Soft Italian Bread

Soft Loaf of Italian Bread.

I used to love the Soft Italian Bread that they sell at the grocery store with the red, white, and green logo. I haven’t bought bread from the store in ages though because I always make my own at home now. This recipe makes soft Italian Bread with a golden crust and reminds me of the store bought kind only 100% better!

When I make this bread recipe I use my bread machine to knead the dough, you can however still make this same recipe using your favorite method of kneading. Some people like to use their stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or they prefer to knead by hand. I have had really good luck using a bread machine for the knead cycle ONLY! You just set the bread machine to the dough cycle, it kneads the dough for you but does not bake it in the bread machine. So simple.

Soft Italian Bread

 

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Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon quick rise yeast
• 1¼ cup warm water
• 3 cups all purpose flour
• 1½ Tablespooons sugar
• ½ Tablespoon (not teaspoon) salt
• 2½ Tablespoons oil

Instructions

1. Grease cookie sheet pan and set aside.
2. Add ingredients to mixing bowl or bread machine in order above.
3. Mix/knead dough using your favorite method (by hand, using a stand mixer with dough hook, or a bread machine). Knead dough for about 10 min. or until it feels smooth & elastic but still a little tacky. You may need to add a little extra flour or water to get the right consistency.
4. Let rise 1 hour.
5. Roll dough into a 9x12" rectangle on a floured surface. Roll it up like a jelly roll the long way. Place on greased cookie sheet with the seam facing down.
6. Make 3 or 4 shallow slits with a knife across the top of the dough.
7. Let rise 30 minutes.
8. Preheat oven to 375 F. degrees.
9. Bake for 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

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