Easy White Bread Recipe

If you knew any Romanian, you’d know we are very particular about our bread. Closer to the French baguette, or the Italian ciabattas in taste, our bread is fluffy, crusty and NOT sweet. When you enter a Romanian bakery, it smells like a dream.

For us, new immigrants back in 2019, getting used to the sweet American bread was a challenge. Let’s say my daughter spent 3 months eating very little bread, as none was OK for her taste buds. Not even Panera bread seemed acceptable for her (and it was sooo expensive).

Finally, my husband found an Italian bakery in the area and started buying from there.

And then .. pandemic hit and we decided that he will not risk getting COVID over bread, so we finally took the bread machine off the shelf and started using it.

Easy White Bread Machine Recipe

I could call it like this, but truth be told I am using the bread machine only to knead and prove the dough. Back in Romania we used the bread machine for the entire process, but here in the US (probably the voltage is the issue), the bread didn’t properly bake.

And we used a pretty good / expensive one as well (Zojirushi BB-CEC20 Home Bakery Supreme 2-Pound-Loaf Breadmaker), but to no avail.

So, the solution we found was to use the bread machine for the first prove and kneading, then get the dough out for a second prove (while the oven is getting hot), then bake in the oven.

The bread smells AMAZING and is incredibly tasty.

Here is how it’s made:

Easy White Bread Ingredients

When it comes to bread, it’s very important to have the right quantities and proportions. My ingredient list is short, but very strict.

• 350 ml warm water
• 560 grams white flour
• 8 grams salt
• 1 pack instant yeast (7 grams)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

I sometimes bake a bigger bread (told you, we’re huge bread eaters) and for the big loaf, I use:

• 525 ml warm water
• 840 grams white flour
• 14 grams salt
• 2 packs instant yeast (14 grams)
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Whatever version you choose, let’s see how to make the bread.

How to Make My Easy White Bread

Bread is usually pretty fiddly. You have to prepare the dough, knead for minutes, then prove, then shape and prove again. Proper bread making is an art in itself and, to be honest, I don’t have time for this 🙂

So, we’re doing it the lazy way, by employing the help of our trusted bread machine to do the heavy lifting kneading.

Here is my simple process:

• put 350 ml of water in a container and microwave for 50 seconds. The water has to be WARM. Not hot to kill the yeast, but warm.
• in the meantime, weigh in the flour.
• put the water (now warm) into the bread machine.
• add the salt
• add the flour (sift once or even twice, to make it fluffier)
• on top of the flour put the yeast and sugar.
• start the dough program (in my case it’s about 1:40 (an hour and 40 minutes).
• as it starts to mix the ingredients, add the olive oil.
• let the bread machine do its thing and, when the dough is done, get the dough out.
• I usually bake it in a non-stick bread loaf pan. You can also bake it free form, whatever works for you.
• start the oven at 450 °F
• as the oven gets hot, put the bread for its second prove in a warm area for 40-50 minutes (or until double the size)
• when proving is done put it in the oven (add a tray with water on the rack below, makes a nicer crust)
• set the timer for 35-40 minutes and see when it’s golden brown.

I like my bread crusty and “tanned”, so I usually leave it for 40 minutes.

Get the bread out and cover with a clean dry kitchen towel to “rest” and cool down.

Enjoy and thank me afterwards 😉

Great read: Why Is Yeast Used to Bake Bread