The Cascade Kitchen is a student-run food column that brings you budget-friendly recipes and cooking tips. Check back each week for something new to try in the kitchen, or if you want to see your own recipe featured next, get started by reaching out to culture@ufvcascade.ca.
Fresh, homemade bread is one of the universe’s greatest gifts. But, if you’ve never made it before, it can also be one of the universe’s greatest mysteries. What is bread, really? How does it work? And what the hell is yeast?
Fear not, dear reader; allow me to demystify the process. I have the perfect recipe for you to dip your toes into the world of bread making. Metaphorically of course — please keep your feet away from the bread.
This is a simple, straightforward, basic bitch bread. All you need are a few ingredients, a fair bit of free time, and a little bit of patience.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Rise time: 1-2 hours
Cook time: 25-30 minutes
Additional equipment:
- Rectangular bread pan
Ingredients:
- 3-4 cups flour
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 1 tbsp active dry yeast
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp salt
Method:
- In a large bowl, mix water and sugar. The water should be warm to the touch, but not hot.
- Add yeast to the water and stir gently. Let sit for 5-10 minutes to wake up the yeast. It should form a foam on the surface of the water.
- Add the salt, then the flour one cup at a time, mixing slowly until fully incorporated. You may need to mix with your hands; the dough gets very thick.
- Now, here is the sticky part. Depending on your flour of choice, you may need to add more; this is determined by the texture and stickiness of the dough. A little stickiness is normal, but if the dough feels wet and sticks to your hands, it’s likely too wet. We want a consistency that feels moist but firm, and is easy to peel from your hands.
- Time to knead! Spread a dusting of flour on a clean counter, set the dough on it, and knead for about five minutes. The dough should feel relatively smooth when you’re done.
- Place dough into a clean bowl, cover with a towel, and leave to rise until it doubles in size — this should take about one to two hours.
- You will know it is done rising by doing the “poke test.” Poke the dough with your finger. There should be a small indentation in the dough that slowly bounces back, but doesn’t fully fill in.
- Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees fahrenheit.
- Punch down the dough, then place in a greased pan. Cover with a towel and let rest for half an hour.
- Place dough in the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven, let cool, and enjoy!
If this is your first time kneading dough, I’d recommend looking up a video tutorial to see the hand motions.
Elyssa is a BSc student, pursuing studies in Physical Geography while also entertaining her creative side within the visual arts. She is currently the Creative Director here with the Cascade. Having previously been an Illustrator, Production Assistant, and Production Manager, she's been around a while. In her free time she can often be found knitting and watching reruns of outdated shows from the 80s.
