Thread: BREAD!

I make bread fairly often. I am lacking some equipment so I am limited regarding the kind of bread I can make. I would like to make some rustic, artisan bread but that takes a bigger oven, a dutch oven and better flour than I can obtain here.
Today I made two loaves of simple white bread. I used 4 cups of flour so that yields a small loaf. Bigger loaves would require 6 cups of flour. I mix 3 cups of bread flour with 1 cup of seminola flour. I do not really follow a recipe. My technique has evolved and been influenced from various things I have read. I do not use a bread machine. I do it all by hand without any equipment - even though I have a stand mixer I don't like to use it.

Required:

-4 cups bread flour and seminola combination. More for dusting.
-1 tsp dry yeast
-1 tsp salt
-1 cup warm water 100-110c
-butter or shortening for greasing pans

Method:

Whisk yeast into water. Let stand for 10 minutes until bubbly.

Mix flours and salt in a large bowl.

Add yeast and water mixture to flour stirring constantly until it forms a cohesive mass. Using one hand squeeze through the dough mass top to bottom several times adding flour if the dough is too sticky. Keep doing this until it is smooth and not sticky, about 3 or 4 minutes. Form the dough into a ball in the bowl and cover with cling wrap.



After an hour knead the dough by folding it over and pushing it down several times while rotating it. Recover the dough with cling wrap and repeat this process every 20 minutes for a total of three times.

Form the dough into a ball, cover and let proof in a warm place for 1 hour until dough has doubled in size.



Cut the dough into two pieces.



Grease two loaf pans and put one piece in each pan. Cover with cling wrap and allow to proof for 1 hour in a warm place. Dough should roughly double in size.



Cover each loaf with lightly greased aluminum foil.



Bake at 275c for 30 minutes. After 20 minutes remove the foil and bake for about another 15 minutes or until golden brown.



Cool loaves on a wire rack.

The end result is very light with a nice crust.
If any of you experienced bakers have any tips or suggestions I would love to hear them.