There is nothing like homemade bread. The process of baking it from scratch is so rewarding, and the end result provides you with a delicious, chewy loaf of soft baked, buttery goodness. Sure it is easy and convenient to run to your local market and pick up a loaf or two for the week. But did you know that many brands of store bought bread contain hidden ingredients that are harmful to our health? From potassium bromate, to partially hydrogenated oil, high-fructose corn syrup and even caramel food coloring – the unnecessary list of processed ingredients can wreak havoc on our health and our kid’s health.
This fail proof Every Day Sandwich Bread is seriously so easy to make, and so delicious, you’ll never look back at buying store bought bread. This homemade bread recipe is made with only 7 REAL ingredients including; flour, milk, water, butter, sugar, salt and instant yeast. The hardest or most intimidating part is just starting. Once you try it, you’ll soon be adding bread making to your weekly routine. So let’s get started baking life better, one loaf of bread at a time!
What you Will Need
- Stand Mixer
- Loaf Pan
- Mixing Bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Instant Yeast
ingredients
- 1 cup water, warmed to about 110°F
- 1/4 cup whole milk, warmed to about 110°F
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons Instant Yeast
- 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
- 4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
- 1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3 and 1/3 cups (about 420–430g) all-purpose flour or bread flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
Instructions
Prepare the dough
1. Add the warm water, warm milk, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Whisk to combine. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
2. Add the butter, salt, and 1 cup flour. Mix on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula. Add the second cup of flour. Mix on medium speed until incorporated (there may be chunks of butter). Add the remaining one and 1/3rd cup of flour and mix on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. This takes around 2 minutes.
Knead the dough
Continue mixing the dough for an additional 5–8 full minutes to knead the dough. After kneading, poke the dough with your finger, and if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise.
1st Rise
Lightly grease a large bowl with olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size. Grease a 9×5 loaf pan.
Shape the bread
When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Lightly flour a work surface and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about 8×15 inches. It does not have to be perfect. Then roll it up into an 8 inch log and place in the prepared loaf pan.
2nd Rise
Cover shaped loaf. Allow to rise until it’s about 1 inch above the top of the loaf pan, about 1 hour.
Bake the bread
To avoid burning, adjust the oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F.
Bake for 30-34 minutes or until golden brown. Loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil around the 20 minute mark, if the top begins browning too quickly. The loaf is done when you tap it and it sounds hollow, or reaches 195–200°F with a thermometer.
When done, remove the loaf from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes in the pan on a cooling rack. Cover leftover bread tightly and store at room temperature for 6 days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.
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