Bread Machine White Bread (Country Style)

This simple bread machine white bread recipe results in a soft bread with a pleasant, chewy texture. It's delicious toasted for breakfast or used to make sandwiches, from a classic turkey club to an ultimate grilled cheese. This white bread loaf doesn't have many air holes or bubbles, and the flavour and texture are wonderful. You can make this bread on a rapid or quick cycle, but it can also be made on the regular cycle with a little less yeast (about 2 tsp.). While making bread in a bread machine, make sure to consider:

- The proper way to measure flour using measuring cups is to aerate it first. This is done either by sifting flour, or aerating it by fluffing it up and whisking it well, then spooning it into the measuring cup, then carefully removing any excess flour with a knife. If you just stick that measuring cup in the bag of flour and scoop some out, you will get a lot more flour than what the recipe calls for. Do aerate the flour, or you will end up with dry dough.

- Use bread flour, not regular all-purpose flour. Bread flour contains a higher percentage of gluten than regular all-purpose flour. Using bread flour will produce taller, less dense loaves. If you use all-purpose flour (which has smaller percentage of gluten than bread flour), your loaves will be flatter and denser.

1½ cups water, lukewarm
1 Tbsp. + 1 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
2½ cups all-purpose flour, unbleached
1 cup bread flour
¼ tsp. baking soda
1½ tsp. sugar
1 tsp. sea salt
2½ tsp. bread machine yeast

Add the water and olive oil to the bread pan.

Add both flours, baking soda, sugar and salt. Make a small depression into the flour with your finger and add the dry yeast to the depression. Make sure you do not allow the yeast to come in contact with any liquids.

Insert the bread pan into the bread machine, press it down to lock in place. Close the lid and plug the bread machine in.

Recommended Settings:
Cycle: Quick or Rapid
Loaf: 2 lb
Crust: Medium

When bread is done, remove the bread pan using oven mitts. Turn over the bread pan and shake it to release the loaf. Let the loaf cool on a wire rack for about 30 minutes before slicing.

Makes 1 (2 lb) loaf.

Cook's Notes:

• Resist the temptation to slice the bread right away. The steam trapped by the crust is still baking the bread, inside and releasing that too soon can result in slightly underbaked or crumbly bread.
• The bread will keep for a few days when stored in a bread box or airtight container at room temperature.
• If you have too much bread or want to bake a second loaf, freeze the bread for up to a month.
• If you don't have bread machine yeast, you can use active dry yeast, but it needs to be dissolved in water before being added to the machine.
• When your bread machine has been kneading for a few minutes, check the dough. If it seems too stiff, add a little bit of water and continue checking until it seems soft enough. If too wet, add more flour in small amounts until it seems to be soft yet not sticky.

How to Store Bread Machine Bread:
As with any freshly baked bread, the first step is to let it cool properly before storing. Make sure to remove the bread from the machine as soon as it is ready and place it on a rack to cool; if left inside, it will turn soggy. To store, wrap in aluminum foil or place in a zip-top bag and store in a cool, dark spot or bread box for up to three days. You can also freeze the bread to enjoy later on, just make sure to wrap it well. It is not recommended that bread be stored in the refrigerator because the cool temperatures cause the bread to become stale quicker.

Can I Bake Bread Machine Dough in the Oven?
The bread machine may make bread-making effortless, as it does everything from mixing, kneading, rising, and baking, but the resulting bread often has a tougher crust and denser crumb, and can be misshapen. If you prefer, you can finish the bread in the oven; just keep in mind this will require a little work on your end. Place the bread machine on the "dough only" setting and once the dough has finished the first rise and punched down, remove it from the machine. Then divide, shape, and fold the dough, and place in greased loaf pans. Let it rise a second time and then bake.