Baking the night away

Homemade bread:

2 cups warm water

1 TBSP sugar

1 packet active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp)

1 tsp salt

1/4 cup oil

6 cups bread flour

Combine water, sugar, and yeast and let stand ten minutes while yeast activates. Mix flour and salt in large bowl and create a well in the center. Add oil and half the yeast mixture into the well and incorporate flour. Continue adding all the yeast mixture and incorporating all the flour. You should end up with a dough ball that isn't sticky. If it is too dry add 1 TBSP if water at a time. If too wet add 1 TBSP of flour at a time until consistent.

Knead dough to form a soft, stretchy dough and shape into a ball. Oil a bowl and put dough in it covered to rise for an hour. 

Fill an oven-safe casserole dish halfway with water. Put it on a lower rack in the oven and heat to 350.

Knead your bread dough on a lightly floured surface & divide in two. Shape each piece to fit into your oiled bread pans. 

Cover and let rise about thirty minutes until the dough is about an inch above the pan. Bake above steaming water for 30-45 minutes.

Remove and let cool on rack.

I had a bit of time so I made some bagels using THIS RECIPE (from the The Sophisticated Gourmet) to go with my the twenty-five cent cream cheese I picked up at Safeway this week (deal here).

After eating all the homemade bread and bagels you can until your eyes bulge and you wake up from your carb coma think about reusing it with my breadcrumb and crouton recipe.