Honey White Bread

Yummy Honey White Bread

I use both a bread machine and the oven.  Reason? I hate the paddles baking into the loaf and making a weird spot in the middle. So I mix, knead and rise in the machine then switch to regular bread pan let rise again and cook in the oven. The good thing here is the cheap $50 machines work just as well as the high priced units.

Ingredients
4 cups flour (bread flour preferably)
1 1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons fast rise bread yeast
3/4 cup hot water
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 tablespoons olive oil (or butter if preferred)

Take 3/4 cup hot water and tablespoon honey and mix, the hot water dissolves the honey off the spoon, once basically clean, take the spoon and do a second honey full.
Take olive oil and put in bread machine bowl/pan. Swish it around and add water-honey mix, egg, and milk. Pour flour on top and and sprinkle salt, then yeast over. Put in bread machine and set to "dough" this should take about an hour to hour and one half and be kneaded well and first rise.

Dough in machine before 1st rise and then in pans to for 2nd rise

Remove after machine is done and put in regular lightly grease bread pan. Place in warm spot and let rise.  I put it in an oven that I get up to 120 degrees then shut off and let sit.. For a few minutes.  Let cool a bit before putting bread in to rise. Throw in a small glass or other container of steamy water with the bread dough. Let rise for approximately 20 mins or until properly risen. Remove and preheat oven to 350.

Bread risen and oven preheated to 350º ready to cook

Cook the bread for 20-25 minutes until golden brown on top.  Remove From oven and let cool. If you like a softer crust then brush the loaf lightly with milk, this will keep the crust from getting too thick and hard. Let cool and Eat, Oh so yummy!

brushing with milk to keep crust softer