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My KitchenAid Stand Mixer, my best friend when I'm baking this White Bread recipe,deserves a Gold Watch or least a decent burial......
Update- March 2023 - she's still working, bless her little KitchenAid motor!
Please note that this is not a paid sponsored post but just a case of giving credit where credit is due!
27 36 years of loyal service in the working world used to get you gold watch or an embellished citation suitable for framing. Not so much in the here and now but if appliances could receive such honors, my faithful KitchenAid Stand Mixer deserves one.This tough little KitchenAid stand mixerhas been my loyal kitchen companion since 1987. My son gave it to me as a Christmas present after we had just finished remodeling our kitchen. No more wimpy motorized hand mixer for this girl!Me and my KitchenAid mixerhaveseen many a Thanksgiving dinner and holiday baking marathon together. We've kneaded bread, made pizza dough, cake batter, cookie dough by the bowlful andevery time I received consistent quality and good service.
My KitchenAid Stand Mixer is my favorite small kitchen appliance...
I love my mixer so much it was my choice for a wedding presentto give my son and his bride, who didn't know how to cook (at all). Iwanted to give them the best start at marital bliss in the kitchen so the KitchenAid was my first choice. So today when I heard a funny grinding noise coming from the motor as it kneaded bread my heart sank. I admit that I havepondered in the last year or so about how much longer she would last (note I think of her as being female - faithful and dependable) knowing that she was a child of the '80s. I dreaded the thought of replacing her. My mind pondered what changes they might have made to the design and settings that I was so used to with a little fear. We were old friends, the KitchenAid and I. I admit there is a real inconsistency in the fact that on one hand I love new technology but I can also find myself resistant to change in things like a stand mixer. I know that I will buy KitchenAid again but I really would like to have the very same mixer with no changes. After all, how can you improve on the perfect product? But I'm sure there have been advancements, and wonderful new attachments and I will have to move on. So after I finish my baking, I will be surfing the KitchenAid website looking for a new love (sort of "appliance eHarmony") hoping to hook up with a new companion for another 25+ year relationship. I'll let you know what I end up deciding on in the future but for now, I'd like to share one of my favorite recipes from the cookbook that came with my mixer - White Bread. This makes a very consistent, tasty product so give it a try and the mixer does all the work. There was a time when I kneaded bread dough by hand ( in the dark ages) but once I connected that dough hook to the mixer, my laborious days of being "kneady" were over.
The KitchenAid stand mixer is not just for making white bread!!
The KitchenAid stand mixer comes with a variety of attachments that make it my most helpful and versatile small appliance in my kitchen. The paddle attachment is great for basic mixing and blending ingredients together with amazing efficiency. The dough hook is my go-to attachment for any recipe that calls for kneading. The whisk makes the fluffiest egg whites and whip cream you could ever want. For this white bread recipe you will use the dough hook. The dough hook attachment lets your KitchenAid mixer do all the work in the bread dough kneading process. Kneading with your KitchenAid mixer for 2 minutes equals 10 -12 minutes of kneading by hand. I need for about 4 minutes with my mixer and I would definitely not knead longer than 6 minutes.
The Best White Bread Recipe Ever!
I've been baking for a lot of years but without a doubt the best bread recipe I have ever found was this one from the cookbook that came with my KitchenAid Mixer so many years ago. The pages of this cookbook are soiled with stains from different ingredients and the pages are getting a little tattered but I will not give it up. I often scan EBay in search of it trying to find a back-up copy. The recipes in it are easy and they always come out right. I have often heard that cooking can be random but that baking is an exact science. Granted that precisely measured ingredients and carefully followed instructions are important but these recipes in this cookbook are so good and so fundamental that it is pretty hard to screw them up. I love this recipe and we must have a loaf count in the 1000’s by now. I have never had a failure. This recipe always turns out the same with consistent texture and crumb. When the smell of yeast bread permeates the Thompson house everyone waits with anticipation. They should make a scented candle called Baking Bread! Thank God the recipe makes 2 loaves because one barely has the chance to cool down before it is devoured. Try this recipe, you’ll love it!
What is the secret to making good white bread?
Using the right yeast is important so pay attention to what the recipe calls for. I am a big fan of active dry yeast which comes in pre-measured packets and jars. I bake so much that I buy it by the jar. Storing the yeast properly is important also. I keep mine in my fridge where it is kept in a cool stable environment. Always proof yeast by mixing it in warm water to be sure its active. Your result , after 5 minutes, should be bubbling and foam on top of the water.
Follow the recipe carefully when making your bread. Measuring accurately is very important. Small variances in the amount of flour, yeast, salt or water can greatly effect the outcome. Temperature of the water or the surroundings can make a big difference also. Too hot can kill the yeast too soon and prevent the needed rising to produce loaves with nice, consistent crumb.
How long should white bread rise for?
Usually recipes ask for the bread dough to double in size. The amount of time required for that to happen can be anywhere from 1 to 3 hours and is dependent on the temperature of the area where the dough is kept during the process, also the moisture in the dough and the ingredients used. It is best to put your dough in a warm, humid place that is free of drafts.
Try these other Wilderness Wife bread recipes:
KitchenAid Honey Oatmeal Bread Recipe
KitchenAid Anadama Bread Recipe
KitchenAid Wheat Bread Recipe
Best Moist Strawberry Rhubarb Bread Recipe
Slow Cooker Multigrain Artisan Bread Recipe
Cranberry Pumpkin Seed Artisan Yeast Bread
We have more homemade bread recipes here at The Wilderness Wife Blog so click here to visit our collection of yeast bread recipes.
KiitchenAid Basic White Bread
With this recipe I have baked so many loaves of bread over 34 years and all had great texture and taste. I never had a failure with this recipe!
- Author: KitchenAid Stand Mixer Cookbook circa 1987
- Prep Time: 2 hours 15 min
- Cook Time: 30 min
- Total Time: 2 hours 45 min
- Yield: 2 loaves 1x
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
Units Scale
- ½ cup milk
- 3 tbs. sugar
- 2 tsp. salt
- 3 tbs. butter
- 2 packets (¼ ounce) of active dry yeast or 4 ½ tsps. of yeast from a jar
- 1 ½ c. warm water (one hundred five to one hundred ten degrees F)
- 5-6 c. all purpose flour
Instructions
- Combine milk, sugar, salt, and butter in small sauce pan. Heat over low heat and stir until butter melts and sugar dissolves. Cool to lukewarm (less than 110 degrees F).
- If using active dry yeast, dissolve yeast in warm water in a warmed mixer bowl and let stand for 10 minutes.
- Add lukewarm milk mixture and yeast/water mixture to 4 ½cups of flour.
- Attach dough hook and turn speed to 2 and mix 1 minute. Continue on Speed2, adding ½ cup of the remaining flour at a time until dough clings to hook and cleans the side of the bowl.
- Knead on Speed 2 for 4 minutes longer or until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Dough will be slightly sticky to the touch.
- Place in a greased bowl, turning the dough to grease the top. Cover, and let rise in a warm place free of drafts, until it doubles in size (about 1 hour).
- Punch dough down and divide in half.
- Shape each half into a loaf and place in greased 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ loaf pans.
- Cover and let rise again in warm, draft free place till doubled. (about 1 hour)
- Bake at 400 degrees F for 30 minutes.
- Remove from pans immediately and let cool on wire racks.
