Classic White Bread

While I love baking anything and everything, there will always be a special place in my heart for a simple loaf of soft white bread. There is almost nothing better than a slice of fresh from the oven, still warm, homemade bread slathered in salted butter. The yeasty flavor mixes with the heavenly aroma still emanating from the oven to produce the bliss that is freshly baked bread. I've made several different white bread recipes over the past few years and while I don't vividly remember them all, I know this one is right up there at the top of the list. Buttery, light and tender, this bread is ready for anything: sandwiches, toast, or a simple afternoon snack with some almond butter, really whatever you can think of, it's up to you.

This recipe was straightforward without any unusual ingredients. The basic cast of flour, salt and yeast along with some milk, some butter, an egg, and a hint of sweetness via the addition of a little sugar. That's how I like my bread, simple but with a little enrichment to really take it over the top. To finish it all off I brushed the loaves with melted butter when they came out of the oven (instead of the egg wash suggested) to produce a soft and buttery crust, yum!

I didn't have the size bread pans the recipe calls for (something I've since remedied) but it didn't seem to matter one bit. The loaves didn't get as tall as they would have in a slightly smaller pan but they still turned out beautifully. I've been eating this bread daily in the days since making it and I absolutely love it. Last night it made the best Texas toast, and this morning it was perfect slathered in homemade jam. I can't wait to find out what it will be good for next; whatever that is I know it will be delicious.

Start mixing it all together

 When smooth and supple, place in an 

oiled bowl to rise

 Doubled and ready to shape

 Cut the dough in half

 Shape into two nice loaves

 Nicely risen and ready to hit the oven

 Straight from the oven, golden and beautiful

 Pull out of the loaf pans and let cool on wire racks

 Slice it up, making sure you have a nice snack

along the way

Ready for anything

Classic White Bread
From The Bread Baker's Apprentice by Peter Reinhart
Ingredients

• 4¼ cups (19 ounces) unbleached bread flour
• 1½ teaspoons (.38 ounces) salt
• 3 tablespoons (1.5 ounces) sugar
• 2 teaspoons (.22 ounce) instant yeast
• 1 large (1.65 ounces) egg, slightly beaten, at room temperature
• ¼ cup (2 ounces) butter, margarine, or shortening, at room temperature, or vegetable oil
• 1½ cups (12 ounces) buttermilk or whole milk, at room temperature
• 1 egg, whisked with 1 teaspoon water until frothy, for egg wash (optional)
• sesame or poppy seeds for garnish (optional)

Directions
Mix together the flour, salt, sugar, and yeast in a 4-quart bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer). Pour in the egg, butter, and milk and mix with a large metal spoon (or on low speed of the electric mixer with the paddle attachment) until all the flour is absorbed and the dough forms a ball. If the dough seems very stiff and dry, trickle in more milk until the dough is soft and supple.

Sprinkle flour on the counter, transfer the dough to the counter, and begin kneading (or mix on medium speed with the dough hook), adding more flour, if necessary, to create a dough that is soft, supple, and tacky but not sticky. Continue kneading (or mixing) for 6 to 8 minutes. (In the electric mixer, the dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick ever to slightly to the bottom.) The dough should pass the windowpane test and register 80° F. Lightly oil a large bowl and transfer the dough to the bowl, rolling it to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

Ferment at room temperature for 1½ to 2 hours, or until the dough doubles in size (the length of time will depend on the room temperature).

Remove the fermented dough from the bowl and divide it in half for sandwich loaves, into eighteen 2-ounce pieces for dinner rolls, or twelve 3-ounce pieces for burger or hot dog buns. Shape the pieces into boules for loaves or tight rounds for dinner rolls or buns. Mist the dough lightly with spray oil and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Allow to rest for about 20 minutes.

For loaves, shape as shown on page 81. Lightly oil two 8½ by 4½-inch loaf pans and place the loaves in the pans. For rolls and buns, line 2 sheet pans with baking parchment. Rolls require no further shaping. For hamburger buns, gently press down on the rolls to form the desired shape. For hot dog buns, shape as shown on page 80, although without tapering the ends. Transfer the rolls or buns to the sheet pans.

Mist the tops of the dough with spray oil and loosely cover with plastic wrap or a towel. Proof the dough at room temperature for 60 to 90 minutes, or until it nearly doubles in size.

Preheat the oven to 350° F for loaves or 400° F for roll and buns. Brush the rolls or buns with the egg wash and garnish with poppy or sesame seeds. Sandwich loaves also may be washed and garnished, or score them down the center and rub a little vegetable oil in the slit.

Bake the rolls or buns for approximately 15 minutes, or until they are golden brown and register just above 180° F in the center. Bake loaves for 35 to 45 minutes, rotating 180 degrees halfway through for even baking, if needed. The tops should be golden brown and the sides, when removed from the pan, should also be golden. The internal temperature of the loaves should be close to 190° F, and the loaves should sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.

When the loaves have finished baking, remove them immediately from the pans and cool on a wire rack for at least 1 hour before slicing or serving. Rolls should cool for at least 15 minutes on a rack before serving.

