The Quest for a Loaf of Bread

My mother did a lot of baking of pies and cakes.  However, she did not bake bread - at least until we got a bread machine.  When bread machines were first available, it was amazing to be able to dump in the ingredients and come back 2-3 hours later and pull fresh-baked bread out of the machine.  Nothing is better than fresh bread still warm from baking.

In my opinion, you don't need a bread machine to make bread from scratch at home.  You do need a good recipe, though.  The one below is based on a "5 ingredient bread" recipe that I came across on Facebook.  I felt that a combination of flours and the addition of vital wheat gluten enhanced the recipe.

This recipe is faster to make than the other bread recipe that I posted.

To make two loaves, double the entire recipe (including the yeast).

Ingredients

• 1C hot water
• 1/3C honey
• 1pkg yeast (2.25t)
• 2C sifted all-purpose flour
• 1/2C oat flour
• 1/2C whole wheat flour
• 4t vital wheat gluten
• 1t salt

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together water and honey.
2. Stir in yeast and let mixture rest for 10 minutes.
3. While yeast mixture is resting, combine flours, vital wheat gluten, and salt together in a separate bowl or the bowl of your Kitchen Aid mixer.
4. One cup at a time, add flour to yeast mixture and continue adding flour until a soft dough forms.
5. Knead for about 5 minutes.
6. Placed dough in an oiled bowl, cover with a towel, and let rise 1 hour (see tips for ideal rising).
7. Punch down dough and knead for 2-3 minutes.
8. Place dough in an oiled loaf pan, cover with a towel, and let rise 1 hour.
9. Bake at 375 degrees for 35 minutes.  The bread is ready when the internal temperature of the loaf is 190-200 degrees.