Bread

Bread is a love language. But what I don’t love is the list of ingredients in bread that causes inflammation, digestive issues, and hormone imbalances.

Ingredients

1 cup (240ml) water, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)

  • 1/4 cup (60ml) whole milk, warmed to about 110°F (43°C)

  • 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast (1 standard packet)

  • 2 Tablespoons (25g) granulated sugar

  • 4 Tablespoons (1/4 cup; 56g) room temperature unsalted butter,

  • 1 and 1/2 teaspoons salt

  • 3 and 1/3 cups (about 420–430g) all-purpose flour or bread flour , plus more as needed

Directions

  1. Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm water, warm milk, yeast, and sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes.

  2. Add the butter, salt, and 1 cup flour. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds, scrape down the sides of the bowl with a silicone spatula, then add another cup of flour. Beat on medium speed until relatively incorporated (there may still be chunks of butter). Add the remaining flour and beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 2 minutes. *If you do not own a mixer, you can mix this dough with a large wooden spoon or silicone spatula. It will take a bit of arm muscle!*

  3. Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 5–8 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5–8 full minutes. If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need; you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise.

  4. 1st Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with olive oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rise in a relatively warm environment for 1-2 hours or until double in size.

  5. Grease a 9X5 loaf pan

  6. Shape the bread: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release the air. Lightly flour a work surface, your hands, and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a large rectangle, about 8×15 inches. It does not have to be perfect—in fact, it will probably be rounded on the edges. That’s ok! Roll it up into an 8 inch log and place in the prepared loaf pan.

  7. 2nd Rise: Cover shaped loaf with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rise until it’s about 1 inch above the top of the loaf pan, about 1 hour. (See video and photo above for a visual.)

  8. Adjust oven rack to a lower position and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). (It’s best to bake the bread towards the bottom of the oven so the top doesn’t burn.)

  9. Bake the bread: Bake for 32-36 minutes or until golden brown on top. If you notice the top browning too quickly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil.

  10. Cover leftover bread tightly and store at room temperature for 6 days or in the refrigerator for up to 10 days.

Sandwich Bread

Ingredients

  • ¼ cup (50 g) active starter

  • 1 ⅓ cups + 2 tablespoons (350 g) water

  • 2 teaspoons (10 g) fine sea salt

  • 4 cups + 2 tablespoons (500 g) bread flour

Feed your Sourdough Starter

  • 12 hours before you plan to mix the dough, add the ingredients to make ¼ cup (50 g) of active sourdough starter to a clean jar. Stir until combined, loosely cover the jar and let the starter rise at room temperature.

    (The ingredients will create a total of 60 g active starter but some of it will stick to the sides of the jar during the transfer, so we are making a little more than needed.) 

    The sourdough starter is ready to use when it has doubled in size and there are plenty of bubbles on the surface and sides of the jar.

Sourdough Loaf

Directions

  • Mix the dough: Transfer 50 g of the active starter and 350 g water into a large mixing bowl. Stir to distribute the starter evenly. Add 500 g bread flour and 10 g sea salt to the bowl and use a stiff spatula or your hands to work the ingredients together until it forms a shaggy mass and there are no dry bits of flour left in the bowl.

    Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for one hour at room temperature.

  • Stretch and Fold: Wet your hand with a little water to prevent sticking. Pick up the dough on one side and stretch it up and over itself. Turn the bowl a quarter turn and repeat this step until you have turned the bowl a full circle. The dough should form into a tight ball.

    Cover the bowl and let the dough rest for 30 minutes.

    Repeat the stretch and fold process one more time to help build volume in the final loaf.

  • Bulk Fermentation: Cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 7-10 hours on your kitchen counter. The dough will have risen by about 50-75%, not doubled, when it is ready to shape.

    (If the dough has doubled in size and/or is hard to shape, it may be over-proofed. Reduce the rising time on your next bake.)

  • Shape and Second Rise: Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Shape the dough into a ball by pulling 4 sides of the dough into the middle of itself. Turn the dough over so that it is seam-side down.

    Use your hands to gently cup the dough, pulling and twisting towards yourself until it forms a tight skin on the outside.

    Center the dough onto a piece of parchment paper, seam-side down. Use the parchment paper like a sling to lift the dough up and transfer it into a medium-sized bowl.

    Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let the dough rest at room temperature for 1-2 hours.

  • Score and Bake: 30 minutes before you're ready to bake, preheat the oven, with the dutch oven inside, to 450°F (232°C).

    Score the top of the dough with a razor or a sharp knife. Once again, use the parchment paper as a sling to lift the dough up and transfer it into the dutch oven.

    Place the lid on the dutch oven, return it to the oven and bake for 20 minutes. Remove the lid and bake an additional 25-30 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

    (The internal temperature of the bread should be around 205-210°F (96-99°C) using a digital food thermometer.)

  • Cool: Transfer the baked bread to a cooling rack for 1-2 hours before slicing. The bread will continue to cook inside during this time. If you slice into it too soon, it will result in a gummy loaf.

  • Store: Keep the bread at room temperature, in a bread bag, wrapped in a kitchen towel or beeswax wrap. You can also store the bread, cut-side down, on a cutting board with a cake-stand top covering the bread. Do not refrigerate.

    Freeze full loaves or individual slices wrapped tightly in plastic wrap and inserted into a freezer-safe container for up to 3 months.