White Loaf Bread Edna Lewis

By John_Merillat

White Loaf Bread

Scott Peacock and Edna Lewis, The Gift of Southern Cooking

Ingredients

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 2 cups whole milk
• 1 tablespoon butter or lard
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 5 1/2 to 6 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon salt

Preparation

Step 1

Dissolve the yeast in the warm water.
Warm the milk with the butter or lard to dissolve.
Pour the mixture in a large mixing bowl and add the sugar.
Stir well, and cool to lukewarm.
Stir in the yeast into the cooled milk mixture, then add 2 cups of flour and beat well.
Blend in the salt, and stir in by cupfuls enough of the flour to make a moderately soft dough.
Better to be sticky than a stiff dough.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 8 to 10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and satiny and springs back to the touch.
Shape into a ball, and put into a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap and a towel.
Set in a warm place to rise until double in size about 1-1 1/2 hours.
Turn dough out, and gently deflate.
Divide the dough in half, cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
Using a rolling pin to roll each half into a 7 by 13 inch rectangle on a lightly floured surface.
Beginning at the narrow end roll dough while tucking in ends at each roll, gently sealing.
Press down with the side of your hand to seal both ends of the loaves, and tuck underneath the loaf.
Put the formed loaves in a buttered loaf pan, cover them lightly, and let rise until a little more than doubled in size and almost even with the top.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Bake the loaves in the preheated oven for 40 minutes.
To test for doneness, carefully turn the loaves onto a clean surface and tap the bottoms with your fingers.
Fully baked loaves should sound hollow.
Be careful of the loaves browning to quickly, check at around 20 minutes or so, and cover with foil if need be.
Remove from pan and let cool on a wire rack.