Amish White Bread

Bread. Sliced bread was a fabulous invention. But fresh bread. That's even better! I found a recipe on Daily Deliciousness for Amish White Bread. I've seen it around on blogs before and I figured it'd be fairly easy.

And it is. Sugar, warm water, yeast.

Dissolve the sugar in the water.

Add the yeast and let proof until creamy.

See - it still needs another minute or two.

Bimmer Man was kind of excited for fresh bread. This is his favorite bread.

Ah, there. This is the creaminess that you want.

Add the oil.

Monster has a tendency to stay in the kitchen with me when I cook. He enjoys the smells, I think more than actually cooking. And he's curious.

Add the flour, one cup at a time.

Incorporate well.

Keep adding the flour. It'll get stiff and sticky - that's what you want.

Knead until smooth. It'll take about 10 minutes to get to the bread consistency that you want.

Coat a bowl with oil or cooking spray.

Plop the dough in. Turn it to coat with oil.

Mmm.. silky smooth.

Cover with damp cloth and put in a warm place for 45 minutes.

Here's my secret - our house is so cold. I turn the oven on to 150 degrees and let the warmth from the oven help rise the dough.

Shape into two loaves and bake. The easiest it to flatten the dough and then roll up like a jelly roll.

Mmm... it's so good fresh out of the oven. This is great for sandwiches, a huge chunk with a bowl of soup AND grilled cheese...

Amish White Bread

Recipe courtesy of Mommy's Kitchen (which I saw on Daily Deliciousness)

Ingredients
2 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45degrees C)
1/3 - 2/3 cup white sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour

Directions
In a large bowl, dissolve the sugar in warm water, and then stir in yeast.
Allow to proof until yeast resembles a creamy foam.
Mix salt and oil into the yeast.
Mix in flour one cup at a time.
Knead dough on a lightly floured surface until smooth.
Place in a well oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat.
Cover with a damp cloth.
Allow to rise until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
Punch dough down.
Knead for a few minutes and divide in half.
Shape into loaves, and place into two well oiled 9x5 inch loaf pans.
Allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until dough has risen 1 inch above pans.
Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 30 minutes.

Enjoy!