Easy Bread Recipe

Have any of y’all fallen into the bread making trend? At first it was a necessity but now, we just can’t get enough! We sure are hoping this trend turns into a habit - have we all forgotten how welcoming and perfectly delicious home cooked bread is?  We’re hopin’ this easy bread recipe will change your opinion on bread forever.

 

Sweet tip! Buy your flour wholesale and make your bread in bulk! With just five simple ingredients, homemade bread has never been easier. This delicious bread recipe is perfect for beginners. Flour, sugar, yeast, salt and water is all you’ll need. The beauty of this dough is that you get two loaves out of this one recipe!

 

When it comes to salt, we recommend your favorite non-kosher salt! 

 

Regular Active Dry and Instant Yeast (also known as Fast-Rising, Rapid-Rise, Quick Rise, and/or Bread Machine Yeast) will do the trick for this recipe. 

 

Tips from our Bakers

No instant yeast? No problem! You can easily substitute for active dry yeast instead with this simple conversion. If you are using active dry yeast instead of instant yeast, multiply the amount of active dry yeast by 1.25.

 

Let’s Talk Flour 

Before we get too far, we want to talk about flour, so we understand why we use it and when. Have you ever stood in the flour aisle and felt completely overwhelmed? You’re not the only one! Take a look at this simple guide to understand the difference between different kinds of flour. 

 

All-purpose flour 

All-purpose flour has a semi high protein percentage. True to its name, all-purpose flour is good for all sorts of items, biscuits, bread, pizza dough and so much more! Because the protein of this flour is in the middle to high range on the scale, it helps give structure to whatever you bake without losing that softness we know and love. For this recipe, we’re going to use all-purpose flour – but bread flour is also an option!

 

Whole wheat flour 

The first difference you will notice in whole wheat flour is its color, this is because it still contains a lot of the elements of the wheat in it. Whole wheat flours contain a higher oil content than that of other flours. Whole wheat flour adds good fiber to whatever you are making, and your baked items will often come out denser. If dense isn’t what you’re looking for, whole wheat flour can be mixed with all purpose to help balance out the texture. 

 

Cake flour

Cake flour has a very fine grain texture. The biggest difference between cake flour and all-purpose is that cake flour has a significantly lower protein content. Cake flour will give a softer, more delicate texture to whatever you are making.  Cake flour is used for more than just cakes, it can be used to make all kinds of baked goods such as muffins, cupcakes, biscuits, and scones and even cookies! 

 

Bread flour

Bread flour has a higher protein content which helps give your bread a better strength and structure. This is good for creating that delicious crust and chewy center to your favorite breads. If you are looking for a denser texture for your bread, bread flour would be a good option for you for this recipe! 

 

Buy your flour in bulk

Click here for an option on buying your flour in bulk similar to how restaurants buy their ingredients!  https://www.restaurantdepot.com/      

 

INGREDIENTS

• 4 ½ cups bread flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 2 ¼ tsp instant yeast (2 4/5 tsp or almost 9 grams active dry yeast)
• 2 ½ non-kosher salt
• 1 ⅔ cup warm (not hot) water
• cornmeal for dusting

 

DIRECTIONS

• Combine all your ingredients into a large bowl. Remember to create even cups of flour by sweeping off excess.
• Stir mixture into a dense ball of dough either with a wooden spoon or paddle attachment of a stand mixer.
• Place dough on a lightly floured surface and begin to knead dough. At this point, the dough may be a little sticky. Grab the edge of the dough furthest away from you and fold it in half toward you, then use the heels of your hands on top of dough and press down on the dough to flatten the fold you just created. Repeat this step, rotating the dough to knead at different angles each time. Do this for about 6 minutes or until the dough is smooth and a bit bouncy.
• You can also knead your dough in a stand mixer with a bread hook for about 7 minutes or until the dough becomes smooth and bouncy.
• Place kneaded dough in a covered bowl to rise for 1-2 hours.
• Once dough has risen, remove from the bowl, slightly deflate the risen bread and separate into two ovals for your loaves.
• Prepare the loaves by gently folding and forming them into two 10” loaves.
• Grease plastic wrap and lightly cover loaves and let rest for 45 minutes. This will be the final time you allow them to rise before they bake. Check on the loaves by poking lightly, if an indent remains, they are ready to go.
• Preheat your oven to 450˚ toward the end of the final rising process, this way the oven will be ready to go by the time the bread is scored.
• Dust the top of your dough with flour. Now it’s time to create those artisan marks in your bread, also known as scoring. Whether you make a cross or two lines, using a sharp knife to score the bread will help it expand during the baking process.
• Prepare a water bath by filling a heat safe bowl a quarter full of water and placing on the lower rack of your oven. This will create steam inside the oven and add a delicious moisture to your bread.
• Add dough to preheated stone in the oven and bake for 20-25 minutes. The most important thing to remember in this recipe is, nobody likes undercooked bread! If your bread doesn’t look done, keep checking on it every five minutes after your original timer goes off. Make sure the outside of your bread is golden and sounds hollow on the inside with a tap. Internal temperature should be about 208˚F (97˚C) 
• When bread is finished, turn the oven off and allow bread to sit in the oven as it cools off for about 5 minutes. Be sure to crack the oven door!
• Remove bread from the oven and cool it on a rack before you cut into it.