Easter celebrations are really joyful! Instead of using candies to design the basket, I’ve also used milk chocolate frosting or dyed vanilla frosting to match the handle, then used a fork to gently rake a basket-like woven look into the edges of the cake.
| Prep Time: | 20 mins |
| Cook Time: | 30 mins |
| Additional Time: | 1 hr 40 mins |
| Total Time: | 2 hrs 30 mins |
| Servings: | 20 |
| Yield: | 2 9×5-inch loaves |
Ingredients
- 2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
- 3 tablespoons white sugar
- 2 ½ cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
- 6 ½ cups bread flour
- 3 tablespoons lard, softened
- 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions
- Dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in a large bowl. Stir in 2 cups flour, lard, and salt. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. When the dough comes together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
- Lightly oil a large bowl, then place the dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise in a warm place until doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
- Lightly grease two 9×5-inch loaf pans.
- Deflate the dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Divide the dough into two equal pieces and form into loaves. Place the loaves into the prepared pans, cover with a damp cloth, and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
- Place bread in the preheated oven and lower the temperature to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Bake until the top is golden brown and the bottom of the loaf sounds hollow when tapped, about 30 minutes.
Nutrition Facts
| Calories | 167 kcal |
| Carbohydrate | 30 g |
| Cholesterol | 2 mg |
| Dietary Fiber | 1 g |
| Protein | 5 g |
| Saturated Fat | 1 g |
| Sodium | 351 mg |
| Sugars | 2 g |
| Fat | 3 g |
| Unsaturated Fat | 0 g |
Reviews
Well mine was NOWHERE near as firm coming out of both the mixing bowl and after rising (1.25 hrs). However, once cut in half and molded to resemble a loaf and baked, it was amazing tasting!! Won’t hesitate to learn some tricks while making next time regarding firming the dough up. I did brush some butter for the last few minutes to help brown the top. Also make sure to cool on a wire rack once ready to remove from pan. This is a keeper!
I made no changes to the recipe and used my knead paddle on my kitchenaid mixer which worked very well, then kneaded on the counter for a good 5-6 min. It turned out beautiful and fluffy and delicious!
Came out great, didn’t account for the heatwave, it doubled in size in 14 minutes, but I still waited 30-40 minutes, it was over proofed. Both loaves still came out amazing. They weren’t the prettiest, but taste and texture is all that really matters… right? 😛
Came out really good.
Absolutely love this recipe!!!
Easy recipe and great bread!
Easy instructions easy to make I did a little change up and made it into the cinnamon raisin bread but came out great it taste delicious
I have started baking and making from scratch a lot of my family’s necessities. I’ve been experimenting with several different recipes and so far, I like how this one turned out. I used bacon fat for the lard and used 1 tsp salt since the bacon fat was already salty. The loaves turned out with a really nice puffed top and the flavor was amazing. It makes delicious sandwiches and if there is enough left by Friday, I make french toast for Saturday breakfast.
I read the comments before I bake. I followed the recipe, substituting butter for the lard. I thought too much yeast and salt was suggested, as I don’t use that much for the Italian bread I consistently make, but I was wrong. I divided the loaf into two; With one half, I made the bread in a loaf pan, and with the other half, I divided it to make a cinnamon sugared “baguette” and a raisin one, side by side in a rectangular glass pan. They all turned out beautifully. I want to keep slicing!
Delicious! I used butter because lard is hard to find. So I rendered some myself and will try that next.
I changed it up completely as from experience noted there was way too much salt and sugar and even yeast. I used 4½ cups or 600g bread flour, 7gm yeast, 7gm sugar, 7gm salt, 24gm canola oil and 678gm warm water (33⁰C). 1st rise was about 20-30 minutes so I didn’t over prove it and second rise about 50 minutes. I also find measuring by weight is better than by using cup and spoon measures. Instant dry yeast is better added to flour too rather than to water.
Followed recipe exactly. House smells amazing! Can’t wait to cut into it.
Best recipe! I weigh the flour (200g/cup) and do use crisco instead of lard since I don’t have that on hand. I’ve halved the recipe and make one loaf every week – even substituting 50/50 white/whole wheat flour makes a wonderful loaf.
This bread is awesome!! The recipe was simple and easy to follow especially for someone like me this was the first time I have made bread from scratch!! And it turned out beautiful!! Thanks!!!
Great recipe! Get 2 large loaves with the best flavor.
This tastes great and is perfect for beginners. I did reduce the salt since I substituted salted butter for the lard. Will definitely be making this one again
Good recipe.Crust was good and soft middle . Not as much flavor as I thought it would have. Glad I made it and not bought
This recipe was so simplistic and the results were beyond my expectations. I used my KitchenAid mixer with the dough hook attachment to form the dough and halved the recipe. The instructions were straight-forward and the bread was “store-bought” quality. The only substitution I made was using a whole wheat bread flour. Thanks for sharing your delicious recipe.
It was cool I guess
loved it
Good basic recipe not too salty at all as another reviewer had said. I cut the recipe in half and it made one large loaf. Would make again.