White Bread Loaf

All you bread lovers this post is definitely going to give you a reason to grin and make your guests super proud of you ..Your bound to impress your family...

A simple White Loaf Bread!!

I have been trying various recipes to make a ''purrfect'' loaf but let me tell you something honestly....i have failed miserably not 1, not 2 but almost 6 times....Every time i failed, i gave up..Naturally you feel let down and also waste a lot of money during the trial and error phase..But to my good luck my mother never questioned me , just said...try try you will succeed!!

I was so happy to hear that but also felt they would be thinking why doesn't she go to the local bakery and buy a pound, why does she waste her entire day behind 1 loaf... But i have this ''keeda''(insect) in me that i have to try no matter what...I have to get it right this time!!

So i know that one cannot beat "The Bakery Bread'' but once i made this loaf i was surprised by the looks and followed by the taste....

I got the best ever compliment from my father(who is btw very difficult to please when it comes to homemade bakes) . My house was filled with the aroma of the hot bread which was baking in the oven. First, my brother says i could smell something sweet right outside the house and then, once the bread was left for cooling my father just walks up to my bread and asked what's this? As i had experimented with the bread, i did not use a loaf pan. Instead tried it in  a cake tin with an aluminium glass in the centre so i could cut it into neat slices with the brown edges all around...And so my dad was pretty tempted and asked for a slice of the warm bread  while he was heading out ....While having the slice and walking down, he says...."This bread reminds me of my childhood, the bread i used to have at VB Bakery''........

 I had tears of joy as i couldn't believe what my dad just said...What an accomplishment!! Truly the joy of baking a perfect bread finally happened..And yes i did have a perfect satisfied sleep that night..

So here goes the recipe pls follow the measures religiously..Although i did make a few changes which i will mention in the tips section.

Recipe adapted from Sumod Tom


Ingredients:

• Water or Milk – 303g to 340g lukewarm (1 1/3 to 1 ½ cups), (I used 50:50 water and milk)
• Honey or  Sugar – 32g (2 tbs)
• Instant yeast – 2 1/4 teaspoons
• Salt – 1 3/4 teaspoons
• Butter or Olive Oil – 28g soft (2 tbs)
• Bread flour or All-purpose Flour or Maida – 482g  (4 cups)
• Milk Powder – 35g (1/3 cup)

Method:

Take ¼ cup lukewarm water, add 1 tsp sugar and the instant yeast, mix well and set aside to rise.

Mix the flour, milk powder and salt in a bowl.

In another large bowl mix all the wet ingredients, (except butter).

Add the risen yeast mix to this. Start adding the flour mix, a cup at a time, mixing well with a silicon or plastic scraper (if you do not have a scraper, mix with hand), till you get very wet dough, which starts pulling off from the side of the bowl.

Add butter little at a time to the mix and keep kneading.

Transfer this to a lightly floured work table, knead gently for 10 minutes (lift, spread and throw or stretch and pull), adding little flour at a time (if required only), till you get a very loose, but not sticky dough. (The dough may seem very sticky, but after the above kneading, it will automatically form smooth dough, do not add excess flour, and do not knead hard)

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Grease the dough also.

Cover it, with a wet cloth and let it rise at room temperature (preferably warm place) until it’s doubled in size, 1 to 2 hours.

Gently deflate the dough, to shape the bread loaf, take the dough and just spread into a rectangular shape with a rolling pin. Roll up tightly into a log. Place the bread dough in lightly greased loaf pan with the seam area at bottom.

Cover with a wet cloth, and let the dough rise for 45 to 60 minutes (preferably warm place), till it has doubled.

15 Minutes before the bake, preheat the oven at 200 C.

Just before baking, brush the loaf with little milk or melted butter or egg wash.

Bake in a preheated oven at 200 C, for 40 to 45 minutes for the bread loaf. Remove the bread from the oven, and turn it out onto a rack to cool.

When completely cooled, wrap in plastic, and store at room temperature. Slice the loaf only after cooling.

A few tips:

• Water required may vary, Use the lesser amount in summer or humid climates; the greater amount in winter or drier climates.
• Baking time could vary from different ovens.
• I couldn't source instant yeast, so i used  Active dry yeast. Just follow the same process. Your yeast must rise and form a ring on your glass.
• I used extra honey as i like my bread sweet. 
• You can use salted butter but make sure you use salt as per your taste. 
• The dough may seem very sticky, but after kneading, it will automatically form smooth dough, do not add excess flour, and do not knead hard)
• You can brush with egg wash for getting a golden colour for the crown. Since i don't use eggs, i brushed the risen dough with butter just before baking  and once, when it almost baked for that golden color.
• If the crown of the loaf is getting too much browned, cover with a baking sheet after 25 to 30 minutes.

Do try this and leave me a comment.