Who can resist the smell of a freshly baked loaf?
Not me! (“,)
I’m the 1st one in line to have my piece,
Or buy a loaf of bread just because the bakery smells of it and the bread is still warm,
But when it comes to mine,
Mine is a different story….
I take mine out the oven and leave it to cool for a few hours before I cut it.
HA HA HA HA HA…..
Gotcha! lol
No way am I waiting an hour or two for the bread to cool down so I can have a crisp slice.
Once it’s out of the oven I check if it’s cooked by calling Mr yeast with a special tap and if he replies with a hollow sound, I give everyone a sniff of the freshly baked aroma and then get to slicing (“,)
My slices don’t always come out perfect,
But sometimes they do,
My bread ends up sinking down,
But it is all worth it,
100%
Because the warm fluffy center and crisp buttery crust is worth it!
All the imperfect slices and sunken bread can never compare to eating a loaf of bread straight out of the oven.
Now don’t get me wrong, I have waited for my bread to cool and gotten perfect slices and my bread has held it’s shape.
Once!
When I took these photos and filmed my video below ha ha..
Because I wanted you to see what you can achieve,
But I’m writing this to warn you that the struggle is real, and you will be tempted when your bread comes out the oven so don’t resist,
Cut that slice and take that bite,
Coz it is worth it (“,)
My 
advice for you if you want to impress and feel you can’t resist the temptation is:
- Make two loaves of bread and eat one and leave the other one to cool to impress (“,)
- Arrange for a time that the person you are making it for is with you and your bread is coming out of the oven (“,)
One last thing I will tell you, specifically about this bread,
Is that it is so so easy,
My girls know how to make it and you can see us all making it in the video below. This is a great recipe to make with kids because it is fool proof and they can learn so much about baking and science whilst having fun (“,)
If you have never made bread before this is the perfect one to make.
Just don’t add extra flour when you start kneading!
Your dough will start off sticky, keep at it for a few minutes then test with the back of your hand to see if it is sticky, if it doesn’t stick wash your hands and dry them thoroughly and carry on kneading until your dough is silky smooth.
I used to add flour to stop it sticking to my hands and my bread ended up dry and tough,
So remember no extra flour,
Only for sprinkling on the top (“,)
Ingredients
- 450g strong white bread flour, plus extra for dusting
- 25g butter
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 3/4 teaspoon fast action dried yeast
- 300ml warm water
- Drizzle extra virgin olive oil
- 2 bowls
- Spoon
- Bread tin
- Cling film
- spoon
Instructions
- Add your flour and butter to a bowl and rub them between your fingers to form breadcrumbs
- Add your sugar, salt and yeast and stir them into your buttery flour
- Make a hole in the middle and add your water, then stir everything together until you cant stir anymore
- Pour your dough out onto your work surface and start kneading for 10 minutes. Don't be tempted to add more flour because it will leave your bread dry and tough. Keep kneading even when it is sticky, then once it stops sticking wash your hands and dry them thoroughly and carry on needing until your dough becomes smooth and silky. Check my video below to see my kneading tips
- Roll your dough into a ball and tuck in the edges so they are underneath then place it into an oiled bowl and cover it with cling film and leave it to rise for 2 hours
- Oil your bread loaf tin and dust it with flour. Make sure to tip any extra flour out.
- Knock back your dough for about 3-4 minutes. This is exactly like kneading, and what you did earlier to form your dough. Just knead away making sure to get as much air out as you can so when we leave it to rise again it will rise more evenly
- Shape your dough into a sausage and tuck in all the sides under, then place your dough into your prepared tin, cover it with cling film and leave it to rise somewhere warm for another 2 hours.
- Preheat your oven to 220'C
- Using a sharp knife slice your bread down the middle and sprinkle it with flour
- Bake for 25 minutes. If you want a crisp crust take your bread out of your tin and put it on a baking tray and bake for another 5 minutes
- Tap the base of your bread to see if it is cooked. If it replies with a hollow sound it's ready (",)
- Leave it to cool on a wire rack for about an hour to cool, or get stuck in and enjoy your loaf warm (",)
Notes
Your dough will carry on being sticky as long as your hands are, so test your dough with the back of your hand and if it doesn't stick then you know that it is time to wash and dry your hands and come back to kneading.
Watch the video below to see just how simple it is to make a fresh loaf of bread plus a sandwich that’ll satisfy all your taste buds.
Kali Orexi (“,)
Hi Dimitra , I’m in a America, and I had question about your measurements. I’m not sure about 450g, would that be 3 5/8 cups? And the water 300ml, would that be 1 1/4 cups. 25g is that 2TP. Really want to try this recipe. thank you
Hi Rose, you are correct 450g of flour is 3 5/8 cups. 300ml of water is 1 1/4 cups and 25g butter is around 1.8 tbsp so I’d round up to 2 tbsp. Hope you enjoy making this recipe and the delicious bread. Please let me know how you get on and tag me in any pictures on Instagram with @gg_mix.