Simple Extravagance - Homemade Bread
Hey There! Having a child living away from home and cooking for themselves puts a mama in a deliciously easy recipe sharing frame of mind. Here is a super duper easy bread recipe that makes terrific toast and is excellent with soup. It is an English Muffin Bread. Not only is it super duper easy, it is also superbly yummy. This was evidenced by the fact that I thought Mighty Man of God needed to wipe his nose after coming in from the cold outside and it was only butter from the bread on his face. Colonel Redeemed may have also enjoyed the bread immensely, if one could judge by the crumb on the corner of his mustache.
If cooking for only one, you may want to halve the recipe. Then again, once you eat it still a bit warm with melting butter running down your hand you might not. Yes, in spite of what the recipe says, we cut the bread before it had cooled completely. It smelled so good we couldn't wait. Just for the record, none of us regret doing so. I'm thankful the recipe makes four loaves because one of ours is almost gone.
Here's the reicpe:
English Muffin Bread
- 5 1/2 Cups warm water (110-120 degrees)
- 3 pkg. rapid rise yeast
- 2 Tablespoons salt
- 3 Tablespoons sugar
- 11 Cups flour
Mix all ingredients together then spoon into four well-greased loaf pans. Let rise in pans until dough reaches the top of the pans(this didn't take as long as I thought it would - less than an hour), and bake in 350 degree oven for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown. Brush with melted butter 10 minutes before done. Makes 4 loaves. Bread will be moist at first. Allow to cool completely before cutting. Makes terrific toast. Bake 20 minutes in mini loaf pans.
Gift basket idea: A loaf of this bread tucked in a basket along with a mason jar filled with some sort of soup or soup mix OR a loaf of this bread with a jar of jelly as a hostess gift when invited to someone's home. There are numerous possibilities for a variety of gift-giving situations: housewarming, new baby, get-well, tea time, on and on the list of possibilities goes.
Note: This bread is also perfect for beginner bakers. Mighty Man of God is eight-years-old and had no difficulty whatsoever mixing this recipe up with Mama standing nearby in case she was needed.
In a season noted for its rich, sweet indulgences the simplicity of bread and butter is a comfort indeed. English Muffin bread is the perfect accompaniment to a salad of dark greens, a cup of hot soup, or a mug of hot tea. Simple yet extravagantly good this recipe may become a treasured favorite.
Basking in love's warmth and the smell of homemade bread,
Abundantly Blessed