Fresh Baked White Sandwich Bread

Soft as bread...crispy as toast...tasty either way!

Adapted from allrecipes.com

White Sandwich Bread
www.whispersofthyme.blogspot.com
(Yield: 2 loaves)

Ingredients:
2 cups warm water (115 degrees, Fahrenheit)
1/3 cup sugar, heaping
1 1/2 [3/2] Tablespoons instant yeast
2 teaspoons salt
1/3 cup vegetable oil
6 cups bread flour (start with 4 cups and add up to 2 cups more while kneading)

Directions:
Add warm water and sugar to a large bowl; stir thoroughly. Add yeast and stir thoroughly.
Let mixture sit for 10 minutes until puffy. If not puffy, either water was too hot or too cold, or yeast is dead.

Add salt and oil to yeast mixture. Stir in flour, one cup at a time, (saving some flour to use while kneading) until dough pulls away from sides of bowl. Dump dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead dough until smooth and elastic (approximately 10 minutes). You may not need all 6 cups of flour. Place dough in a greased bowl, and turn dough to coat with oil. 

Cover bowl with clean cloth, and let sit in a warm place until doubled in size, approximately 1 hour. This is the First Rise.

Punch dough down, and dump dough onto lightly floured surface. Knead for several minutes; knead bubbles out of the dough. Divide dough in half. Shape halves into loaves and place in two well-greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Cover with towel and let rise for approximately 30 minutes, or until risen 1-inch over top of pan. 

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 25 to 30 minutes.
How to Tell When Bread is Done