4 recipes to kickstart your Big Month of Bread
Bake with us and learn new skills along the way.
Welcome to The Big Month of Bread. Whether you’re a beginner or just looking to get out of a baking rut, we have a bread baking plan for you that levels up each week. Grab a bag of bread flour, because we've got breads to make, include supreme sandwich breads, bakery-quality rolls, and feathery (chocolate!) milk bread.
But before we get to the baking, a little Bread Flour 101. Bread flour has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour (12.7% to all-purpose's 11.7%). That extra protein means it is capable of developing a stronger gluten network, creating elastic bread doughs that result in high-rising loaves. So if you’re going to put the effort into making homemade bread, it’s wise to use bread flour for the best end result. (Learn more: What is bread flour?)
Week 1: Start out with this soft and simple sandwich bread
First, let’s go back to the basics. It doesn’t get easier than this oatmeal bread recipe, which was once printed on the back of every one of our bread flour bags and calls for a handful of pantry staples. It’s the ideal recipe to get comfortable with key techniques: working with yeast, kneading to develop strength (don’t be afraid of sticky dough!), proofing until the dough is well risen, and shaping dough. Once you’ve made your own sandwich bread, there’s no going back to store-bought: This tender, high-rising bread has oats both in the dough and on top of the loaf, and it’s lightly sweet, soft, and squishy, making it the perfect lunchbox candidate.
Once you’ve mastered this bread, try these other simple bread recipes: The Easiest Loaf of Bread You’ll Ever Bake, Quick and Easy Flatbreads, Multigrain Sunflower Bread
Week 2: Level up with this crusty sourdough bread
If you’ve mastered yeasted sandwich breads and are looking for a new challenge, it’s time to create your sourdough starter — or give that dormant one in the back of your fridge a good feeding. Sourdough starter is a natural leavener that will help your breads rise just like commercial yeast, albeit at a slower pace. Though, the tradeoff is that sourdough starter adds a nuanced, fermented flavor to breads that yeast cannot replicate. (If you're really looking to kick off your artisan baking, start with our Sourdough for Beginners On-Demand class.)
Once your starter is active and bubbly, it’s ready to bake with. If you’ve been intimidated by sourdough, this recipe is the perfect entry-level bread: Rather than kneading to develop the gluten, this recipe relies on dough folds and long rest periods to build strength, meaning it’s a mostly hands-off bread. This loaf will also give you a chance to try out some new bread baking skills: You can practice scoring with a lame — slashing the surface allows the dough to expand evenly (rather than burst) while baking — and experiment with baking a loaf in a covered baker, which will give you a very crispy crust.
Don’t have the time (or patience!) for a sourdough starter, but still want to make crusty artisan-style bread? Try these recipes: Absolutely No Knead Crusty Chewy Bread, No Knead Everything Bread, French-Style Country Bread
Week 3: Tackle a project bake with these impressive, bakery-quality rolls
It’s week 3, and by now you’ve probably been bitten by the bread baking bug. Looking for a new challenge? It’s time to conquer a project bake like Dutch Crunch Rolls, a Bay Area staple. These sandwich rolls are soft and pillowy on the inside but are shatteringly crisp (and slightly sweet) on the outside thanks to a coating of rice flour and sugar. The basic techniques of kneading, proofing, and shaping are still at play here, but there are a few extra elements, like preshaping and brushing on the crispy top coating to bring this bread over-the-top. If you thought your oatmeal bread made good sandwiches, just wait until you try one built on a Dutch Crunch Rolls.
Once you’ve mastered this bread, try these show-stopping recipes: Pan de Cristal, Conchas, Pineapple Buns (Bolo Bao)
Week 4: Finish off the month with a decadent enriched bread
For your final recipe, celebrate by tackling milk bread. This loaf is made with an enriched dough, meaning it calls for sugar, milk, eggs, and butter — all of which contribute to its feathery crumb. A distinctive feature of milk bread is also the use of tangzhong, a technique in which a small portion of flour, milk, and water is precooked into a soft paste that is then added to the rest of the dough mixture. The addition of tangzhong helps the loaf maintain freshness and moisture for several days (if it lasts that long).
This version from our Big Book of Bread has cocoa in the dough and is studded with chocolate chips, but you could also try a plain version, a swirled version, or even one flavored and colored with matcha. It’s fabulous spread with marmalade and butter, and we also love it for a maximalist French toast — a fitting reward for a month of bread baking.
Once you’ve mastered this bread, try these enriched bread recipes: Tiger Milk Bread, Tahini Scallion Rolls, Almond Croissant Milk Bread
Ready to bake bread? Make sure you’re stocked up with everything you need.
Cover photo by Patrick Marinello; food styling by Lydia Fournier.
Editor’s Note: This blog post has been updated since its original publication.
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