Easiest Crusty White Bread Mother Earth News Food

EASIEST CRUSTY WHITE BREAD (MOTHER EARTH NEWS)

Steps:

• Starting the night before (or early morning if you want to bake for the evening), in a large mixing bowl use your hands to mix the flour, yeast, salt and enough water to form a soft and sticky dough. You may have to add more water depending on a variety of factors, including the type of flour you use. Do not knead, but cover and let the dough rise at room temperature. When you get up in the morning, or a while before baking in the evening, wet your hands and lift the dough onto a flate, wet surface. Gently stretch it and fold it 2 to 4 times -- that's it. Return it ot the same bowl, cover and let it rise until doubled in size. This will take about an hour or so. If it is cool in the room, put the dough in a warmer area to do this final rise. At this time, find a bowl that will accommodate double the size of the risen dough and line it with a cotton or linen towel dusted with flour. Turn the risen dough (should have doubled by now) out with wet hands and again, fold it over itself about four times. (Personally, I skip this aforementioned step and the bread is wonderful.) Turn into the towel-lined bowl and let rise for one to four hours, depending on the room temperature. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Farenheit. Once the dough is doubled, turn onto a well-floured peel or stiff cardboard. Ideally you will bake this on a pre-heated pizza stone or heavy baking sheet. Use the peel or cardboard to transfer the dough onto the baking surface. Bake until the crust if golden brown which may take 60 to 75 minutes. The magazine calls for the bread to cool for two hours, bottom up, but you can enjoy it minutes out of the oven.

CRUSTY WHITE BREAD

Steps:

• In a small mixing bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in the warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast mixture with the milk, the butter or margarine, 4 cups of the flour and the salt; stir until well combined. Add the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and supple, about 8 minutes.
• Lightly oil a large mixing bowl, place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and put in a warm place to rise until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).
• Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into two lightly greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
• Mist loaves with water and bake at 400 degrees F (200 degrees C) oven for 20 to 30 minutes or until the loaves are golden brown and the bottom of a loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

CRUSTY EUROPEAN STYLE WHITE BREAD

Steps:

• In a warm bowl dissolve yeast in warm water. Add salt, melted butter (cooled), and flour.
• Using stand mixer with dough hook mix ingredients, on low speed, for one minute. Allow to rest for 2-3 minutes.
• Continue to knead for 2 more minutes on low speed until dough is firm and no longer sticky.
• Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1 hour. Dough should increase 1.5-2 times.
• Deflate dough and turn on to floured surface. Pat dough flat into a rectangular shape and fold into three sections as you would a letter. Repeat 2 times.
• Return to bowl, smooth side up and cover with plastic. Allow to rise for at least 1-1.5 hours. Dough should increase 2.5-3 times.
• Cut dough into two equal parts and shape each into a round loaf making sure that you create sufficient surface tension on the top of the loaf. Gather the dough at the bottom as you shape the loaf, pinching the dough together on the bottom and forming a seal. Place both loaves bottom side up on a floured linen towel and cover with another floured linen towel. Allow to rise for an additional 1-1.5 hours.
• Note: all rises should be in a fairly warm place (70-75F).
• Place an oven proof skillet at the bottom of oven.
• Preheat oven to 475F, then reduce to 450°F.
• Place bread on parchment paper and, with very sharp knife, cut a cross into the top about 1/2 inch deep.
• Slide parchment paper with loaf into oven on a pre-heated baking stone. Immediately pour 1/2 cup water into skillet to produce necessary steam. (Check you oven's instructions to make sure that this will not damage your oven.).
• Bake for 20 minutes. Then check bread to be sure it isn't getting too dark. Continue baking for another 15 minutes.
• Check internal bread tempeature with thermometer. If it has reached 200F then it's finished.
• If not finished, reduce to 400F andbake an additions 8-10 minutes. Check temperature again.
• Place on rack, allow to cool before eating.

CRUSTY WHITE BREAD

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in warm water.
• Add sugar, salt, oil and 3 cups four, mix well.
• Add enough remaining dough to make dough easy to handle.
• turn out dough into lightly floured, cloth covered surface and knead till smooth and elastic.
• Place dough in oiled bowl and brush top with oil.
• Cover dough with a damp cloth, and let dough rise 1 hr, or until doubled.
• Punch down dough and divide in half.
• Roll each half into a 9x18 inch rectangle, and starting at she short side, roll up into a roll.
• Press down ends of roll to seal, and tuck ends under roll.
• Place roll in greased loaf pan, seam side down and cover with damp cloth. Repeat with other roll. Let rise 1 hr, or until doubled.
• Heat oven to 400F and bake approx 35 minute Loaves should be golden brown and sound hollow when tapped.