The Bread Ree Drummond Recipes

WHITE SANDWICH BREAD

Steps:

• Combine the yeast and 2 cups warm water in a mixing bowl and stir to dissolve. Add the butter, sugar and salt. Use a wooden spoon to stir in one-third of the flour until smooth. Add another third of the flour and stir, then turn it out onto a floured board to knead. Knead it over 15 minutes, adding the rest of the flour as you knead. Don't let it get dry too fast; it should stay sticky. Put the dough in a buttered bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let it rise for 1 hour.
• Knead the dough another 5 minutes, place it back in the bowl and let it rise another hour.
• Butter 2 loaf pans. Shape the dough into 2 loaves and transfer them to the prepared pans. Cover and let rise for 45 minutes.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• Bake the loaves until golden brown on top and cooked through, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool.

THE BREAD (REE DRUMMOND/ PIONEER WOMAN)

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Spread one stick of softened butter on each half of the loaf (That's one stick per half loaf. Yes, you read that right. The idea here is that every speck of the surface of the bread needs to be coated.).
• Place on a cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes, or until butter is melted and starting to soak into the bread.
• Crank on broiler and broil bread for 3 to 5 minutes, watching the whole time. Remove when butter has started to brown and blacken. Don't under-broil it! The flavor really kicks in when the butter's color changes (The goal here is to broil the bread to the point that the butter becomes very dark brown and, in just a few areas, begins to burn. When that happens, the flavor shows up. If you don't take it to the next level, it will just be buttered, warm bread. Which is fine, and all...but it's not The Bread).
• Slice into strips and serve immediately (When I serve this, I slice it on a cutting board into relatively thin (because it's so rich) strips).

RUSTIC COUNTRY BREAD WITH HONEY BUTTER

Steps:

• For the bread: Heat the milk to between 110 and 115 degrees F. Dissolve the yeast in the warm milk.
• Pour the milk mixture into the bowl of a stand mixer with a dough hook. Add the sugar, butter and salt and stir to dissolve. Add the rye flour and mix on medium until smooth. Slowly beat in the all-purpose flour. When the dough has come together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Transfer the dough to an oiled bowl and turn to coat the surface. Cover with a towel and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Punch down the dough and place on a lightly floured board. Divide it in 2, knead each piece a couple of times and form them into rounds. Put the rounds on an oiled baking sheet, cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
• Bake until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove to a rack to cool.
• For the honey butter: While the bread is baking, put the butter, honey and just a dash of salt and pepper in a bowl and whisk it together. Scrape out into a ramekin and refrigerate. Remove from the refrigerator about a half hour before using.

BROWN BREAD

Steps:

• Mix together the warm coffee and brown sugar in a small pitcher. Mix in the yeast and set aside for a couple minutes to bloom.
• In the bowl of an electric mixer, mix together the bread flour, whole-wheat flour and cocoa powder. Add in the coffee/yeast mixture, as well as the honey, butter and molasses. With the dough attachment, mix on medium until a ball begins to form, about 2 minutes. Reduce the speed to low and knead for an additional 6 minutes.
• Grease a large bowl with olive oil; put the dough in it and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm spot in the kitchen and let rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Divide the dough in half, form into 2 tight balls and put on a baking sheet. Drizzle the tops with olive oil and cover very loosely with plastic wrap. Allow to rise again for 45 minutes to 1 hour.
• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
• When the dough is ready, remove the plastic wrap. With a serrated knife, cut an X in the top of each round. Carefully transfer the dough to two 10-inch cast-iron skillets. Place both skillets on the center rack of the oven and bake until the crusts are browned and the centers are set, about 30 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing.