White Bread

Market Place in Kathmandu, Nepal

Scott Sturman
fliesinyoureyes.com

Ingredients:

Yeast: 2 TBS or 2 packets
Warm water: 3/4 cup
2% Milk: 6 cups
Sugar: 6 TBS
Salt: 2 TBS
Shortening (Crisco): 3 TBS
White All Purpose Flour: 16-18 cups

Directions:

My mother, aunts, and grandmother all made the same delicious white bread which took all day to make. All of them were raised on a ranch in western Nebraska where processed food was not to be found, so everything was made from scratch.

When I left home and started a family, I wanted my kids to enjoy this same bread which tastes particularly good when taken out of the oven. I did not have time to spend a whole day making bread, so I made the process as efficient as possible. I learned to bake by trial and error, but devised a way to successfully make 4 large loaves in four hours.

Put milk, salt, 5 1/2 TBS sugar, and shortening in a large pan on the stove over low heat. Stir occasionally to keep milk from burning on the bottom of the pan. While the milk is heating, put the remaining 1/2 TBS sugar, yeast, and warm water into a bowl. Mix vigorously and allow yeast to rise. Put 16 cups of flour into a large bowl. As soon as the shortening melts in the milk solution, remove from stove. It is unnecessary to scald the milk. If the milk gets this hot, one must wait for it to cool sufficiently.

Add the milk solution to the floor in the large bowl. Mix with large spoon. Check yeast for activity. If bubbles noted, check the temperature of the flour mixture by placing a finger in the dough. It should be warm but not hot. If the dough is too hot it will kill the yeast. Add yeast and continue to mix with large spoon.

Dump the mixture on a floured bread board and knead the bread until it obtains a smooth consistency. Add flour accordingly. The amount of extra flour varies and should be added slowly. It should not be so sticky that it adheres to a non floured bread board or so dense that is does not readily incorporate a thin layer of flour on the bread board. Better to err on the side of having too little flour than too much - flour can always be added but not the other way around. The dough should be stiff, so when a finger is stuck into it and removed the dough slowly begins to fill the indentation. If the indentation does not change then there is too much flour. If it immediately refills when the finger is removed, then there is too little flour.

Warm oven to about 100 F. Apply a generous coat of shortening to a large bowl. Put dough in bowl. Turn dough over to coat the other side. Cover the bowl with a damp dish towel and place in warm oven. Remember! The oven must be off. The preheating helps the dough rise more quickly. Allow dough to double in size. This takes about an hour.

Place dough on floured bread board and cut in four equal portions. Use a rolling pin to flatten each portion. Roll each into a log. Coat bread pans with a layer of Crisco or Pam and place dough in them. I used to use metal pans, but my daughter bought me some ceramic ones which are much superior. Replace bread pans in 100 degree oven. Do not cover. Allow dough to rise to sufficient size, usually 45 -60 minutes. The top of the loaves should crown convexly above the top of the bread pan but not droop. Too much drooping indicates too little flour while insufficient rising after one hour too much flour or ineffective yeast.

Remove bread pans from oven and heat to 400 degrees. Use convection mode if possible. Replace pans in oven. Cooking time is 35 minutes but after 20 minutes check every 5 minutes to insure the top of the bread is not burning. If so, cover with aluminum foil and remove bread at the 35 minute point. Remove bread immediately from pans and place on cooling rack. Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes, slice, and serve with margarine or butter. My kids loved to add a cinnamon and sugar mixture to the steamy bread. After the bread cools, it tastes great when toasted.