White Sandwich Bread

I made up this recipe this afternoon in hopes of a nice-textured and delicious flavored white sandwich bread that would hold up for school lunches.  If it works well, I will be modifying this to make a whole wheat version.  As usual, I have added my favorites: flax seed meal and fresh egg to pump up the nutrition.

Results:  Delicious and chewy with a nice texture perfect for sandwiches!

 White Sandwich Bread
Makes 2 loaves

2 teaspoons active-dry yeast
1 cup (8 oz) warm water
2 tablespoons fat of your choice (I used lard I had rendered previously, but my second choice would be coconut oil, however you can use butter or basic cooking oil as well.)
1 cup nonfat greek yogurt
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1 tsp salt (as you can see I cut WAY back on the salt compared to many bread recipes)

1 large egg

7 cups white flour

scant 1/2 cup ground flax seed meal

Pour the water into the bowl of a standing mixer or large mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast over top. Add sugar and stir until combined. Let this stand for 5 minutes until the yeast is dissolved.

 Stir in the milk, sugar, fat, flax, and salt. Stir together and add 4 cups flour gradually until dough is smooth and elastic. 

Add egg and another cup of flour, stir until well blended into a nice dough.  Depending on your altitude and humidity, you may need a little more or less flour.

Knead the dough for 8-10 minutes. I use my Bosch mixer for this, but you can also do it by hand.  

Set dough in a warm location and raise until doubled, usually 45 minutes to an hour depending on the temperature in your kitchen.

Sprinkle a little flour on the counter and turn the dough out on top.   Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

Grease two loaf pans and shape each ball of dough into two loaf shapes.  Cover with a cloth and let raise for another 30 minutes or until doubled again.

Heat the oven to 425° F about halfway through the second rise.

Slash the tops of the loaves with a serrated knife and put them in the oven.  Brush tops with beaten egg white for a shiny artisan look.  

 Immediately turn down the heat to 375°F and bake for 30-35 minutes.