A short story by Ben Jenkins!
Around the time of 8 pm Tuesday, I had the distinct privilege of attending adoration at our local church. Our Lady of Loreto has been my home parish and music performance venue for the past 25 years of my life, and I’m quite attuned to its peak adoration hours. When to go, when not to go…
Anyway,
While sitting in adoration the idea formed in my consciousness that I should indeed, bake some bread! I wanted to bake! How serene, I thought to myself, and the idea grew into an action plan.
To make a long story short because this keyboard battery is dying, I will relate to you my recipe for bread that started as an idea and ended in the oven. If you’ve never baked bread from scratch, it’s wonderful.
Ingredients
- 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
- 2-1/4 cups warm water (110° to 115°)
- 3 tablespoons sugar plus 1/2 teaspoon sugar
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2 tablespoons canola oil
- 6-1/4 to 6-3/4 cups bread flour
Directions
- In a large bowl, dissolve yeast and 1/2 teaspoon sugar in warm water; let stand until bubbles form on surface. Whisk together remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, salt, and 3 cups flour. Stir oil into yeast mixture; pour into flour mixture and beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, to form a soft dough.
- Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 8-10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 to 2 hours.
- Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide dough in half. Shape each into a loaf. Place in 2 greased 9×5-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 to 1-1/2 hours.
- Bake at 375° until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when tapped or has reached an internal temperature of 200°, 30-35 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.
Pro Tip: Be careful not to boil the yeast in water that’s too hot! Warm water is just perfect 🙂
Peace be with you! – Ben
Bravo Ben😍
Amen to that!