I believe there are few things more rewarding than baking bread. The dough, the smell, the cracking of the crust, the warm oven. Eat this loaf while it’s still warm with fresh dairy butter and soft dark brown sugar. I love making this bread with fresh yeast. Use 20 grams of fresh instead of the 7 grams instant yeast, if you can get it.
Happy baking!
| Ingredients for the Crusty White Loaf | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| makes 1 bread | ||||
| 500 | g | white wheat (bread) flour | ||
| 275 | g | luke warm water | ||
| 8 | g | (sea) salt (1.4 tsp) | ||
| 7 | g | instant yeast (2 1/4 tsp)/ or 21 grams fresh yeast | ||
| 10 | g | honey (1.5 tsp) | ||
| 20 | g | soft butter | ||
Making the Crusty White Loaf
Note: We use European flour which absorbs a few % less water than American type flour. People using this type of flour should add 3-8 g water to their dough.
Mix flour and salt. Add yeast and honey to the flour mixture and add the the water to make a nice dough (not too dry, not too wet, ever so slightly sticky). If you use fresh yeast, first dissolve it in some of the water before adding it, however if you use instant yeast you can add it directly to the flour. Add the butter when the dough is starting to form a ball. Knead for approximately 10 minutes with a KitchenAid or Kenwood type mixer or about 15 minutes by hand (for you (semi)professional standing mixer owners I would recommend 6 to 7 minutes kneading time).
Cover and let it rest in a warm place for an hour. Gently knock it back, shape and let proof for (at least) one hour. Check regularly. When you think it has risen enough, use your finger to make a small dent in the dough. If the dent remains, the bread is ready to bake, if the indentation disappears, the dough needs more proofing time.
Tip: also check out our advise and tips on the right dough temperature
Bake in a preheated oven 230º C / 445º F for 40 to 45 minutes. Make sure to keep an eye on it during baking. If it browns too quickly you can set the oven at around 200º C but make sure you get a full bake otherwise your bread will not be cooked properly. Try to create some steam in your oven by putting a small metal baking tray on your oven floor and pouring a cup of hot water onto it just before baking. Release some steam by setting your oven door ajar 5 minutes before the bread is ready. That way the chance of getting a crusty crust increases. Slashing the dough with a lame or bread scoring knife in a nice pattern also helps with your oven spring and crust. Leave to cool on a wired rack.
Rachael says
Hey there,
My dough was well risen after both proves. It was perfectly domed and looking ready to bake. When I scored it with a sharp knife, it deflated and now it’s been cooking hasn’t regained its rise. What did I do? Its so deflating? I baked your crusty white loaf (in a such oven).
Thank you
Rachael says
The baked loaf is dense and not airy either. 🙁
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Rachel,
May be asked what flour you used and with what protein content?
If your dough is not ‘strong’ enough and it over-proofs then it will collapse when you score it. It is normal for the dough to deflate a bit. When in a hot oven and with the help of lots of steam it can have an oven-rise and regain volume, but if the conditions are not optimal and your flour is not the right type to build a strong gluten-network, then this can happen.
Rachael says
Hi and thanks for your response. I used bread flour, high protein although I am not sure what percentage. Perhaps it overproved. This has happened to me when I’ve tried sourdough too. Great rise in proofing and testing phases then collapse right before the cooking part!
Thank you
Weekend Bakers says
Maybe try and alter the times a bit, slightly shorter bulk and then keep an eye on it during the final proof, just check its progress every 15 minutes.
Annie says
Amazing Thank you so much for all your help advice and the video I got the perfect loaf of bread love it.
Weekend Bakers says
Thank you Annie, glad it worked so well and you can enjoy the wonderful crust and crumb.
Greetings from Holland,
Marieke & Ed
WKB
Annie says
😋
Sandra Smith says
Absolutely delicious, 1st time bread maker and just made this and 15 minutes out of the oven it’s half gone! My hubby, son and me love it! So easy to make. Thanks for recipe!
Sandra x
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Sandra,
Excellent. I’m afraid you might be hooked for life now, family included 🙂
Wishing you lots of loaves from the Low Countries,
Marieke
WKB
Annie says
I love the recipe and the taste but could you tell me please what I’m doing wrong when I knock it back and put it on the baking tray for the second rising why it ends up quite flat ..?? PS as you can gather I’m new to bread making.
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Annie,
Can you tell us what flour you are using and what the protein content of the flour is? And maybe also check the yeast you are using. Is it a new packet you used or is it maybe past the sell by date?
Annie says
Hi thank you so much for getting back to me I’m using flour and fresh yeast bought from a local bakery so unfortunately I can’t say what the protein factors are as it comes in a clear bag but being a bakery I would assume it would be fresh and flour used in their own bread making.
