Household Bread
Ingredients
Directions
The book says “a very hot oven”. The 400°F in the steps is the modern equivalent, not the book's own figure.
Make the dough
Dissolve the yeast in cold water.
Stir in tepid water and pour through a sieve onto the flour mixed with salt.
Beat the mixture with your hand or a wooden spoon until well combined.
Gradually knead in the remaining flour until fully incorporated.
Set the dough to rise at about 80°F (27°C) for about 1 hour.
Shape and bake
Flour your work surface and shape the dough into a loaf.
Bake in a hot oven (400°F/200°C) for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to moderate (350°F/175°C) and bake for about 50 minutes.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- German yeast
- Produces carbon dioxide as it ferments, which leavens the dough so it rises.
- Fine flour
- Forms the gluten network through kneading, giving the loaf its structure.
- Water
- Hydrates the flour so gluten can develop and dissolves the yeast for fermentation.
The step that matters
Baking at two temperatures. The initial hot oven drives rapid oven spring and sets the crust. Lowering the heat then lets the interior cook through without the crust over-browning or burning.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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