Best Ever Bread Loaf

I am giving you my SECRET Bread Loaf Recipe! It took me almost 3 years to figure out how to get the fluffiest, bestest, most versatile bread loaf, and today, i’m sharing it with you. Making bread at home is not only easy, but it’s more cost effective than purchasing bread from the store, what you put in it, is what’s in it! no chemicals, or preservatives. just good wholesome ingredients.

What’s the secret?

The secret to the best bread ever, is 3 simple ingredients. Baking powder, baking soda, and arrowroot powder. The three of these combined created the fluffy, yet sturdy texture of the bread. Without these 3 ingredients, the bread would be dense and tough.

Best Ever Bread Dough Recipe

Ingredients:

Yeast mixture:

1 ⅔ cup war water (100F-110F)

2 ¼ tsp yeast

2 tsp sugar

Flour Mixture:

4 ½ cups all purpose flour

1 tbsp sugar

1 tbsp Arrowroot powder or Corn starch

1 tbsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp salt

2 tbsp room temperature butter, cubed

In a measuring cup or bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. Mix and set in warm, draft free place to ferment for 5-10 minutes, or until frothy.

While the yeast mixture is fermenting, add your dry ingredients (flour, arrowroot powder, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder) in a medium to large bowl. Mix together and set aside.

In the bowl of your bread mixture, add in the yeast mixture and room temp. Butter. Then, add in the flour mixture. Half to start. Mix well, then add the remaining flour mixture ½ cup at a time.

Kneed with dough hook until the dough pulls apart from the sides. At this point, set a timer for 6 minutes. Kneed on medium-low speed (4 for my mixer) until the timer sounds.

Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl. Cover and place bowl in a warm, draft free place (I use bread proof in my oven) for 45 minutes or until doubled in size. 

Prepare your bread loaf pans by spraying them with oil to keep the bread from sticking. After dough has risen, divide in half. This recipe makes 2 loafs. There are 2 ways you can make your bread loafs. 

1. Take your dough half, stretch and shape it to fit your bread loaf pan, and place it in the pan. Super easy.
2. Turn your dough half onto a floured surface, and roll out to a roughly 8”x12”x 0.5” rectangle. Start rolling inward on the 8” side until you reach the end. Then place the dough in your bread pan.

Cover the bread loafs, and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.

After second rise, preheat your oven to 390F. Brush on melted butter to the top of the bread loafs, and bake for 20-25 minutes. They are done when they reach an internal temperature of 190F-200F. When the bread comes out of the oven, the top will be toasted, or hard to the touch. It’s okay! As it cools, the top will soften.

Let the bread rest in the loafs for 5-10 minutes before inverting the pans and dumping out the bread loafs. Allow to cool for another 10 minutes. Then, cut into your bread. 

This bread is perfect for sandwiches, toast, Texas toast, French toast and even bread pudding. It is the best Bread loaf ever!

Printable recipe below!

If you love bread, try my French Loaf Recipe, or my Rosemary Parmesan Bread. I even have a recipe for Croissants.

Best ever Loaf Bread

This is my secret bread loaf recipe. It took me years to figure out how to make it soft and fluffy, and versatile. You're welcome!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 20 minutes mins

rise time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Course Bread

Cuisine American

Servings 2 loafs

Ingredients

  

Yeast mixture:

• 1 ⅔ cup war water 100F-110F
• 2 ¼ tsp yeast
• 2 tsp sugar

Flour Mixture:

• 4 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 tbsp sugar
• 1 tbsp Arrowroot powder or Corn starch
• 1 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tbsp room temperature butter cubed
• 1 tbsp melted butter for brushing

Instructions

 

• In a measuring cup or bowl, combine water, yeast and sugar. Mix and set in warm, draft free place to ferment for 5-10 minutes, or until frothy.
• While the yeast mixture is fermenting, add your dry ingredients (flour, arrowroot powder, salt, sugar, baking soda and baking powder) in a medium to large bowl. Mix together and set aside.
• In the bowl of your bread mixture, add in the yeast mixture and room temp. Butter. Then, add in the flour mixture. Half to start. Mix well, then add the remaining flour mixture ½ cup at a time.
• Kneed with dough hook until the dough pulls apart from the sides. At this point, set a timer for 6 minutes. Kneed on medium-low speed (4 for my mixer) until the timer sounds.
• Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl. Cover and place bowl in a warm, draft free place (I use bread proof in my oven) for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
• Prepare your bread loaf pans by spraying them with oil to keep the bread from sticking. After dough has risen, divide in half. This recipe makes 2 loafs. There are 2 ways you can make your bread loafs.
• a. Take your dough half, stretch and shape it to fit your bread loaf pan, and place it in the pan. Super easy.
• b. Turn your dough half onto a floured surface, and roll out to a roughly 8”x12”x 0.5” rectangle. Start rolling inward on the 8” side until you reach the end. Then place the dough in your bread pan.
• Cover the bread loafs, and allow to rise for 45 minutes or until doubled in size.
• After second rise, preheat your oven to 390F. Brush on melted butter to the top of the bread loafs, and bake for 20-25 minutes. They are done when they reach an internal temperature of 190F-200F. When the bread comes out of the oven, the top will be toasted, or hard to the touch. It’s okay! As it cools, the top will soften.
• Let the bread rest in the loafs for 5-10 minutes before inverting the pans and dumping out the bread loafs. Allow to cool for another 10 minutes. Then, cut into your bread.
• This bread is perfect for sandwiches, toast, Texas toast, French toast and even bread pudding. It is the best Bread loaf ever!

Keyword Bread, Bread Loaf, Sandwich Bread