Monday, December 10, 2012

Bread

Bread having risen for about 50 minutes

As long as I'm cutting expansion slits in the top ... they might as will be pretty

Fresh from the oven
Potato bread
12 oz room temperature water
4 cups flour
3/4 cup instant potatoes
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons sugar
3 tablespoons olive oil (extra virgin cold pressed)
1 package dry yeast

Combine dry ingredients
Combine water and oil and add to dry ingredients
Mix to form a sticky dough
Kneed on a floured surface until dough is elastic (about 10 times)
Form into a ball
Let rest in a lightly greased bowl until about double in size (cover with a damp towel) 
Lightly punch down dough and reform into a ball
Preheat oven to 350 degrees 
Let rest on a lightly greased cookie sheet until about double in size (cover with a damp towel)
Bake until golden brown (45 to 55 minutes)
Place bread on a cooling rack and wait until almost cool to the touch. (It's not easy to wait with the smell of warm bread ... and you can imagine the butter melting so quickly into that hot slice of homemade bread ... but it'll be better if you let it rest a little first)