Mom's French Bread

Mom is famous for her bread. She usually makes this easy french bread. And eating the bread fresh out of the oven is hard to resist (this bread quickly disappears shortly after it comes out of the oven). Like the rest of the Buckley family, I probably could eat just this bread for most of my meals and not miss anything. Mom often made this bread on Sundays, especially in the winter. She now often makes it to bring to family parties. It is always a favorite.

When we lived on Lincoln, Mom used to put the bowl with the rising dough on the black easy chair in the living room. It would not take long for the whole house to smell of bread.

When Mom makes bread, she never uses a thermometer to determine the temperature of the water.  She just runs the top on hot for a bit and always seems to know the right temperature. As for me, I need to use a thermometer. If the water is too hot or too cold, the bread will not rise and it will not taste right. I do not know Mom's secret for always getting it right, but when I figure it out, I will let you know. Mom never used a mixer to make bread; instead, she just mix and kneaded by hand. While you could use a mixer with a dough hook to handle the kneading, it is just as easy to use your hands.

Mom's Bread

• about 5 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• 1 Tsp. salt
• 1 package yeast
• 1 Tbsp. butter or margarine
• 1 3/4 cup hot water

In large bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt and yeast.  Heat water to 120 degrees and add the butter to the water.  Add the water and butter to the flour mixture. Mix well with a fork.  At this point the dough should be fairly liquid.  Once the mixture is smooth, add in more flour (usually 2 to 3 more cups) until a soft dough is formed. Then, turn the dough onto a floured surface. Knead, incorporating the remaining flour in as you go, for about 8 minutes. The dough should become somewhat elastic. Form the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a towel (use a damp towel if the weather is dry) and let the dough rise until it doubles, about 1 to 2 hours.

Punch down the dough and turn out onto a floured surface. Let rest about 10 minutes. Divide the dough into two halves. For each half, roll out the dough so it is about 12 inches long. Then, roll the dough to form a loaf. Place on a greased baking sheet. Form the second half into a loaf. Cover the dough with a towel and let rise again, for about 45 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. The bread is done when you knock on the loaf and it sounds or feels hallow. Allow to cool. Enjoy!