Baking for One: Basic White Bread rev. 1

  • Mix:
    • 1 c. hot water
    • 1 T. sugar or honey
    • pinch salt
    • 1 T. butter
  • Let cool slightly, then add:
    • about 1/3 to 1/2 packet of yeast
  • Stir in:
    • 2-3 c. flour (start with 2 c. and add more as you knead)

Let rise. Now, this is easier said than done. Usually you can depend on a batch of bread dough retaining enough internal heat to rise nicely as long as you keep it away from drafts. But this small a batch tends to lose heat rapidly, so you probably need to do something extra to keep it warm while rising. Try setting the bowl with the dough into a larger bowl filled with hot water, or if your oven will maintain a "barely warm" temperature, put it in there, keeping it covered with a damp cloth.

When doubled in size, punch down and let rise again. Form into loaves -- it made three small round buns, or it would have made two or three mini loaves.

Preheat oven to 450 F, then reduce to 350 when you put the bread in, and place a small container of water on the rack beside the bread (to keep the crust from drying out too much). Bake for about 30 minutes or until the loaves sound hollow when you tap them.

 

Results

My first conclusion is that the recipe is way too much for a single serving - it needs to be cut in half or a third. My second conclusion is that yeast bread may simply not be a good candidate for the Baking For One project. Cutting down the amount will only increase the problems with maintaining a good temperature for rising. I'll keep trying on this, but I need to come up with some better solution on the rising.

Copyright © 2004 Heather Rose Jones, all rights reserved