There is a place for sourdough, freshly milled flour, long ferments, and beautiful artisan loaves. And then there is the bread you make because you look at the simmering soup pot at 2pm and think, warm bread would be awfully nice with dinner.
This is the very bread recipe I’ve responded to that thought with for decades. And for this almost-autumnal time of year, I’d pair this with a cozy pot of Easy Beef Vegetable Soup, or toast a thick slice and slather it with butter and Strawberry Rhubarb Topping.
This easy homemade white bread is soft and reliable, made with ordinary ingredients, and requires no sourdough starter or special planning. It makes a lovely sandwich loaf, wonderful toast, and the sort of warm-from-the-oven bread that barely has time to cool before someone cuts into it.
My husband and I both grew up with homemade bread. Both of our mothers made it, and there is something about a plain loaf like this that still tastes like home to me. This yeasted bread may not be the fashionable bread of the moment, but it remains one of the most useful breads made in our kitchen.
Reasons to Make Basic Yeasted Bread
I love sourdough and bake almost exclusively with freshly milled flour these days, but there is no reason to call a simple loaf of yeasted white bread obsolete in our house. On days I decide in the morning that I want fresh bread with dinner, this is the recipe I reach for.
It is also a very forgiving bread for someone who is just learning. You don’t need special equipment, unusual ingredients, or an active sourdough starter. More importantly, a basic loaf like this gives you a chance to learn bread by feel.
A few reasons I think this recipe earns its place in the kitchen:
- It is quick enough for everyday life. You can decide you want bread in the morning and have fresh loaves on the table later that day.
- The ingredients are basic pantry staples. Flour, yeast, salt and a few other everyday ingredients are all that stand between you and homemade bread.
- It makes a soft, useful loaf. Slice it for sandwiches, toast it for breakfast, or put a warm loaf on the table with plenty of butter.
- It is an excellent bread for beginners. The dough is simple enough that you can pay attention to what is happening rather than fussing over a complicated method.
- It freezes beautifully. I nearly always make two loaves at a time. One can be eaten now and the other put by for later.
Learning to Make Bread by Feel
If you are new to yeasted bread, I would encourage you not to become too concerned with making every loaf exactly the same. Bread dough changes a little with the flour, the weather, the humidity in your kitchen, and even the way you measure.
That is part of learning to make bread.
I generally begin with a little less flour than I think I will need and add more only if the dough asks for it. You can always add flour. Once it is in there, you cannot take it back out.
The goal is a soft dough that you can comfortably handle without loading it with so much flour that the finished loaf becomes heavy and dry. After you make bread a few times, your hands begin to recognize what a good dough feels like. That knowledge is worth far more than trying to force every batch to match an exact number of cups.
My Basic Bread-Making Tips
These are the simple things I pay attention to when making an everyday loaf:
- Use warm liquid, not hot. Milk or water should feel comfortably warm against the inside of your wrist. Too much heat can kill the yeast.
- Start with less flour. Add more as you need it rather than dumping in the full amount and discovering the dough is too stiff.
- Give the dough a warm place to rise. I cover mine with a damp tea towel and set it somewhere comfortably warm and out of drafts.
- Don’t assume more kneading is always better. I depart from normal bread making practice here and knead dough only until I have the soft, workable dough I am looking for. I have never found that a marathon kneading session makes a better everyday loaf, with this basic all-purpose recipe. .
- Use a thermometer if you are unsure whether it is done. The center of the loaf should be around 190° to 210ºF.
- Try to let it cool before slicing. I know, this is a big ask. But the bread is still setting its crumb as it cools. Of course, if your family intends to demolish a warm loaf immediately, I am certainly not going pass judgment or stand in your way.
- Practice with attention. Notice how the dough feels, how long it takes to rise in your kitchen, and what produces the loaf you like best. Bread making becomes much easier once you stop merely following instructions and begin noticing what the dough is telling you.
A Good Recipe to Keep in Rotation
There are breads we make because they are interesting, and breads we make because they are useful. This one falls squarely into the second category.
It is not complicated or precious. It is simply a good homemade loaf that can become sandwiches tomorrow, toast the morning after that, or the warm bread everyone tears into at supper tonight.
And sometimes that is exactly the bread you need.
Easy Homemade White Bread | A Simple Everyday Loaf
Ingredients
Method
- In a small saucepan, heat the butter and maple syrup until butter has melted. Add the milk, heat through until milk is warm (not hot).
- In a large mixing bowl, combine 2 1/2 cups flour, the salt, and yeast. Make a well in the center and add the warmed milk mixture. Mix until the flour is incorporated.
- Continue adding flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing after each addition, until the dough begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes, adding additional flour as needed, until the dough forms a smooth ball. I usually use about 4 cups of flour in total.
- Return the dough to the mixing bowl, cover with a damp towel, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. If it hasn’t doubled after an hour, simply give it more time, checking every 15–20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, generously butter two loaf pans. Glass loaf pans are my preference.
- Once the dough has doubled, turn it onto a lightly floured surface. Using a knife or dough scraper, divide the dough evenly in half.
- Flatten slightly and roll up to form a loaf, pinching the seam. Place seam-side down in the prepared pans. Cover with a damp towel and let rise until doubled, about 30–45 minutes.
- Bake at 350°F for 20–25 minutes, or until done. Brush the tops with melted butter. Cool in the pans for 5 minutes, then turn the loaves onto a cooling rack to cool completely. Enjoy!