Fresh Bread in 2 Hours - Recipe

I don’t make fresh bread very often. I often think about being “that mother” who makes everything from scratch, but seriously, who am I kidding?  A loaf of bread from the store (decent bread, no HFCS and plenty of natural fiber), will last for a week of sandwiches.  The loaf that came out of my oven last night lasted for dinner, and a slice of toast each for breakfast.  That’s a lot of work, and, IMHO, just too much bread.

What was happening in my head was that my youngest likes Hawaiian Toast or Ham Pineapple Breakfast Pizza in the morning, and that I could make a loaf of English muffin bread, because I think English muffins are expensive, and kind of dry.  SO, I made this loaf of bread.  To me, it did not taste like English muffin.  But the consistency and taste were perfect, and, better yet, it was easy and ready in less than 2 hours, so I called it 2 Hour Bread. 

How easy is this bread you ask?  Well, I mixed all the dry ingredients in the mixer’s bowl.  Note that I use instant yeast because it mixes with dry ingredients.  If you’re using regular yeast,  you’ll want to proof it with the water and or milk and sugar.  No biggie.  ThenI needed to warm the 1 cup of milk and 1/4 cup of water to 105-115 degrees.  Since my kids prefer skim milk, I went with all milk, and 1:30 in the microwave seemed warm enough (note to self, you really must replace your thermometer).  I let the dough hook on the stand mixer do all the work, and in about 3 minutes there was a lovely ball of dough to be briefly kneaded into roughly the shape of the pan.

And after 45 minutes rise time in the oven (out of the way and benefitting from the warmth of the pilot and oven lights), it had risen beautifully:

30 minutes later we had a hot, crusty loaf of bread.  There was happiness at the dinner table. 

This morning for breakfast it was amazing toast.  Crispy on the outside and still chewy on the inside.  Or, at least my bite was…

If you’re in the mood for fresh bread that is fast, add 2 Hour Bread to your meal plan.  And, I know it’s probably too early to mention, but this will replace rolls at my Thanksgiving table.