I love bread. It’s the perfect go-to snack for parents of small kids.
Bread is the most ancient food, and according to some historians, it has been around since humans had teeth. It’s hard to believe that bread has come so far in the last few decades. With all its varieties, there are now more than 2,000 types of bread available to buy in store.
But, what if you don’t want to spend all that money on bread? You can make it with straightforward ingredients and then freeze some for later! Trust me when I tell you, making your own is not only easy, but it tastes just like the expensive loaves of bread you buy at the store.
I make a quick bread for each day of the week. This homemade bread recipe is designed to be made in large batches and then sliced into individual pieces that can serve as sandwich buns or toast from morning till night.
The best part about this easy-to-prepare loaf of bread is that it requires minimal ingredients, which frees up time during busy mornings when I’m scrambling to get out the door on time because my kids have all their activities lined up for the day.
Bread recipe ingredients
– One teaspoon of yeast
– Two cups of flour
– Three tablespoons sugar or honey
– Half cup warm water
Bread recipe cooking instructions
Step 1: Mix the Yeast and Sugar
In a large bowl, mix two teaspoons of sugar with one teaspoon of yeast. Stir to dissolve completely before adding half a cup of warm water. Add three tablespoons of flour and stir until you have a sticky wet dough but not too dry. Cover the bowl loosely with plastic wrap for your bread recipe and set it aside for an hour so fermentation can happen naturally in your kitchen! Cover the bowl with a towel to make sure there’s no gas produced from the yeast.
Step 2: Shape the Bread
Once your dough has finished rising and fermenting, it’s time to shape it into a bread loaf. Take flour on your hands and form a ball around the dough to separate two spheres from each other so they can be placed in their respective oven trays or baking sheets. Next, please take one of these balls out of its sphere mound and flatten it down so that you have an oval shape without any creases.
Step 3: Preheat the Oven
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Step 4: Roll out your dough
Roll out the dough until it is about one inch thick, using a rolling pin. Next, take off any excess flour with feathers or by brushing them away with strokes of your hand that are parallel to the surface of your dough. Once you’ve removed all extra flour from around and on top of your loaf, place it upside down onto either a baking sheet or a long, wide oven tray.
Step 5: Add the ingredients
Next, add whatever ingredients you want to your loaf of bread by sprinkling them over the surface and allowing them to seep into any cracks that may have formed during its shaping process.
Step 6: Bake your bread
Lastly, put your bread in the oven and bake it at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for around 30 minutes.
Bread recipe variations
Sourdough bread recipe variation
The sourdough bread is a long process that requires some planning. The dough needs to be fermented for at least 18 hours before being baked. During the fermentation period, there should not be any yeast in your mixture because this could cause problems with the gluten development inside the yeasted texture.
After you have mixed all ingredients together and let them sit overnight, begin preparing your proofing bucket by adding 1 cup of boiling water into 2 cups of flour and placing the lid on the bucket. Baking bread might seem like an easy process, but it is a long and labor-intensive one that takes over 18 hours to finish baking at 250 degrees Fahrenheit.
Garlic bread recipe variation
To make the garlic bread, you will start by adding one clove of minced or pressed garlic into a small bowl. Add olive oil and pinch salt before mixing everything until it is well combined. Add this mixture to your preheated ovenproof skillet, then top with grated Parmesan cheese for about three minutes on each side or until it becomes golden brown, depending on how crispy you like your bread.
Homemade bread recipe with cheese variation
You will make a simple loaf of rustic bread in your oven in this variation. The dough is made from flour and water, then kneaded into a ball, allowed to rest for about an hour before being divided in half. On each piece of dough, add some grated cheddar cheese on top and place the loaves back together again so that it’s one large round shape with cheese inside. Bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for about 20 minutes or until the bread has a brown crust.
Cinnamon bread recipe variation
Start by mixing the yeast, warm water, and sugar in a bowl. Let this mixture sit for about ten minutes until it becomes foamy before adding in 1 cup of flour and baking powder. Add 2 cups more flour to make a dough ball that is not sticky (you should be able to handle without getting hands messy), then knead it on your kitchen countertop or with a hand mixer for 5-7 minutes until elastic enough not to stick together anymore when you press them back together.
Roll the dough into a ball and place it in a greased bowl that has been sprinkled with flour. Then let this rise for an hour or until double in size before cutting it into six pieces and placing them on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray. When you’re done, preheat the oven to 375F degrees and bake bread for 15 minutes at this temperature, then lower the heat to 350F degrees for another 10-15 minutes or until they are golden brown around the edges.
Bread recipe pairing dishes
You can pair homemade bread with a wide variety of dishes. Some of these dishes are not too heavy on the stomach, while others are rich in flavor.
A light, fresh bread is paired best with a lightly spiced soup. A savory dish like roasted chicken or steak would pair well with this lighter style of bread.
Homemade bread is also great paired with soups like potato, squash, or butternut. Bread can also complement just about any cuisine dish.
Bread recipe storage instructions
The dough needs to ferment for about three hours before being baked in the bread maker.
After this, you will need to let the bread cool completely on a cooling rack or parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
Once cooled, place plastic wrap over the top of the loaf and store it at room temperature until used again or frozen for future use.
Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days or freeze.
Ending note
If you have tried a few different recipes and are looking for an easy, quick recipe that tastes great, then this homemade bread is what you should try. This bread is quick and easy, and you can even make it ahead of time. Learn more about this recipe by subscribing to our newsletter on our blog.