Weekend Bakers says
Sorry Annie, we assume you got bread flour and not pastry flour from your baker, otherwise it could be that the protein content of the flour is too low to make a good loaf. We presume you know you need to dissolve fresh yeast in (some of) the water before you add it to the other ingredients. Maybe the shaping after the (gentle) knock back is also a factor. You need to create tension and form a good ball shape (or oval). You can look at our short video here: www.weekendbakery.com/posts…g-a-boule/
Make sure the dough is at the right temperature for proofing, so it corresponds with the proofing times, otherwise it might need much longer to get going (if it is colder).
Just give it another try, you will improve with each bake, you will see!
Annie says
Thank you great advice will keep trying
Annie says
Are you meant to bake the bread in the bowl you use for the dough or do you transfer it to a baking tray ??
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Annie,
You bake it ‘free standing’ on a baking tray, not in a bowl.
Nina says
Hi,
Is it possible to not use honey in the recipe and still have the same result or does it have to be substituted for a different ingredient?
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Nina,
You do not need to use honey nor need to substitute it, it will be a perfectly good loaf without it. It is added to give this white loaf just a hint of sweetness.
Paul Wilkis says
New to bread making.
1. My breads tend to have too hard a crust that is never golden. I use a pan with 3 cups of water in a pan in the oven at 450F. Is that took much? Perhaps just spraying the oven with a mist when I put the bread in the oven? Your thoughts?
2. When during the process can I wrap the dough and put in the refrigerator over night or a few hours if I have to go out mid session?
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Paul,
We want to advice you to check out our oven tips to see about the workings of your oven and about the use of steam: www.weekendbakery.com/posts…your-oven/
The best moments for retarding are after the initial dough making (so bulk fermentation in fridge) or after the shaping (so ready loaf in fridge). You need to figure out ( we do not know your recipe) what would be the best amount of fridge time combined with the amount of yeast. Yeast activity does not stop in the fridge, it just slows down.
Enjoy your baking journey!
Martin Turner says
If I wanted to make 2 loaves at the same time would I double all the ingredients and would it work? I read somewhere that you don’t double the amount of yeast but I’m not sure. Thanks
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Martin,
If you want to double or triple the recipe and you stick to the recipe as described, you also stick to doubling or tripling the ingredients, all of them, including the yeast. If you open our dough calculator, you can see what happens when you fill in you want two or three batches instead of one.
Enjoy your baking!
Irene Loh says
Hi,
Thanks again for a wonderful recipe. I got a pack of Manitoba strong white flour and baked this last night. I made the dough and left it in the fridge for 1 st proofing for 10 hours as I needed to go out. Then at night I shaped it and let 2nd proof. My final proofing ended up for almost 2 hours but the wait was worth it! I turned down the oven to 200C after 10 min and baked for total 45 min.
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Irene,
Great to read your method with the retarding was a success. Thank’s for sharing and enjoy the baking!
Marieke
Jan Prinsloo says
I’ve been baking this bread succesfully every day for the last 6 months and my family loves it. Our kids won’t eat any other bread. I have adapted the recipe a little to fit our taste and schedule. I double up the ingredients, thus 1kg of flour. I’ve replaced the honey with “appelstroop”, use fresh yeast “21gram bakkersgist”, and add about 200g sourdough or “zuurdesem” with 100% hydration. I use this much as I always have 300g sourdough in the fridge. The dough is divided up in 3 pieces of roughly 620g. I always kneed the dougj by hand a day before and then store it in 3 containers in the fridge for the first rise. Every afternoon at 16.00 my wife will take a batch out of the fridge, knock it down and form it for a second rise in a spaghetti strainer with floured cloth. 2 hours later it’s ready to hit the preheated dutch oven for it’s 45 minute journey to heavenly flavour. Thank you so much for this website and recipe! Once I have saved up enough I will order some goodies from your website.
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Jan,
Thank you so much for sharing your experience and your method. You truly have made the recipe your own and it sounds wonderful. The apppelstroop we love too. Team work with excellent result. We are sure other bakers will be inspired by your comment too.
Wishing you lots of loaves and happy baking moments.
Marieke & Ed
Susan Brooks says
Please can you add fresh yeast quantities to your recipes or supply a conversion chart measured in grams. I understand that instant yeast, quick dried yeast and block fresh yeast all have different requirements.
I enjoy reading about bread in your articles and look forward to trying the recipes.
Hankyou
Thank you for the info.
Sincerely
Susan
Weekend Bakers says
Hello Susan,
For this recipe you can use 21 grams fresh yeast. We do have handy conversion tools for you with a multi converter that automatically converts things like yeast and temperature for you, See this link: www.weekendbakery.com/cooki…nversions/
Plus also a converter for much used baking ingredients grams to cups et cetera.
Hope this helps you and hope you like the recipe. Happy baking!
Marieke