We call this cake bread. Because it tastes like dessert! It’s the very first bread I ever learned to make. It’s so wonderfully easy, even those of you who feel like you stink with yeast can totally do it. True story!
Yield: 2 loaves but easily doubled or tripled
Ingredients:
2 ½ C. Warm Water – warm to the touch tap works great!
1 TBSP Yeast, active dry, not instant
¼ C. Sugar
3 C. Flour
1 TBSP Salt
¼ C. Butter
At high elevation you always want to start with a little flour and increase gradually. In this recipe, you’re looking for a lightly tacky dough, it’s shouldn’t stick to your finger if you tap it. I usually end up adding about 2 more cups of flour, but it really depends on the day.
Instructions:
Pour water into a small mixing bowl, sprinkle in yeast and add 1 TBSP of the sugar. Let yeast dissolve without stirring. Yeast will form a tan coating over water in 5 minutes. Do not let stand long enough to get foamy because it will lose life.
While yeast is dissolving, sift together 3 C. Flour and salt in large mixing bowl. Add butter to flour mixture and cut with pastry blender until resembles crumbs. Add yeast mixture to flour mixture and mix lightly with your hand or a spoon. This is called a sponge. It helps yield a lighter, fluffier loaf of bread.
Cover with plastic wrap and let stand 10-15 minutes.
Here’s where you can get a little funky! I like to mix with my hands! Don’t judge! You can use a stand mixer, but I find that mixing by hand insures that I don’t add too much flour, because I become one with the dough.
You know?
Gradually add more flour to sponge, adding only enough to make a soft dough. Turn onto well floured surface and knead 8-10 minutes, adding flour only as necessary to prevent sticking,
Return dough to bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise one hour or until doubled. Punch down and divide into two portions. Shape into loaves and put in greased loaf pans, let rise for 20-30 minutes depending on how hot your kitchen is.
If they rise too high, they will fall in the oven. A flat failure.
Bake 30-35 minutes at 350. They should be a light golden brown. Rap the top of one of the loaves with your knuckles. When they are done they will sound hollow.
Cool beans right?
Remove loaves from pans to cool on wire racks.
