Basic White Bread

It was only last summer that I began experimenting with yeast. Considering how long I've held baking as a passion, I don't know how I managed to avoid it - or why? It would be as if Jaques Cartier had come to the America's and didn't step foot off PEI for 20 years after arriving.



Anyway, it didn't take long for me to discover that yeast is my friend. After several weeks of experimenting, I came up with my own bread recipe that seems to work quite well and is also rather versatile. I've used this recipe for plain loaves, cinnamon buns, dinner rolls, and even thick crust pizza.

Canadian Mark's White Bread (with pictures of me making it!)
yeild: one loaf

Ingredients:

• ¾ cup warm water
• 2 tsp instant yeast
• ¼ cup sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2½ cups all-purpose flour
• 1 egg
• ¼ cup vegetable oil

Method:

1. Combine the first four ingredients in a liquid measurer and whisk until uniform

2. Place flour on (preferably wooden) work surface and create a well in center


3. Drop egg and oil into well

4. Mix with one hand from the center of the well while slowly incorporating liquid with the other hand until all is blended together. If end dough is too sticky, add flour. N.B. It is much easier to incorporate more flour to a wet dough than it is to add more water to a dry dough!

5. Knead for 5 - 10 minutes or until a smooth ball of dough is formed

6. wrap it and let it rest at least ten minutes, allowing the gluten to relax and make the dough friendlier to work with

7. for a basic bread, shape the dough into a loaf on a sheet or in a bread pan and let rise until double ( about 90 minutes)

8. bake @ 375 until done. About a half-hour.

And now I too require a rest to relax my own gluten. Goodnight folks. Perhaps tomorrow we'll do something a little more interesting with this bread dough.