Favorite Bread and Variations

Bread

Ingredients:

3 cups lukewarm water

½ cup plus 1 teaspoon white sugar

2 Tablespoons yeast granules (or 2 packets), we use Red Star Yeast

1 Heaping Tablespoon salt

½ cup salad oil, melted butter, or melted shortening

11 cups all purpose flour

Directions:

In a large, warmed bowl, pour: 1 cup lukewarm water

In the water dissolve: 1 teaspoon white sugar

Over the water sprinkle: 2 Tablespoons yeast granules (or 2 packets), we use Red Star Yeast

Let stand 10 minutes, then stir until yeast is completely dissolved. Then stir in: 2 cups lukewarm water, 1/2 cup white sugar, 1 heaping Tablespoon salt, 1/2 cup salad oil, melted butter, or melted shortening. Beat, then stir in 1 cup at a time: about 9 cups all purpose bread flour. (If you’re using a mixer, switch from paddle to bread hook when dough begins to get sticky on paddle. If you are mixing by hand, know that mixing in all that flour will be a workout, but it’s worth it!! )

To knead by hand: Scrape the dough onto a well floured surface, sprinkle it with flour and knead it. Gather the dough together in your hands and push it away from you with your palms. Fold it in half towards you, then turn ¼ turn and repeat pushing, folding, and turning, sprinkling flour on the dough to keep it from sticking, this may take up to a cupful more. Keep kneading for several minutes, until the dough becomes smooth and elastic.

To knead by machine: Leave in mixer bowl with dough hook, then set mixer on low, and let it knead for 5 minutes (check often to make sure that the dough isn’t “crawling” out of the bowl. If it crawls up, just turn off the machine and push it back down, then continue kneading.

After kneading, put the dough in a large oiled bowl, and flip to coat both sides with oil. Loosely cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and place in a warm place (near a woodstove or in an oven that has been preheated for 30 seconds then turned off. IMPORTANT!!! Always preheat the oven, turn off, and then put the dough in the oven. I’ve had it happen too often that I forget to turn off the oven and then it ruins the dough!! ) Let it rise for 1 to 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled. Punch the dough down to remove air bubbles, then divide in 3 parts. Shape each into a loaf and place into a greased loaf pan. Cover the loaves with a dish towel and put in a warm place again to rise the second time. The loaves should double, about 1 hour. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 minutes. When bread is golden brown on top and bottom and bread sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom, it’s done!!! Remove from pans to a rack and allow to cool, IF YOU AND YOUR FAMILY CAN KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF IT!!!! There is no better comfort food than hot bread with butter or Strawberry Jam on it!!!! Enjoy!!! Also try the recipes below.

Variations :

Rolls: Separate the recipe into 2 ounce portions, make into rolls, and line up in greased cake pans, about ½ inch apart. Allow to rise until double, and bake about 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

Cinnamon buns: Roll out the dough ½ inch thick, spread with melted butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Roll up like a jelly roll, cut 1 inch thick with a very sharp knife, then lay in cake pan ½ inch apart. Allow to rise until double, then bake 20 minutes at 375 degrees.

Sticky Buns: Sticky part per 9x13 pan:1/2 cup brown sugar, ½ cup softened butter, 2 tbsp. corn syrup, ¼ cup chopped nuts(optional). Mix the butter, sugar and corn syrup together and spread in the greased pan. Roll out the dough ½ inch thick, spread with melted butter, and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Roll up like a jelly roll, and cut 1 inch thick with a very sharp knife. Place ½ inch apart in the prepared pans, and rise until double. Bake at 375 degrees for 20 minutes, Cool 1 minute, then invert onto wire rack. Best served warm.

Doughnuts: Roll out the dough ½ inch thick, and cut with doughnut cutter. Allow to rise 15 minutes, then deep fry at 375 degrees until golden. Drain on brown paper, then dip in sugar, powdered sugar, or glaze.

Below are all the variations for the recipe that are listed in the book. I like the Raisin Bread, Cinnamon Roll, and Pizza Bread (which is also a hit with kids).

Raisin Bread: add a pound of raisins to entire batch while mixing in flour, or if you only want one loaf, knead 1 cup of raisins into the loaf after the first rising, then do the final rising and bake

Fruit and Nut Loaf: Add 1 or 2 cups of mixed candied fruit, 2 cups of raisins, and 1 cup chopped nuts to the basic dough, or knead 1/3 the amount into individual loaves.

Cheese Bread: Mix 2 or 3 cupfuls of shredded sharp cheddar into the recipe, or knead 1/3 the amount into individual loaves.

Onion Bread: Mix 2 cups of sautéed chopped onions, or 2 packages of onion soup mix into the dough, or knead 1/3 the amount into individual loaves.

Herb Bread: Add 1 teaspoon each savory and marjoram, ½ teaspoon each of thyme, basil, oregano, dill seed, celery seed, and 1 tablespoon of fresh cut up parsley to the dough. This is supposed to be good to make into garlic bread.

Spice Bread: Add 1 teaspoon each of cinnamon, and clove, and ½ tsp. nutmeg or ginger when you mix in the flour.

Cinnamon Roll: Roll the dough for 1 loaf an inch thick, and about 6x9 inches. Spread melted butter over the dough, then sprinkle it generously with white or brown sugar and cinnamon, and raisins or chopped nuts if you like them. Roll it as you would a jelly roll, and put into a loaf pan to rise. Bake as usual.

Fruit Roll: Roll the dough for 1 loaf an inch thick, and about 6x9 inches. Spread melted butter over the dough, then spread with chopped candied fruits, jelly or jam. Roll it like a jelly roll, seal it well around the edges, rise in a loaf pan and bake.

Cheese Roll: Roll the dough for 1 loaf an inch thick, and about 6x9 inches. Spread 1 cup of shredded cheese over the dough, then roll up like a jelly roll, rise in a loaf pan and bake.

Onion Roll: Roll the dough for 1 loaf an inch thick, and about 6x9 inches. Spread sautéed onions OR sautéed onions and cheese on the dough, then roll up like a jelly roll, rise in a loaf pan and bake.

Pizza Roll: Roll the dough for 1 loaf an inch thick, and about 6x9 inches. Spread with pizza sauce and mozzarella. If you like, you can add pepperoni and other pizza ingredients too. Roll up, seal well, rise in a loaf pan and bake. This may take a few more minutes to bake because the sauce is dense.

Buttermilk Bread: Substitute Buttermilk for the 2 cups of water in the recipe. Rise and bake like usual.

Whole Wheat Bread: Substitute whole wheat flour for white flour. Rise and Bake as usual. This is especially good if you use stone ground “white whole wheat flour”, which has all the health benefits of regular whole wheat flour, but has a gentler flavor. It can be found in bulk food stores or health food stores.

Wheat bread: ½ white, ½ whole wheat flour. Rise and Bake as usual. This is especially good if you use stone ground “white whole wheat flour”, which has all the health benefits of regular whole wheat flour, but has a gentler flavor. It can be found in bulk food stores or health food stores.