Basic Bread Recipe Using Dry Active Yeast

There is nothing like that freshly baked bread aroma traveling throughout one's home, not to mention the gratifying feat of achieving the challenge of yeast bread. There is an intimidation toward making yeast breads and maybe that is because one doesn't fully understand the hows and whys of it all and that's what this is all about. A guided explanation of the science behind how yeast breads are made and the why. Whoa science? I have to learn about science to make bread? Well not exactly but there are some interesting facts to the art of bread making, and when I dug deeper into it, I was able to utilize one recipe for many uses like pizza dough, loaf bread, dinner rolls, and hoagie buns just to name a few.

To understand how and why yeast works let's break it down to where it comes from. Yeast is a single cell microorganism in the fungi family, like mushrooms, and besides leavening bread it is also used for molds that ripen blue cheeses, and found in antibiotics as well. Yeast is granulated, dried, and vacuum sealed although it is dormant at this stage it is still "active", so when you purchase yeast it is important to look at the expiration date and know how to store it properly. You can find dry yeast in the baking aisle although I prefer to store in the refrigerator which helps incubate the molecules and provides a more consistent environment rather than the pantry which can fluctuate in unstable temperatures and harm or kill the yeast. Both rapid rise yeast and cake yeast is added right into the dry ingredients and when it is time to add the liquid the temperature is between 10 to 20 degrees higher than active dry yeast. The proofing method is different, it is not required to "double proof" like dry active yeast, for most recipes you knead dough and rest for about 10 minutes then shape dough and let it double in size.

Dry active yeast works a little differently and I prefer to use this type for a couple of reasons. One, it allows me to manipulate the recipe how I want whether it be to split up the dough for multiple uses, if I change my mind in the first rising phase I can do this, which happens a lot. For example, if I am making pizza dough then decide I want some bread sticks as well I can do this. Second, I can accurately test the vitality of my yeast in the activation stage as this is the time that I will know that my yeast is still good and I won't have any rising issues. How you may ask? When working with active dry yeast the first step is to actually activate the yeast, you do this with a combination of a small amount of sugar and warm water 110 F to be exact. How I do this is is add the sugar and a small amount of salt to water that ranges between 115 to 120 degrees F because my yeast is refrigerated it can alter the temperature just enough to stump this process, remember yeast is living and thrives in warm environments. This process takes about 10 to 15 minutes and what you are looking for is the yeast to expand and foam, if it does not do this then you can stop right there because it is no longer "active" or alive. Sugar is an important piece of the puzzle when using the active dry yeast, it is like the food for the yeast. The yeast in return reacts to the sugar, creating C2O which leavens the bread to rise.

This basic bread recipe can be altered by the rising method to create a variety of breads,using "active dry yeast" and I have used this recipe well over a 1000x, so I feel confident that it is a solid recipe and the base dough only requires 5 main ingredients.

Basic Yeast Dough

3 to 31/2 Cups All purpose flour
5 tsp. dry active yeast
2 Tbs. granulated sugar
1.5 tsp kosher salt
1/4 cup oil
1 Cup water 115 to 120 degrees F.

****5 tsp of active dry yeast is equal to 1.5 packets of yeast
***You can use any kind of oil, I use a canola/olive oil blend
**I use a little more yeast than other recipes because I like the punch of flavor it offers, plus if you are using whole wheat flour this amount will help the dough be less dense.

1.) In a large mixing bowl dissolve the sugar and salt in the warm water.
2.) Gently sprinkle yeast over water mixture and set aside for 10 minutes no longer than 15 minutes.
3.) Add oil and 2.5 Cups of flour, with fingers stir together ingredients until it comes together. Add rest of flour and turn out on hard surface and knead for about 6 to 10 minutes. You want the dough to be moist and pliable.
4.) Place ball of dough in a lightly greased bowl large enough to let the dough double in size, cover with dish towel, and place in a warm place and let rise for 1 to 1.5 hours.

Dough rises best in a moist warm environment of 70 degrees to 90 degrees. What I do is place a space heater in my bathroom, leave the door closed, and let it proof. After the first rise or proof of dough you then shape it into your desired end product, loaves, dinner rolls, or free form hoagie rolls and rise for an additional 25 minutes to 30 minutes, this would be the time to preheat the oven. If you are making pizza crust then punch the dough and reform into a ball and let rise again for about the same time, then hand form or roll out pizza crust and add toppings. I bake at the universal baking temperature of 350 degrees F. Bakers' tip: if you want a hard roll like top crust then place an oven proof baking dish on the bottle shelf of the oven when you are preheating, once the bread is ready to put in the oven you are going to need to act fast. Place the bread in the middle rack as usual and with hot tap water pour into the hot empty baking dish, it will sizzle so head caution, and immediately close the oven door. Let the oven steam for about 20 minutes and remove baking dish. The baking time will vary depending on the size of shape you have formed, when you tap the top and it sounds hallow then it is ready to pull out of the oven. Be sure to allow about an hour to two hours to let the bread rest, it is still "cooking" when pulled from the oven.

I have used this recipe as a dough base for cinnamon rolls as well. I just replace the water with milk and increase the sugar to about a half of cup, which is well more than enough to sweeten the bread,especially for my cinnamon paste I use. The next time you have some hankering for home baked bread I hope this inspired the inner Betty Crocker that dwells inside and you try this recipe and method. There is really nothing like fresh baked bread warming our hearts and hearths.