| 1 | Scald the milk and dissolve in it the sugar and salt; cool to lukewarm. |
| 2 | In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. |
| 3 | Add the cooled milk, flour, minced onion, and herbs, and stir well with a large, wooden spoon. |
| 4 | When the batter is smooth, cover the bowl with a towel and let the cough rise in a warm place until triple in bulk--about 45 minutes. |
| 5 | Stir down and beat vigorously for a few minutes, then turn into a greased bread pan. |
| 6 | Let it stand in a warm place about 10 minutes before putting it into a preheated, 350°F oven. |
| 7 | Bake about 1 hour. |
| 8 | Notes: i like to substitute oregano for the rosemary because i"m an oregano freak. |
| 9 | I usually add more herbs than it calls for. |
| 10 | I sometimes add dried parsley, just so that there are more little green flecks in the dough. |
| 11 | (that way people know they are supposed to be there, and not just something weird that fell in the dough). |
| 12 | Even though this recipe doesn"t call for it, i knead the dough, because i"m happier with the texture that way. |
| 13 | This bread smells incredible when baking! making bread by hand may seem daunting, but it only took me about 2 or 3 batches to get used to it. |
| 14 | Once you learn how to do it, it"s very rewarding, and doesn"t really take that much time. |
| 15 | It takes several hours, start to finish, but most of that time is not labor-intensive. |
| 16 | I"m glad that people with bread machines are getting the taste of real bread, but it seems to me that they"re missing out a lot of the experience. |
| 17 | I hope you enjoy these! basic bread info: most recipes call for dissolving the yeast in warm water. |
| 18 | Hot water out of the tap can be too warm for this. |
| 19 | The water should be about 100-110°F (37-42c, 310-315k). |
| 20 | If it is too hot, you will kill the yeast and your bread won"t rise. |
| 21 | Test it on your wrist like you would baby formula. |
| 22 | Kneading the dough develops the gluten. |
| 23 | It is also when you add the last bits of flour. |
| 24 | Since flour varies so much in moisture content, the amount of flour you add will be a little different every time. |
| 25 | Books always say to quit kneading when the dough is smooth and satiny. |
| 26 | I usually stop kneading when it doesn"t stick to my hands anymore. |
| 27 | Then i let it rise. |
| 28 | I put a little oil in the bottom of a bowl, put in the dough then turn the dough upside down. |
| 29 | The point of this is to grease the top of your dough so that it doesn"t dry out. |
| 30 | You could spray it with pam instead, or make sure it rises in a fairly humid spot (put a bowl of warm water next to it while rising) . |
| 31 | Then put a dish towel over the bowl and put it in a warm draft-free place. |
| 32 | I use my oven, even though it isn"t that warm. |
| 33 | Do not turn the oven on. |
| 34 | Let the dough rise until doubled (i.e., it"s twice as big as it was before). |
| 35 | Then punch it down, by literally punching your fist into the dough. |
| 36 | This is fun! the dough collapses. |
| 37 | Now, some recipes call for letting the dough rise again. |
| 38 | This gives the bread a lighter texture. |
| 39 | Now you form your loaves and bake it. |
| 40 | Always preheat the oven. |
| 41 | The bread is done when it pulls away from the side of the pan. |
| 42 | Or, you can take it out of the oven, flip it out of the pan, and knock on the bottom. |
| 43 | If it sounds hollow, it"s done. |
| 44 | This is the true baker"s way, but i can never tell if it"s hollow or not. |
| 45 | You can eat bread fresh out of the oven, but it"s easier to cut if you wait until it cools. |
| 46 | It tastes better if you don"t wait, though! |
