Homemade Bread Dough

This is pretty easy to use to make just about anything that we can't find here in Italy to suit our American taste buds: American-style sandwich bread, cinnamon rolls, Tony Chachere bread sticks, garlic rolls, hamburger and hotdog buns, raisin bread, stuffed sandwich roll, and probably more that I haven't even thought of. So here it is...

Homemade Bread Dough
2 c. warm water
1/2 c. olive oil
1/4 c. honey
5-6 c. flour
3 1/2 t. instant yeast
2 t. salt

In a large bowl, combine the water, oil, and honey. Add 3 c. flour, salt, and yeast and mix well into a batter. Add the remainin 2 to 3 c. of flour to form a dough that isn't sticky. On an oiled or lightly floured surface, knead the dough for 6 to 8 minutes until it is elastic and smooth and not sticky to the touch. If it's sticky, add a bit more flour. Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise till doubled. (In the winter, near a radiator is good.)

Then for a loaf of bread, punch down and form into a loaf in a bread pan. Let rise again and bake at 175 C. (350 F). The loaf should be dark brown on top and baked all the way through.

Okay, some notes about this dough:

The key is to get the dough smooth and not sticky. If it's sticky, then add some flour. But you only want to add just enough flour to keep it from being sticky...too much flour will make the dough tough.

Hamburger buns
To make hamburger buns, just pinch the dough into about 8 balls. Between your hands, roll each ball into a "snake" (think Playdough!), then tie each snake into a knot and let rise. If you want to get fancy, you can sprinkle the top with some sesame seeds or poppy seeds.

Cinnamon rolls
To make cinnamon rolls, roll out the dough into a large rectangle. Generously smear the entire rectangle with softened butter, then sprinkle with brown sugar, cinnamon, and raisins. Roll up from long side to long side to make a log. Then slice into circles (with a sharp knife, dental floss, or a dough cutter) and lay them side by side in a 9x13 for the second rising. Bake and top with powdered sugar icing.

Tony Chachere bread twists
To make bread sticks, roll out the dough into a large rectangle. Smear the dough with softened butter and sprinkle generously with Tony Chachere's Cajun seasoning or even Mrs. Dash or another seasoning salt. From the long side of the rectangle, fold the dough over halfway to make the butter/seasoning inside the dough. Using a sharp knife or dough cutter, cut the dough into strips about 1 inch wide. Take a strip (again, the butter/seasoning should be on the inside of the doubled-over strip), twist a few times, and lay on a baking sheet. These don't need a second rising. Bake and serve warm.

A note about yeast!
I prefer instant yeast since it's not temperature dependent. I bring it back from the states. However, there are several types of yeast (lievito) at Italian grocery stores. Just follow the directions for that particular type of yeast.