Did you know that today is World Bread Day, a celebration of a food that is eaten by nearly every culture in the world?
To celebrate the day, I decided to do what I always do when confronted with difficult baking questions: ask my wife for help. She is the family baker and she pointed me towards her family’s secret bread recipe. Which I will now post on the Internet.
Aunt Rita’s Bread
- 3 3/4 war water (preferrably between 105-115 degrees)
- 1 package yeast
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 10 cups of flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons melted butter
Combine 3/4 cup of water, yeast and sugar in a cup and stir. The yeast should rise to the top in a minute or two.
In a mixing bowl, add the flour and salt. In a separate bowl or measuring cup, combine the remaining water with 3 tablespoons of melted butter. Add the liquid to the flour mixture and mix well.
Continue mixing and adding flour until the dough is elastic. Knead 8-10 minutes. Brush the top with the remaining tablespoon of melted butter and put in a warm place to rise.
When the bread doubles in size, shape into loaves and put into greased loaf pans. Put in a warm place to rise a second time.
When it it has doubled a second time, bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.