This is a quick recipe that I use over and over again; because it's so easy, you'll have no trouble memorizing it, and you'll find out that it's more handy than you would have ever believed.
With only this basic dough, you can make pizza crust, flat breads, hamburger buns, regular loaves of bread, raisin bread (my personal favorite), French baguettes, garlic bread... and everything else you can think of. You can probably even make some kind of a sugar/cinnamon mixture and make sticky buns with it. It's up to you to jazz up this recipe as much as you like and create a completely unique creation because somehow, no matter what you add to this dough, the end result tastes perfect.
So, I really recommend that you try out this recipe. Trust me, you won't be disappointed!
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 cups all-purpose flour (you can also use whole-wheat flour or bread flour)
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 cups lukewarm water
- 2 Tbsp instant dry yeast
- 4 Tbsp white sugar
DIRECTIONS:
- Preheat oven at 360° Fahrenheit.
- In a large bowl, mix the flour and salt. (Note: if you're making garlic bread or raisin bread, this is where you add the garlic or raisins.)
- Combine the water, yeast, and sugar; let sit for about 10 minutes until frothy.
- Slowly pour the water mixture into the flour mixture and create the dough. Add extra flour as needed if the dough is too sticky. Knead with your fists for 5 - 7 minutes.
- Hamburgers: Divide the dough into 12 parts, shape into buns and place onto 2 greased baking sheets. Let rise in a warm area for 30 - 40 minutes. (Tip: To rush this process, I cheat and install a normal desk lamp with a heating light bulb right next to the buns.) Bake for 20 minutes and let the buns cool down before slicing.
- Pizza crust: Let dough rise until doubled. Roll on a lightly floured surface and place on a large greased oven-safe pizza plate. Cover with toppings of your choice and bake until edges are golden-brown.
- Flat bread: Let dough rise until doubled. Roll on a lightly floured surface and place on a large greased oven-safe plate. Brush with 1 beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Garlic bread: Finely chop 5 cloves of fresh garlic and add to the flour BEFORE adding the water mixture. Let dough rise until doubled. Roll on a lightly floured surface and place on a large greased oven-safe plate. Brush with 1 beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Regular white bread: Divide the dough into two parts and place into two greased 8" x 4" bread pans. Let dough rise until doubled. Brush with 1 beaten egg and sprinkle with sesame or poppy seeds. Bake for 20 minutes.
- Raisin bread: Use brown sugar instead of white sugar and add 1 cup of soaked raisins to the flour BEFORE adding the water mix. Divide the dough into two parts and place into two greased 8" x 4" bread pans. Let dough rise until doubled. Bake for 20 minutes.
