Honey French Bread

Good white bread.  Love it.

Servings: One loaf

Ingredients:

1 ¼ C. hottest tap water

1 ½ T. honey

1 ½ T. olive oil

1 t. salt

1 ½ t. sugar

422 G. bread flour

2 ½ t. yeast

Instructions:

1.  Place all ingredients in the order listed in bowl of stand mixer fitted with dough hook.  Keep salt and yeast apart as salt can kill yeast.

2.  Turn mixer on to med. low and mix (knead) for 7 minutes.  Dough should stick together, pull away from the side of the bowl and be slightly sticky. If it is too wet, add more bread flour, one tablespoon at a time until it pulls away from the bowl.

3.  Turn dough out onto floured surface and knead by hand to shape dough into a ball.

4.  Place ball in a large, greased bowl that will allow the dough to rise to double its size, cover loosely with greased plastic wrap, then place bowl in a warm, draft-free spot to rise, approximately 1 hour, until double size.

5.  Pour dough onto floured surface and shape into loaf.  Place dough into greased loaf pan, cover with the plastic wrap again, and put in warm, draft free spot to rise again to double, approximately ½ hour.

6.  15 minutes prior to completion of 2nd rise, preheat oven to 375 degrees.

7.  When 2nd rise is complete, place loaf pan with dough into preheated oven and bake for 30 minutes, until golden brown.

8.  Remove from oven and allow to cool in pan for 5 minutes.  Remove from loaf pan and allow to completely cool on a wire rack.  If you leave the bread in the pan, the condensation created while cooling will make the bread soggy on to sides and bottom.