don't tighten it down, just lay it over the bowl loosely....or you can use a small tea towel too. But the plastic helps it from drying out too much.
• Let it rise until double in a warm place -- a sunny window or on a warm clothes dryer that is running. It can rise as quickly as 45 minutes in those warm places. Otherwise, it can take up to 1 hour to 1 ½ hours depending on the temperature in your house.
• Lightly grease 2 bread loaf pans with shortening. Divide dough in half & shape into a bread loaf pans. Cover with kitchen towel and let rise until doubled.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Bake for about 30-40 minute (everyone's oven temperature varies, so keep that in mind) Loaves should be golden brown on top. Remove from oven. Remove loaves from pans onto a wire rack.
• Take a wet paper towel, and it can be really good and wet, and wipe off the tops of the baked loaves of bread. This does not make your bread soggy. It keeps the bread crust soft! But, you can skip this step if you want.
• And....if you insist on cutting a slice of bread before it is cool, use a electric knife or a large serrated bread knife so the loaf don't get squashed down when you are cutting it. Spread some butter on your slice of bread and enjoy!

Steps:

• 1. Make the sponge. In a mixer bowl or other large bowl, combine the flour, water, honey, and instant yeast. Whisk until very smooth, to incorporate air, about 2 minutes. The sponge will be the consistency of a thick batter, Scrape down the sides of the bowl, and cover with plastic wrap.
• 2. Make the flour mixture and add to the sponge. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour (reserve 1/4 cup if mixing by hand), dry milk, and instant yeast. Sprinkle this on top of the sponge and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow it to ferment for 1 to 4 hours at room temperature. (During this time, the sponge will bubble through the flour blanket in places: this is fine.)
• 3. Mix the dough.
• Mixer Method Add the butter to the bowl and mix with the dough hook on low speed (#2 if using a KitchenAid) for 1 minute or until the flour is moistened enough to form a rough dough. Scrape down any bits of dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rest for 20 minutes.
• Sprinkle on the salt and knead the dough on medium speed (#4 KitchenAid) for 7 to 10 minutes. It will not come away from the bowl until the last minute or so of kneading; it will be smooth and shiny and stick to your fingers. With an oiled spatula, scrape down any dough clinging to the sides of the bowl. If the dough is not stiff, knead in a little flour. If it is not at all sticky, spray it with a little water and knead it in. (The dough will weigh about 44.25 ounces/1258 grams.)
• Hand Method Add the salt and butter to the bowl and, with a wooden spoon or your hand, stir until all the flour is moistened. Knead the dough in the bowl until it comes together, then scrape it onto a lightly floured counter. Knead the dough for 5 minutes, enough to develop the gluten structure a little, adding as little of the reserved flour as possible to keep the dough from sticking. Use a bench scraper to scrape the dough and gather it together as you knead it. At this point, it will be very sticky. Cover it with the inverted bowl and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. (This resting time will make the dough less sticky and easier to work with.)
• Knead the dough for another 5 minutes or until it is very smooth and elastic. It should still be tacky (sticky) enough to cling slightly to your fingers a little. If the dough is still very sticky, however, add some of the remaining reserved flour, or a little extra. (The dough will weigh about 44.25 ounces/1258 grams.)
• Both Methods 4. Let the dough rise. Using an oiled spatula or dough scraper, scrape the dough into a 4-quart dough-rising container or bowl, lightly oiled with cooking spray or oil. Push down the dough and lightly spray or oil the surface. Cover the container with a lid or plastic wrap. With a piece of tape, mark the side of the container at approximately where double the height of the dough would be. Allow the dough to rise (ideally at 75°to 80°F) until doubled, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Using an oiled spatula or dough scraper, scrape the dough onto a floured counter and press down on it gently to form a rectangle. It will be full of air and resilient. Try to maintain as many of the air bubbles as possible. Pull out and fold the dough over from all four sides into a tight package, or give it 2 business letter turns and set it back in the container. Again oil the surface, cover, and mark where double the height would now be. (It will fill the container fuller than before because it is puffier with air.) Allow the dough to rise for 1 to 2 hours or until it reaches the mark.
• 5. Shape the dough and let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and cut it in half. Shape each piece into a loaf: begin by gently pressing the dough (or lightly rolling it with a rolling pin) into a wide rectangle; the exact size is not important at this point. (A long side of the dough should be facing toward you.) Dimple the dough with your fingertips to deflate any large bubbles. Fold over the right side of the dough to a little past the center. Fold over the left side of the dough to overlap it slightly. Press the center overlap section with the side of your hand to seal the dough. (If you have a lot of experience shaping, you may prefer at this point to rotate the dough 90 degrees-a quarter turn.) Starting at the top edge of the dough, roll it over three or four times, until it reaches the bottom edge of the dough: with each roll, press with your thumbs to seal it and at the same time push it away from you slightly to tighten the outer skin. As you roll and press, the dough will become wider. If it is not as long as the pan, place both hands close together on top of the dough and, rolling back and forth, gradually work your way toward the ends, gently stretching the dough. For the most even shape, it is important to keep a tight skin on the surface of the dough and not to tear it. If you want the edges of the loaf to be smooth, tuck the sides under.
• Place the loaves in the prepared loaf pans; the dough will be about 1/2 inch from the top of the pans. Cover them with a large container, or cover them loosely with oiled plastic wrap, and allow to rise until the center is about 1 inch above the sides of the pan, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. When the dough is pressed with a fingertip, the depression will very slowly fill in.
• 6. Preheat the oven. Preheat the oven to 350°F 45 minutes before baking. Have an oven shelf at the lowest level and place a baking stone or baking sheet on it, and a cast-iron skillet or sheet pan on the floor of the oven, before preheating.
• 7. Bake the bread. Quickly but gently set the pans on the hot baking stone or hot baking sheet. Toss 1/2 cup of ice cubes into the pan beneath and immediately shut the door. Bake for 50 minutes or until medium golden brown and a skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean (an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center will read about 210°F). Halfway through baking, turn the pans around for even baking.
• 8. Glaze and cool the bread. Remove the bread from the oven and set it on a wire rack. Brush the top of the bread with the optional melted butter. Unmold and cool top side up on a wire rack until barely warm, about 1 hour.
• ULTIMATE FULL FLAVOR VARIATION
• For the best flavor development, in Step 2, allow the sponge to ferment for 1 hour at room temperature and then refrigerate it for 8 to 24 hours. If using the hand mixing method, remove it from the refrigerator about 1 hour before mixing the dough.
• POINTERS FOR SUCCESS
• • If not using the dry milk, you can replace 1 cup of the water with 1 cup milk, preferably nonfat, scalded (brought to the boiling point) and cooled to lukewarm.
• UNDERSTANDING
• A greater amount of sponge dough starter (pre-ferment) offers a fuller flavor in this "plain" bread, so almost 50 percent of total amount of flour is used in the sponge, compared to the usual 30 percent of hearth breads.
• If using liquid milk, it is scalded to deactivate the enzyme in it that could make the dough sticky.
• Baking the bread at too high a temperature, would result in too thin a crust, which would cause keyholing, or caving in at the sides of the loaf. Therefore, this bread is baked at 350°F. It is also important for the bread to be thoroughly baked so that the crust is firm enough to prevent it from compressing. The loaves should not be cut until completely cool for the same reason.
• THE DOUGH PERCENTAGE
• Flour: 100% Water: 66.3% (includes the water in the butter and honey) Yeast: 0.74% Salt: 2.3% Butterfat: 15.9%

