Bread Machine White Bread (Honey Buttermilk)

This honey buttermilk bread is an excellent bread machine loaf. Bread machines are countertop machines that run on electricity instead of gas like conventional ovens. If you live in a kitchen without an oven, are traveling, or simply want the ease and simplicity of an automated machine, a bread machine is the way to go. While bread machines are versatile, there are also ways that recipes can be tailored to success in these specific products. This recipe is one of them. Honey and buttermilk give this yeast bread great flavour and texture, and it bakes up golden brown. 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.

½ cup water
¾ cup buttermilk, well shaken
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter, softened
3 Tbsp. pure honey
1½ tsp. kosher or sea salt
3 cups bread flour
2 tsp. active dry yeast

Egg Wash:
1 large egg white, mixed with:
2 tsp. water

Garnish:
sesame, poppy or caraway seeds

Preheat an oven to 375°F (190°C/170°C fan, Gas Mark 5).

To Make a Loaf:
Put all ingredients - yeast, flour, salt, buttermilk, butter, honey, and water - in the bread machine in the order suggested by the bread machine manufacturer. Choose basic or white bread and light or medium crust setting.

Use the dough cycle and shape the bread into a loaf.

Place the loaf on a greased baking sheet or in a loaf pan and brush with an egg wash made with 1 large egg white and 2 tsp. of water. If desired, sprinkle the loaf with sesame seeds.

Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the bread sounds hollow when tapped lightly on the bottom. Cool completely before serving.

To Make Rolls:
Put all ingredients - yeast, flour, salt, buttermilk, butter, honey, and water - in the bread machine in the order suggested by the bread machine manufacturer. Choose basic or white bread and light or medium crust setting.

Use the dough cycle.

Then knead again, adding some flour if the dough is sticky.

Shape into rolls and allow to rise until doubled in bulk.

You can use an egg wash and sprinkle with seeds of your choice; sesame, poppy, or caraway.

Bake until lightly browned. Serve warm.

Cook's Notes:

• An egg wash is used to help the seeds stick and also to create a shiny surface.
• Bread Flour vs. All-purpose flour, unbleached In a Bread Machine: Out of bread flour? You probably have a substitute right in the pantry that will work - all-purpose flour, unbleached. There's no need to worry about changing measurements, just use the same amount. The bread won't rise quite as high as it would with the bread flour, or be quite as dense, but it will turn out fine.