We’ve been making bread for years! It’s cheaper and it taste much better. Plus it doesn’t have all of the preservatives found in the store-bought variety. This bread also freezes very well, I’ll include some freezer instructions at the end of this post.
Breads with different spices are wonderful. This one features rosemary, hot sauce and black pepper. I like the extra spice that it adds to sandwiches.
Equipment for making bread
Stand Mixer
I like to use a stand mixer with a bread hook attachment for this recipe because I like the process of making bread without the work of kneading.
I love bread makers! It is so great to just add the ingredients in and walk away. I have to be honest, I usually don’t use a bread maker to bake the bread but to complete the process of the dough especially if time is an issue for me.
Your Hands
You can also make this recipe by hand, which can be a bit therapeutic to be honest.
However you choose, delicious egg bread will be the output that you’ll want to make again and again.
Let's make Rosemary White Bread!
- 1 1/4 cups milk
- 4 teaspoons olive oil
- 3 dashes hot pepper sauce
- 3 cups flour
- 3 tablespoons cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon crushed dried rosemary or 1 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary
- 1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon active dry yeast
Stand Mixer
- Heat milk between 105° F and 115° F. If the yeast is too cold it will take longer to activate if it is too hot then it will die.
- Be mindful if you are placing heated milk in a cold bowl because it will cool the water. I usually aim for about 118° F and after adding the milk to the bowl it will cool to about 112° F
- Add milk and yeast to the stand mixer bowl.
- Let stand for at least 10 min. When you start to see these bubbles you will know your yeast has activated.
- Add in this order:
- olive oil
- hot pepper sauce
- flour
- cornmeal
- sugar
- rosemary
- salt
- black pepper
- Using the stand mixer with dough hook on low speed (1-2) for 8 minutes. The dough is ready when you poke your finger in dough and it will spring back.
- Flour a surface and knead the dough a few turns about 5. Put the palm of your hand in the center of the dough and press down and away from you. Fold the dough back into a ball and repeat. Poke your finger in dough to be sure it springs back. If not keep kneading.
- Butter a large bowl and add dough turning once then cover.
- Place in a warm dry place for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in size.
- I like to preheat the oven to 170° F and after the oven is preheated I turn off the oven and add the bread.
- After the dough has risen punch down.
- Grease the loaf pan then add parchment paper so the loaf does not stick to the pan. Add dough, cover and place back in your warm dry place for about 1 hour.
- I like to preheat the oven to 170° and after the oven is preheated I turn off the oven and add the bread
- If you let your bread rise in the oven remove and preheat oven to 350° F and bake for 25 minutes.
- Cool completely on a wire rack.
Bread Maker
- Heat milk between 105° F and 115° F. If the yeast is too cold it will take longer to activate if it is too hot then it will die.
- Be mindful if you are placing heated water in a cold bowl because it will cool the water. I usually aim for about 118° F and after adding the water to the bowl it will cool to about 112° F
- Add in this order:
- milk
- olive oil
- hot pepper sauce
- flour
- cornmeal
- sugar
- rosemary
- black pepper
- salt
- Make a little volcano in the center of the flour with your finger and add yeast to the volcano
- Select the recipe size (1~1/2 pound) and select the or basic white.
- I personally select the dough setting and then complete steps 12-15 in the stand mixer instructions.
By Hand
- Heat milk between 105° F and 115° F. If the yeast is too cold it will take longer to activate if it is too hot then it will die.
- Be mindful if you are placing heated milk in a cold bowl because it will cool the water. I usually aim for about 118° F and after adding the milk to the bowl it will cool to about 112° F
- Add milk and yeast to a large bowl.
- Let stand for at least 10 min. When you start to see these bubbles you will know your yeast has activated.
- Add in this order:
- olive oil
- hot pepper sauce
- flour
- cornmeal
- sugar
- rosemary
- black pepper
- salt
- Flour a surface and knead the dough for about 8 – 10 minutes. Put the palm of your hand in the center of the dough and press down and away from you. Fold the dough back into a ball and repeat. The dough will be very sticky. Poke your finger in dough to be sure it springs back. If not keep kneading.
- Butter a large bowl and add dough turning once then cover.
- Place in a warm dry place for 1 hour or until the dough doubles in size.
- I like to preheat the oven to 170° F and after the oven is preheated I turn off the oven and add the bread.
- After the dough has risen punch down.
- Grease the loaf pan then add parchment paper so the loaf does not stick to the pan. Add dough, cover and place back in your warm dry place for about 1 hour.
- I like to preheat the oven to 170° and after the oven is preheated I turn off the oven and add the bread
- If you let your bread rise in the oven remove and preheat oven to 350° F and bake for 25 minutes.
- Cool completely on a wire rack.
Freezing Homemade Rosemary Bread
One of the downsides to homemade bread is that it molds quickly, especially in the summer months. The bread does not have the preservatives found in the store-bought kind. This is OK, we don’t want to be eating those preservatives anyway, and the problem can be easily solved with a freezer.
- Allow the bread to cool completely
- Wrap in plastic wrap then depending on the loaf size place in a freezer bag or wrap with tin foil and place the loaf in the freezer.
I like to slice the entire loaf, then wrap the slices in bundles of two, and store in a freezer bag. This is perfect for making sandwiches, but bundle them in whatever quantity you tend to use them in. They should still be easy to separate even though they were bundled together. To eat from freezer, separate the slices and toast or place on a paper towel until soft. I personally prefer toasting because it is better for your digestive system.
Homemade bread takes a little time and effort, but the taste and aroma can’t be beat! Check out some of our other bread recipes.