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 425F (200C).
• Sieve dry ingredients.
• Pour milk into a well in the dry ingredients.
• Blend and knead bread until smooth.
• Place in warm dusted dutch oven with flour.
• Bake for 20 mins at temperature, then reduce heat to 350F (180C) for another 20 mins.

Steps:

• Add all ingredients to your bread machine in the order reccomended by the manufacturer.
• Set to"dough" cycle.
• When dough cycle finishes, remove dough from bread machine and punch down and knead on a floured surface.
• Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray, set dough into the pan, and set aside in a warm place (i set mine on the back burner of my stove-- it gets hot while the stove warms up, and causes the bread to rise quickly) and let the dough rise to just about the top of the loaf pan.
• Bake at 375 for 30 minutes.
• When dough is done, tap on the top of the loaf.
• If it sounds hollow inside, it is done.
• If not, cook in additional 5 minute increments, till bread is done.
• Let cool a bit before cutting, or the bread will get smushed.

Steps:

• In a large mixing bowl, mix yeast, sugar, and warm water. Wait until the yeast and sugar dissolve.
• Stir in butter, salt, and 2 cups of flour until well incorporated.
• Stir in the remaining flour ½ a cup at a time. Mix well with each flour addition.
• When the dough is pulled together, turn out onto a floured surface and begin to knead for 8 - 10 minute
• Place the dough (into a lightly oiled, large bowl. Turn the dough to coat with oil.
• Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise 1hr.
• Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divided into two even loaves.
• Place loaves in two lightly oiled bread pans.
• Cover the loaves with damp cloths and allow them to rise 40min.
• Preheat your oven to 425°F.
• Bake at 375°F for about 30 minutes and the top is golden brown. The loaf should also sound hollow when tapped.

Steps:

• Combine milk and water in a microwaveable jar and heat for 1 minute.
• Put yeast in a small bowl with the sugar and a little of the warm milk and water mix and allow to prove. It takes about 10 minutes. It should have doubled in volume be frothy.
• Put flour in a large mixing bowl add salt and pepper and stir to combine.
• Add butter and crisco to the flour and rub into the flour.
• When the yeast has proved make a well in the middle of the flour and add the yeast and some of the milk and water mixture, stir into the flour, adding a little of the milk and water a little at a time, till a soft dough is formed. It may take more or less of the milk mix depending on the moisture content of your flour.
• Put flour on your hands and turn dough out onto a floured surface and Knead for 10 minutes, add extra flour to dough and hands to prevent it from sticking.
• When dough is smooth, put into a large bowl that has been sprayed with Pam to prevent it sticking, and cover with Clingfilm and leave to rise, for about 1-1 1/2 hours or till it has doulbed in size. Its is best left in a warm area for this.
• After the dough has risen turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, (at this stage the dough can be put into ziplock bags and stored in the fridge for up to 3 days, it will continue to rise, so it needs to be a quart sized bag) then shape into desired loaf shape or put into pre greased loaf pan.
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Cover the dough and leave to rise again for about 15 minutes.
• When dough has risen brush with egg wash and sesame seeds and a little kosher salt.
• Bake at 400°F for about 30 minutes.