Honey Yeast Rolls

If there is one thing I just cannot seem to resist, it's good bread. Putting a bread basket in front of me is very dangerous. The type of bread is irrelevant, as long as it is fresh and delicious. Since I love bread so much, (and really who doesn't?) I'm always searching for good recipes. One of my favorite ways to get my bread fix is by baking up some soft, squishy dinner rolls. I love the lightness and the sweetness of a simple, pillowy roll.

I printed this recipe several years ago when I first made it, but it has been a while and I didn't really remember what it was like. I decided that it was time to give it another go this past week, and I am so glad that I did. It's an easy recipe, and it makes a nice amount of simple dinner rolls. There is an optional honey butter glaze that I tried out and really loved. They are nice and sweet, which is how I like my rolls, and very soft. Adding the glaze turned them almost into dessert, it is delicious. If you don't want your rolls to be quite as sweet, just omit it. But if you're looking for a great dinner roll for your Thanksgiving dinner, give these a try. They would also be fabulous the next day for a nice turkey sandwich made with leftovers!

Mix up all the ingredients and do some kneading

Place the dough in a bowl and let rise for a 

few hours

Two hours later; risen and ready to go

Turn out onto a floured board

Knead a few times and then let rest

for a few minutes

Cut it up into pieces, I did 16, but you could

do 10-12 depending on how big

you want them

Place in a greased dish and let rise

(mine didn't all fit in one pan, 

maybe a 9x13 would work?)

Nice and poofy

Brush on the butter honey glaze if 

desired

And bake until golden brown

Honey Yeast Rolls
From: A Cookie a Day
Ingredients
Rolls

• 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast 
• 1 cup warm water 
• 4 cups bread flour 
• 1/4 cup honey 
• 3 tablespoons oil 
• 1 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1 egg, lightly beaten 

Glaze(optional)

• 1 tablespoons butter 
• 1 tablespoons honey 

Directions
In the bowl of a stand mixer combine the yeast and warm water. Stir in the honey, egg and oil. Add 3 cups of the flour and the salt and mix until the dough comes together in a sticky mass.

Knead for about 8 minutes while working in the remaining cup of flour until the dough is smooth and elastic, tacky but not too sticky. Do not add too much flour, you want the dough to be soft and supple so the rolls turn out nice and tender instead of dense and tough.

Form the dough into a ball and transfer it to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel and let the dough rise until it doubles in bulk, about 2 hours.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 30 seconds. Cover the dough and let it rest for 10 minutes.

Divide the dough into 10-12 equal pieces (or however many you want, I did 16). Shape each piece into a ball and place in a lightly oiled pan or baking sheet. Cover and let rise for about 20 minutes.

Mix together the honey and butter. Brush the mixture on top of the rolls and bake at 400 degrees for 13-15 minutes, until golden brown.

Pretzel Rolls

During college, one of my favorite lunches in the dining hall was a deli sandwich on a pretzel roll. I just love sandwiches to begin with, and making one on a chewy, salty pretzel bun brings the meal to a whole new level. When I realized that I could make pretzel rolls myself I got very excited. What's even more exciting is how quick and easy they are to make. They don't require an extended kneading time, or hours of rising. In fact, you can whip these up in about an hour and a half.

This recipe makes twelve nice sized pretzel rolls; you can shape them into a basic roll or twist them into a pretzel shape. I've done both, and they are both wonderful. Slice one in half and load with your favorite meats and cheeses, or just grab one for a quick snack, dipped in some mustard or sharp cheddar cheese sauce. Whatever you end up doing with them they are bound to be delicious!

Soft, chewy and salty with a hint of sweet

Mix up the dough

Cut into 12 equal pieces

Let rest for a few minutes under a damp cloth

(or paper towel)

Start shaping

When they're all shaped, let them rest for about 30 minutes

A little later; nice and poofy

Prepare the water bath; boiling water and lots of baking soda (it makes the water really foamy at first, don't worry, it'll settle down)

Boil the rolls for 30 seconds each

All wrinkly from their bath

Load up on the salt

And bake

Beautiful and tasty

Pretzels Rolls
Adapted from food.com
Ingredients

• 1 1/3 cups warm water 
• 2 tablespoons warm milk 
• 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast 
• 1/3 cup light brown sugar 
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted 
• 4 cups flour 
• kosher salt or pretzel salt 
• 2 quarts cold water 
• 1/2 cup baking soda 

Directions
In a medium bowl mix together mix together the water, milk, sugar and melted butter. Swirl to dissolve the sugar.

In the bowl of a stand mixer mix together the flour and yeast. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and knead together until it forms a nice firm, pliable dough ball.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured table and roll into a 2 foot long log. Cut the log into 12 even pieces. Cover the dough pieces with a damp cloth and let rest for 10 minutes.

Pat the dough into rolls or form knots and arrange on a lightly floured surface about an inch apart. Cover lightly with oiled plastic wrap. Let the pretzels rest for an additional 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a large stockpot, bring water to a rolling boil and add baking soda. Drop two rolls into the boiling water and boil for no more then 30 seconds, turning once. Carefully remove with tongs or a slotted spoon and hold above pot and let drain. Place on prepared baking sheets and sprinkle lightly with salt. Repeat with the remaining rolls.

Bake rolls for 8-10 minutes or until brown all over. Shift pans from top to bottom and back to front halfway through baking. Let rolls cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes, then transfer to a rack.