Homemade White Bread

I have never made bread before and wanted to give it a try.
I recommend making this in the morning or early afternoon. I made this around 430pm, and stayed up till midnight!

Today from the The All-New Complete Cooking Light Cookboook,Homemade White Bread [page 87]

1 package of dry yeast (about 2¼ teaspoons)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 2/3 cups warm fat-free milk (100° - 110° F)
2 tablespoons butter, melted
4¾ cups flour, divided [I used all-purpose, but bread flour may be used]
1½ teaspoons salt
Cooking spray

Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm milk in a large bowl. Let it stand for 5 minutes. This is so the casing of the yeast breaks down. Stir in butter.

Add 4¼ cups of flour and salt to yeast mixture; stir until blended (I used a wooden spoon, which is stronger than a spatula). Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time [I just set the rest to the side of my working area and used my hand when I needed some more flour].

Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. [Making sure there are no creases on the top of the dough] Cover and let rise in a warm place (85° F), free from drafts, 1 hour or until double in size. [We set the dough in the oven, covered, and placed a pan of warm water the rack under the dough. We got this from Alton Brown’s Good Eats] … After it has doubled in size, gently press two fingers into dough. If the indention remains, dough has risen enough.

Punch dough down, let rest 5 minutes. Roll into a 14 x 7 – inch rectangle on a floured surface. Roll up rectangle tightly, starting from the short edge, pressing firmly to eliminate any air pockets; pinch seam and ends to seal. Place roll, seam side down, in a 9x5 inch loaf pan coated with cooking spray. Cover and let rise one hour or until double in size.

Preheat oven 350°
Uncover dough. Bake for 45 minutes or until loaf sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pan; cool on a wire rack [it took about 2 hours to cool for us]. After it is cooled, place in a tightly sealed bag [we used a 2 gallon zip lock bag].



It’s not as creamy tasting, this is from Cooking Light.
So, we recommend that the bread to be finish at least within 5 - 6 days.

Next time, I'll be making a variation of Oatmeal Cookies with A-Peel [page 142].