Happy World Bread Day!

Did you know that today is World Bread Day, a celebration of a food that is eaten by nearly every culture in the world?

To celebrate the day, I decided to do what I always do when confronted with difficult baking questions: ask my wife for help.  She is the family baker and she pointed me towards her family’s secret bread recipe.  Which I will now post on the Internet.

Aunt Rita’s Bread 

• 3 3/4 war water (preferrably between 105-115 degrees)
• 1 package yeast
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 10 cups of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 tablespoons melted butter

Combine 3/4 cup of water, yeast and sugar in a cup and stir.  The yeast should rise to the top in a minute or two.

In a mixing bowl, add the flour and salt.  In a separate bowl or measuring cup, combine the remaining water with 3 tablespoons of melted butter.  Add the liquid to the flour mixture and mix well. 

Continue mixing and adding flour until the dough is elastic.  Knead 8-10 minutes.  Brush the top with the remaining tablespoon of melted butter and put in a warm place to rise.

When the bread doubles in size, shape into loaves and put into greased loaf pans.  Put in a warm place to rise a second time.

When it it has doubled a second time, bake at 350 degrees for about an hour.