Posted By Ingrid Turner on Mar 27, 2014 in Baking, Bread Recipe, Breads, Cooking How-To Videos, Cooking Shows, Cooking with Kimberly, Featured, How To Cook, Vegetarian | 4 comments

Everyone should know how to bake a really good, all-purpose loaf of bread, and a great place to start is with this recipe for Traditional White Bread.

How To Bake Traditional White Bread:

To bake bread of this kind, you will need to use a good, traditional, fresh active dry yeast, which you will allow to bloom in warm water.

The bowl containing your proofing yeast should be kept warm by placing it in a larger bowl containing warm water. With yeast, unless you use it in your baking frequently, it is best to purchase smaller containers of it, as it does expire. If you use old or expired yeast, your result with be disappointing. Fresh yeast will bloom or proof (get frothy) within ten to fifteen minutes. Yeast is a living organism and you need to be sure it’s viable before you add it to your other ingredients.

For bread that will rise even better & give you better success, I would recommend using half all-purpose flour mixed with bread flour. It is also important to bake your bread in a warm, draft-free kitchen & allow your dough to rise in an area protected from drafts. To ensure your loaves release easily from the loaf tins, it is beneficial to lightly grease your tins or line them with parchment paper. Allow the loaves to cool for at least 20 – 25 min before cutting the first slice, and use a sharp bread knife to cut slices using a sawing motion.

Scalding milk is when you heat your milk either on the stove or in the microwave just until it gets hot, but does not boil.

Here is the webisode below, if you need assistance with how to scald milk.

It is my preference to use my mixer with the dough hook attachment to mix my bread, but it is perfectly okay to mix & knead everything by hand, if you don’t have the proper equipment. In fact, I kneaded my bread & dinner roll dough by hand for many years, and so did my mom.

The mixer is more convenient and my hands are not as flexible or strong as they used to be so, so this is how I do it now.

Type: Bread Recipe

Prep Time: 20 min
Rise Time: 55 min – 1 hr 15 min
Bake Time: 26 – 36 min
Yields: one 10″ x 6″loaf + one 5″ x 7″ loaf

The ingredients & instructions are listed below the video for measurements & directions. Please enjoy this webisode of Cooking with Kimberly:

• This is a long show. It was made before I had the editing capabilities I now have…Just warning you.

Ingredients:

• 1 /3 cup warm water
• 2 1/4 tsp yeast – 1 envelope
• 1 tbsp + 2 tbsp sugar
• 4 1/2 – 6 1/2 cups flour
• 1 cup milk
• 1 cup water
• 1 1/2 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tbsp shortening
• 2 tsp salt

Instructions:

1. In bowl, dissolve sugar in warm water, and then sprinkle yeast on top until mixture blooms, or gets frothy. * Tips: Keep covered with a clean cloth. Place yeast bowl into a larger bowl holding warm water until yeast finishes blooming
2. While yeast is proofing, scald the milk and heat water to the same temperature as the milk. * Tip: Milk and water may be combined together only after scalding has taken place.
3. Into the hot milk, add butter, shortening, 2 tbsp sugar, salt and hot water, and stir until all ingredients are dissolved.
4. When the milk mixture has cooled from hot to warm, pour mixture into a bowl containing yeast mixture.
5. Completely mix in your first 4 cups of flour.
6. Adding 1/4 cup at a time, continue to add the mixture between each addition, until the dough is still soft, but not sticky. * Tips: If you add in too much flour, you can always add in a bit more water to soften the dough. If it is still sticky, using caution, add small amounts of flour & a tiny bit more fat too. It is okay if you have flour still left from the original suggested amount. The key is that the dough has to be soft, but not sticky. Keep mixing and/or kneading until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
7. When the dough has reached the ideal consistency, turn it out onto a floured working surface and knead it gently for a few minutes until smooth. Slightly oil or butter the outside surface of the dough, or inside of the mixing bowl.
8. Place the dough back into the mixing bowl to rise. Cover the top with a clean, lint-free tea towel, and then wrap it in a towel to keep the dough warm. In a draft free, warm area, allow dough to rise till double in bulk – about 25 to 35 minutes.
9. Punch dough down & pinch off two pieces of dough, dividing the dough in half and fit the dough into loaf tins. Carefully brush the tops of loaves with a bit of butter. Gently, cut a few slashes across tops of the loaves.
10. Cover with a clean cloth & allow them to rise in a warm, draft-free area until they double in bulk – about 30 to 40 minutes.
11. Bake at 450 degrees for 6 minutes, reduce heat to 350 degrees and bake for another 20 – 30 min or until bread is golden brown.
12. When you remove loaves from the oven, brush again with a little butter to get a nice gloss on top of each loaf.

***

I hope you enjoy this Baking Recipe on Cooking with Kimberly. Until next time…

Be a Champion in Your Kitchen & Eat Deliciously!

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