Our Favorite Sandwich Bread

By Addie

For sandwiches, toast, and French toast, you just can’t beat a classic American sandwich loaf, with its creamy-white interior, golden crust, and soft, easily sliceable texture. (King Arthur Flour)

Ingredients

• # 3 cups (12 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour
• # 1 cup (8 ounces) warm milk
• # 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick, 1 ounce) butter
• # 2 tablespoons (7/8 ounce) sugar
• # 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• # 2 teaspoons instant yeast

Preparation

Step 1

*For added whole-grain goodness, substitute whole wheat flour (traditional or white whole wheat) for up to half of the all-purpose flour in this recipe.




Directions:

Mixing: In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients and stir till the dough starts to leave the sides of the bowl. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased surface, oil your hands, and knead it for 6 to 8 minutes, or until it begins to become smooth and supple. (You may also knead this dough in an electric mixer or food processor, or in a bread machine set to the dough or manual cycle). Add a bit of additional milk or flour if needed— the dough should be soft, but not sticky.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover, and allow it to rise till puffy though not necessarily doubled in bulk, about 1 hour, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

Shaping: Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled work surface, and shape it into an 8-inch log. Place the log in the lightly greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf pan, cover loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the bread to rise for about 60 minutes, until it’s domed about 1 inch above the edge of the pan. A finger pressed into the dough should leave a mark that rebounds slowly.

Baking: Bake the bread in a preheated 350°F oven for 30 to 35 minutes, until it’s light golden brown.Test it for doneness by removing it from the pan and thumping it on the bottom (it should sound hollow), or by measuring its interior temperature with an instant-read thermometer (it should register 190°F at the center of the loaf). Remove the bread from the oven, and cool it on rack before slicing. Store the bread in a plastic bag at room temperature. Yield: 1 loaf.




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REVIEWS:

This recipe is delicious. I made it for the second time today and because I ran out of milk, I used about 1 cup of whole buttermilk (I doubled the recipe) to round it out to 2 cups milk. I also used canola oil in place of the butter. I used 2 cups white, 2 cups white whole-wheat and 2 cups of rye flour and I used brown sugar in place of the white. It is yummy! I know, there's nothing like totally changing a recipe, but isn't that the beauty of bread?

Easy, delicious, all-around great loaf of bread. I used 50% whole wheat flour. This will become our everyday bread.

This is a great recipe. I proofed my yeast, substituted 1 cup whole wheat, 1/2 cup oat bran for some of the bread flour. Bread rose well in dough bucket and bread pan. Baked at 350 degrees for 40 minute. Excellent taste and crumb texture. Will definitely make this again.

Now my favorite sandwich bread! I heated up the milk and butter (although unwritten) since I assumed to do so based off other recipes. Also, since I was using dry yeast I started it in a cup of warm water for 15. I ended up having to add in a fair amount of additional flour to match what I thought should be the consistency. Rising went very well, and the loaf turned out simply magnificent! Delicious and pleasing to the eyes. Thanks!

I have made this several times now and it always rises and bakes very well. In addition to baking it in a loaf pan I also use it for rolls. The recipe makes 8 largish hamburger type buns, which will just fit on a half sheet pan. After the first try I did reduce the amount of sugar in half and it is better to my taste that way. I have also experimented with the amount of whole wheat flour and I prefer using 1/2 cup white whole wheat and 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour.

This bread is not only easy to make but makes for the best grilled cheese sandwiches and buttered toast, topped with eggs over easy (Hey that's how I like them) you can imagine. This is how white bread was meant to be. I've found it better in my kitchen to let it rise in the bread pan for two hours before baking for a more fluffier loaf. I gave this 4 out of 5 stars only because nothing is perfect. Try this, improve it and share your experience.

I used 2 cups bread flour and 1 cup whole wheat, and put all the ingredients into a bread machine on an automatic dough cycle. Put the dough into a terracotta bread pan, allowed it to rise, and baked. The bread was very soft, simple great bread. Many thanks.