Bread Recipe

Here is the recipe to the bread I made in the previous post. I altered the salt to 1Tbsp from 3, I'm not sure if that's the perfect amount, but I'm sure it is better than using 3! This is a great recipe. I made 4 loaves plus a little extra dough went to Selah. The loaves were about the size of a short loaf of french bread from the store. Let me know if any of you make it and how it turns out. Oh man, now I want to go make some!!!

Joanne Harris’ Bread

This recipe is very forgiving and adapts to changes easily. You can use honey in place of some of the sugar, you can use some wheat flour and some white, you can add herbs; don’t be afraid to get creative. It can be mixed by hand of course and then kneaded if you prefer.

3 cups warm water (95-100 degrees)

3 Tbsp yeast

6 Tbsp sugar

Mix together with wire whisk, then let it sit for 10-15 minutes or until yeast starts to bubble.

3 Tbsp oil (must be at room temperature)

1 Tbsp salt (less is okay)

Up to 7 or 8 cups of flour

Add oil, salt and 2 cups of flour to the yeast mixture. Mix with dough hook on low to med speed. Add one cup of flour at a time until the mixture begins to pull away from the sides. Scrape with spatula if necessary. Once dough seems ready (it will pull away from the sides and start to be less sticky), mix for about 30 seconds more. Move dough into a warm greased bowl, cover with a towel and put in a warm place to rise. Rise until double, then punch it down and knead it about 4 turns, or in the mixer about 2 rotations. Divide dough into 3-8 equal parts depending on how many loaves and what size you want. Cut each section into 3 parts and roll into “snakes” and braid them together, tucking and pinching the ends under. Place on baking sheet with a little room between loaves (it is okay if they touch when risen), cover and let rise until double. Bake at 350 until golden brown, about 25 minutes.

Tip: Put oil on your hands when handling the dough so it doesn’t stick to them.