Makes: 1 loaf
Time: About 5 hours, largely unattended
This is your classic loaf of white bread. Subtly sweet and rich with milk, with a perfectly tender and golden crust, it’s better than anything you can buy at the store. To get the dough to rise above the sides of the loaf pan (which is nice for looks but not essential), it helps to do the second rise (Step 4) in a warm place. I usually heat the oven as low as it will go, then turn off the heat, let it cool back down a bit, and let the dough rise in the oven for the first hour, then move the loaf pan on top of the stove for the last 30 minutes while I preheat the oven for baking. For some other go-to sandwich loaves, see the variations that follow.
1. Heat the milk in the microwave or in a pot on the stove until it reaches about 100°F, a little hotter than lukewarm. To mix the dough in a stand mixer (helpful here because it’s less likely than a food processor to overwork the wet dough), combine the flour, salt, yeast, sugar, oil, and milk in the mixer bowl. With a dough hook, mix on medium-low speed until the ingredients are combined, then on medium speed until the dough is tacky and smooth, 8 to 10 minutes.
2. To mix the dough in a food processor, pulse the dry ingredients together a few times to combine, then, with the machine running, add the oil and milk through the feed tube and process until the dough is a well-defined, barely sticky, easy-to-handle ball, about 30 seconds. Turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead (you shouldn’t need much flour) until smooth, 4 or 5 minutes.
3. Grease a large bowl with oil. Shape the dough into a rough ball, put it in the bowl, turn it to coat all over with oil, and cover with plastic wrap. Let rest at room temperature until the dough has doubled in size, 2 hours or more.
4. Press down on the dough to deflate it. Dust your work surface with a little flour, turn the dough out onto the work surface, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest for 15 minutes.
5. Grease a 9 × 5-inch loaf pan with oil. Shape the dough into a sandwich loaf (see page 401) and transfer it to the pan. Loosely cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (see the headnote) until the top of the dough expands to about an inch above the top of the pan, about 1½ hours.
6. Heat the oven to 350°F. Brush or spray the top of the loaf lightly with water, then bake for 45 to 50 minutes, turning once, until the loaf falls easily from the pan and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when you tap it. (The internal temperature will be 200°F.) Remove the loaf from the pan and cool on a rack before slicing.
50-PERCENT WHOLE WHEAT SANDWICH BREAD Substitute half whole wheat flour for half of the white flour. Use honey instead of the sugar; if you’re adding the liquids separately, as you would for the food processor, add the honey with the other liquids. Let the dough rise for at least 2½ hours in Step 2.
BRAN AND OAT SANDWICH BREAD Decrease the flour to 2 cups. Add ½ cup wheat or oat bran and ¾ cup whole wheat flour. Use about ¼ cup honey or maple syrup instead of the sugar (add it with the liquids if using a food processor), and decrease the milk to about 1 cup. Add ¾ cup rolled oats (add them to the stand mixer or knead them in by hand if you used a food processor).
MULTIGRAIN BREAD This denser loaf doesn’t rise as high, but it’s big on flavor and texture: Substitute rye flour and whole wheat flour in whatever proportions you like for up to half the white flour (the less rye or whole wheat you substitute, the fluffier the loaf will be). Use 2 tablespoons honey instead of the sugar; add with the liquids if using a food processor. Knead in ¾ cup of any combination of the following: sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, sesame seeds, rolled oats, chopped nuts, and any cooked grains you might have lying around. Let the dough rise for at least 2½ hours in Step 2 and at least 2 hours in Step 4. After spraying the bread with water in Step 5, sprinkle the top with some seeds and oats (not the nuts or other grains) before baking.
ANADAMA BREAD A New England classic: Substitute ½ cup cornmeal for ½ of the cup flour. (You may also substitute 1 cup whole wheat flour for 1 cup of the white flour.) Replace the sugar with ½ cup molasses, added with the liquids if using a food processor, and use a little less milk.
ENGLISH MUFFINS A revelation and much easier than you think: Use the main recipe or any of the other variations. In Step 4, cut the dough into 12 roughly equal pieces (if you want perfectly sized muffins, use a scale). Using just enough flour to enable you to handle the dough, shape each into a 3- to 4-inch disk. Dust with flour and let rise for 30 to 45 minutes or until puffy. Heat a griddle or large skillet over low heat for about 10 minutes; do not oil it. Sprinkle it with cornmeal, then pan-cook the muffins, a few at a time, turning occasionally, until lightly browned on both sides, about 15 minutes total. Cool on a rack and split in half before toasting.