photo courtesy of www.the-baker-chick.com
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I absolutely love to bake. I mean I have three different types of flour in glass jars on my countertop at all times! I grew up in a Southern kitchen and baked goods were certainly the norm around my house. Not surprisingly, I have carried that love of baking into my own home and the smells of freshly baked breads and pastries are often coming from my kitchen. (And my dogs love the smell of freshly baked bread…who would’ve guessed!) So you can only imagine my excitement when I was offered the opportunity to visit to King Arthur Flour’s headquarters in Norwich, VT a couple of weeks ago. In short, it was absolutely amazing. If you love to bake, then you absolutely need to make the pilgrimage to King Arthur Flour. Seriously, their main location in Norwich, Vermont is nicknamed “Camelot.”
I was invited to attend Blog & Bake™, an event where King Arthur Flour brings together a group of bloggers for several days with the primary goal of learning about baking, flour, and Vermont in general. Over the course of the trip, we not only took several classes at the King Arthur Baking Education Center, but we also visited a couple of local farms, tasted a variety of Cabot cheeses, and experienced glass-blowing first hand at Simon Pearce. In all honesty, this was an amazing trip! Not only is Vermont a beautiful state, it is also quite serene. And what’s more, everyone seemed to have an incredible commitment to locally sourced food. The farm-to-table movement is more than just a trendy phrase in Vermont. It’s a way of life. So if you are looking for a summer or fall trip this year, definitely consider Vermont. But enough of my ramblings, let’s get back to baking!
One of the techniques we learned while at King Arthur was how to make a basic Homemade White Sandwich Bread. From start to finish, this is a really simple recipe. The mixing and kneading stage takes maybe 15 minutes, and then it’s time to just let the yeast do all of the work. In fact, if you woke up one morning and wanted to have fresh sandwich bread for lunch, then you could easily pull it off using this recipe! And if you are wondering why you’d ever want to make your own white bread when you can buy its so cheap at the store, then you absolutely need to make this bread first. It tastes so much better than the store-bought stuff! Maybe it’s the quality of King Arthur’s flour. Or it could be the lack of all of those other ingredients that you can’t pronounce. Or maybe its because the baking experts at the Baking Education Center have created an amazing recipe. No matter the reason, this bread will absolutely become a staple in your house!
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 to 3 cups (10 to 12 ounces) King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- 2 tablespoons instant nonfat dry milk (see note)
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 cup (8 ounces) warm water
Instructions
- Measure 1 1/2 cups of the flour into a medium bowl and add the milk powder, sugar, yeast, and salt. Cut the butter into small pieces and stir into the dry ingredients.
- Pour the warm water into the mixture and beat to blend well.
- Stir in the remaining flour gradually until the dough forms a shaggy mass.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface to knead it. Fold the far edge of the dough back over on itself toward you. Press into the dough with the heels of you hands and push away. After each push, rotate the dough 90º. Repeat this process in a rocking motion for about 8 to 10 minutes. If the dough sticks, sprinkle it lightly with flour. The dough should become soft and elastic.
- Allow the dough to rise in a lightly greased bowl, covered with plastic wrap until it has doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
- After the dough has risen, degas it gently. Form the loaf into the desired shape.
- Cover the loaf with plastic wrap and allow to rise until nearly doubled, about 30 minutes.
- Just before baking, slash the top of the loaf if desired. Bake at 375°F for 25 to 40 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.
Notes
If you don't have dry milk in the pantry, then you can substitute warm milk for the warm water and omit the dry milk.
Recipe courtesy of King Arthur Flour.
I also encourage you to visit the sites of the other bloggers who attended Blog & Bake™ this year. If you aren’t already following them, you will absolutely want to start!
- Food Babbles
- The Baker Chick
- Tiny Urban Kitchen
- Foodie with Family
- Adventures in Cooking
- Cooking with Books
- Bake or Break
- Heirloom Meals
- In Erika’s Kitchen
- Nutmeg Nanny
- Healthy Seasonal Recipes
- Ladies Home Journal
I attended Blog & Bake at no charge, but the opinions expressed in this post are entirely my own.
That picture of the mama and baby pig is too cute! What a great moment you captured!
I had so much fun at B&B and I’m really glad I got you meet you there! Isn’t that bread the best?
That bread is incredible! It’s time to make more…and I can’t wait to get in the kitchen and bake. And how perfect is that picture of the pigs? Talk about lucky timing!! Really glad we got to hang out at Blog & Bake.
Ahhhhh fresh baked bread! Yours looks perfect, and Lord I miss that smell. It was so much fun getting to know you there! And I LOVE that shot you got of the piglet and the momma pig, so perfect!!! My heart still melts when I think about the piglets running out from their little tin house to follow her…It took pretty much all of my self control not to sneak one into my purse and smuggle it back to Los Angeles.
I don’t think airport security would have minded one bit if you had a pig in your purse! And I have to give credit to Audra for the pic…she is amazing with the camera!
Do you think if we all band together and ask really sweetly that they’d bring us back for a reunion? I need some more of that pizza, man! What a treat that was! It was so nice to meet you, David. I look forward to reading more of the stuff you were inspired to make after the visit to KAF.
Yes! I think we totally can convince them to bring us back for a reunion. 30 different pizzas spread across the table kind of makes you want to go back…quickly! It was nice meeting you, too…and I love reading all of your new posts. Keep baking!
For my birthday last year my daughters and I signed up for some classes at King Authur. We had a time of our life in enjoying all that we learned. And the people was great. New builds beautiful. It was great fall weather. Would like to return. So if you have a chance to go. Take it. Have baked with there flour for years. From Willis,Tx.
Hey Inez! Yes, King Arthur Flour is an amazing place to visit if you love to bake! I’m glad you were able to make the trip from Texas.
My bread “wrinkled” on the top while cooling. Did I let it proof too long or what? Thanks
Hey Jennifer! Oh no…the wrinkly bread syndrome! I had something similar happen a while back (I don’t think it was on this recipe…but same concept), and I did a bit of research. Several folks said this could happen if the bread is cooled in a drafty spot, so I switched and let my bread cool in the oven with the door cracked. I’m not sure that was the problem, though…I think the real issue is that the bread was slightly underbaked. Then the moisture remaining in the bread “steams” the crust until it wrinkles. My recommendation here is to flip that loaf of bread out onto a cooling rack as soon as you can touch the pan…don’t let the bread cool in the pan. Also, if you want to get really technical, you can check the temperature of the bread to know when it’s done…it should register 185°F. Just a couple of thoughts, but I hope these help! Happy baking, my friend! 🙂