November 2, 2023

Plain White Bread

The reason I love Plain White Bread is in the name; it’s so plain. It’s definitely not my favorite for eating straight up, because, tbh, it’s pretty boring, but it makes truly exceptional ingredient bread!

Uses

I like to use this recipe pretty much anywhere you want bread to be a supporting character as opposed to the star of the show. It’s great as breadcrumbs, croutons, french toast and grilled cheese. It just takes on flavor really well.

Foundational Recipe

It’s what I like to think of as a foundational recipe. A foundational recipe is one we use to build other dishes. Like a recipe within a recipe. Chicken stock is another example of this. In this case we will be using Plain White Bread as bread cubes in Dad’s Famous Thanksgiving Stuffing and breadcrumbs in Green Beans and Pea Casserole.

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Variations

There are a lot of ways to make this bread more fun. Replace 100g of the all purpose flour with rye or whole wheat. Change out the honey for maple syrup, agave or regular table sugar. Make it richer by replacing the water with milk. You can also easily make this bread vegan. Switch out the honey for sugar and the butter for oil or vegan butter.

All Purpose vs. Bread Flour

Here in Sweden we don’t really have bread flour and all purpose flour. The flour at the grocery store is just…wheat flour. It seems to be a little stronger than American all purpose and absorbs less water. If you feel like your dough is dry add a couple tablespoons of water and let mix for another 3-5 minutes. The dough should be fairly sticky. It wont come away from the sides of the bowl after its long mix like other doughs will.

Print Recipe

Plain White Bread

Ingredients

500 g water
50 g fresh yeast OR 17g dry yeast
15 g salt
50 g butter
850 g all-purpose flour
20 g honey

Instructions

In a stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, salt, butter, all-purpose flour, and honey.
Mix the ingredients in the stand mixer on medium fast for about 30 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and well combined.
Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap, and let it rise for approximately 35 minutes.
While the dough is rising, butter two loaf pans.
Once the dough has risen, divide it into two equal parts.
Shape each portion of dough into a loaf shape and place them into the prepared loaf pans.
Let the dough rise in the pans until it doubles in size. Cover them again with a damp cloth or plastic wrap so they don’t form a skin.
Let them rise for about 20-30 minutes, depending on the room temperature. They should be peaking over the top of the pan.
Preheat your oven to 375°C (190°F).
Bake the loaves in the preheated oven for 30-40 minutes or until they turn a beautiful golden brown color.
Once the loaves are baked, remove them from the oven and let them cool completely on a wire rack.

Bread Cubes for Stuffing

To make the bread cubes for stuffing allow the bread to cool and set for at least a couple hours, but preferably overnight. This will make them easier to cut through. Slice into about a 1 inch dice and let sit out without being covered, in a single layer, for a day or two or until totally dry.