Bread Baking Part 1

OK so I know bread isn't cake but I was contemplating what to bake today and thought I'd give bread a go.  It's been ages since I've baked a loaf of bread, like literally about 10 years, so thought I'd give myself a challenge.  And there's none of your fancy breadmakers being used here, just a bowl and lots of elbow grease!!

I thought I'd attempt a basic white loaf and my first task was to scour through a load of bread recipes and find the best one.  In the end I jumbled together the best bits from a range of them so here you go.......

Ingredients
500g strong white bread flour (plus extra for dusting)
1 tsp salt
1 sachet of fast action dried yeast (7g)
350ml warm milk
1 tbsp honey

You'll also need a large loaf tin.

First off combine the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl.

Make a well in the centre of the mixture and add in the honey and milk and combine well.

You should end up with a soggy mixture like this.

Now this is where the hard work comes in!  Drop the soggy dough on a lightly dusted kitchen surface and knead well for 10 minutes.  And it has to be 10 minutes, even if your arms feel like they're about to drop off keep going, this bit is really important.  You can also cheat and use a machine with a dough hook if you're a bit fancy and have this kind of equippment.  Once kneaded it should look like this, non soggy, hurrah!

Shape your dough into your desired shape.  In this case a loaf but you could also make 12 small rolls.  Then put the dough into the loaf tin or if you're making rolls onto a baking sheet.  Cover with oiled cling film and leave somewhere warm (such as an airing cupboard) for 1.5-2 hours to rise.  While the bread is rising heat the oven to 200 degrees C (Gas Mark 6).  Once risen it should end up looking like this.

Dust with some flour or (if you're after a glazed look) brush with some beaten egg.  Then place in the oven for 30 minutes.  After 30 minutes remove from the oven and check the bottom and sides are as golden brown as the top.  To check if the loaf is cooked tap the bottom and it should sound hollow. 

Leave to cool on a wire rack and then devour with loads of butter and jam, soup or whatever you fancy, yum!