Honey White Bread & Strawberry Jam

I love bread! Possibly as much as I love the taste and flavor of bread, I also love the process of making it. The smell of yeast rising, the feel of the dough getting softer as you knead, the joy of watching a loaf rise successfully and then brown beautifully in the oven. Oh...and the smell! The smell of bread baking in  the oven has to be one of the most satisfying smells of all time.


But bread-baking can be tough. I don't have a bread machine, so I can only make loaves by hand (and with the help of my mixer's dough hook attachment). I found this recipe by Ina Garten (of course, she's my favorite for easy, tasty recipes) and it turned out just as promised...just like all of her recipes that I've ever tried. And it made two loaves, which is great, because you can throw one in the freezer until you're ready for it. Which for me wasn't even that long.


Ingredients
1/2 cup warm water (not too hot but warmer than room temperature)
2 packages dry yeast
1 tsp. sugar
1 1/2 cups warm whole milk
6 tbsp. butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 tbsp. honey
2 egg yolks
5-6 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp. salt
1 egg white, lightly whisked


Directions
1. Melt butter and set aside to cool.
2. Place the warmed water in a bowl and add the yeast and sugar (aka yeast food). Stir, and allow to dissolve for 5 minutes.
3. To the bowl of stand- or hand mixer, combine the milk, butter and honey. Add the yeast and mix until just blended.
4. Add the egg yolks, 3 cups of flour and salt. Mix on low speed for  minutes.
5. Then add 2 more cups of flour.
6. Raise to medium speed and add more flour, just until the dough doesn't stick to the sides of the bowl.
*Note: Don't add it too quickly or your dough could get too dry.
7. Knead for 8 minutes on medium speed, add flour as necessary.
8. Lightly flour a surface and dump out the dough. Knead by hand for a minute or so until the dough feels very elastic and smooth.
9. Grease a mixing bowl with butter and place the dough inside, turning it over so butter lightly coats all the sides.
10. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and let rise for one hour, until doubled in volume.
*Note: you want to keep it in a warm place while rising, such as on the top of the refrigerator or on the stove away from any direct air flow.


11. Meanwhile, grease two loaf pans with butter. Set aside.
12. Once the dough is doubled in size, cut the dough in half and roll each into a loaf shape.
13. Place in the prepared loaf pans and cover with a damp towel.
14. Allow to rise for another hour, until each is doubled in volume.

15. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
16. Lightly whisk an egg white and set aside. 
17. Once the dough is ready, brush the top with the egg white and bake the loaves for 40 to 45 minutes until they sound hollow when you knock on them (gently).
18. Remove to wire racks and let cool complete before slicing.

I enjoyed the bread with fresh jam (it goes great with coffee in the morning or as a mid-afternoon snack). Here is Ina's recipe for easy, delicious strawberry jam. You could probably also use raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, apricots, peaches, etc. You get the idea.

Ingredients
2 cups granulated sugar
1 large lemon, zest and juice
1 1/2 pints fresh strawberries, halved (this is approximately 3 cups)


Directions
1. Prepare the strawberries by removing the stems and cutting in half.
*Note: this allows them to break down easily while cooking. You'll still have pieces of strawberry in the jam but you don't want too big a bite!
2. Zest the lemon.
3. Add the sugar, lemon zest and the juice of the lemon into a small saucepan.
4. Stir to combine, then cook over very low heat for 1o minutes until the sugar dissolves.
*Note: the mixture will initially be very crumbly. Just continue to stir occasionally, and eventually it will melt and the sugar will dissolve into the lemon juice.
5. Add the strawberries and cook over low heat for 20 minutes. The mixture will boil slightly, but don't turn it too hot.
*Note: the lemon juice serves as a thickener. It's really cool how these simple ingredients combine.
**Another note: use immediately, or else you have to worry about canning, which is too much work for me! Store in the refrigerator for a couple days...if it lasts that long!