Bread Loaf with Italian Seasoning

Give us this day our daily bread! :)

Nothing makes me more happy than baking bread! The smell of freshly baked bread is enough to keep me contented! I tried this recipe that was meant for garlic but for some reason my little one is picky so I just topped the dough with some Italian seasoning instead and the end result were the contented smiles :) 

The stuff required:Maida-flour- 1 and a half cupDry active yeast: 1 table spoon Milk - 1/4th cup (1 table spoon for the yeast to prove)Olive oil-1/4th cupItalian Seasoning -1/2 tablespoonSalt- 1 teaspoonWater-1/4 cupSugar-1 tablespoon

How to make the bread

Take 1 tablespoon yeast and add 1 tablespoon warm milk and sugar and keep aside for the yeast to prove. If it froths up then the yeast is good and can be used, if it does not, then discard it and make another batch.

Mix the flour, the yeast mix, salt. Mix water and milk and warm it slightly then add to the flour mix and knead it well for 10 minutes, till it has an elastic type feel to it. Keep it covered aside for an hour and it will rise and double up in size. After an hour or so , after the dough has risen, punch it and then knead for a couple of minutes. Then in your greased and dusted bread loaf pan, set the dough in. Sprinkle the italian seasoning and give it an egg wash (break an egg and brush it over the dough). Bake it in a pre-heated oven (180 deg C ) for 20-25 minutes. 

(Note: You can replace the egg wash with milk and brush the loaf top as well)

The success of your loaf can be echoed in "tock" sound that should be heard, if you gently tap your loaf after it cools down:)

The bread loaf tastes great with some butter and even better if accompanied with some piping hot masala chai!:)