This bread is named for the precise rising time. It's designed to take just a single rise of 30 minutes in a loaf pan before baking, making it relatively quick and easy to get from mixing bowl to table.

It is pretty easy, but I found the hydration and rising time way off. I added significantly less flour than called for and still found the dough way too stiff. I ended up working in... probably a good extra 1/3 c. of water. Maybe even a bit more!

I also found the baking instructions a bit odd. It calls for baking at 400°F for 45 minutes! Normally I'd expect to bake at 350°F for about that long or start off at 400 or 450 for 10-20 minutes and then reduce the temperature to 325 or 350 and let it go for another 10-20 minutes. Doing the whole 45 minutes at 400 seems... excessive. And, indeed, the crust did end up very dark. It wasn't quite burnt, but it was getting close. Meanwhile, it seems like the interior was only barely cooked. I mean, it was fine. It wasn't raw or anything, but I don't think I would have wanted to take it out any sooner than I did. Next time I think I'd go for a more conventional approach and just bake it at 350°F as usual.

I've done my best to give reasonable values here, but I wasn't actually measuring the water I was adding, so I could be a bit off. I think it will take a few iterations to finish fine-tuning this recipe.

Photo goes here.

Thirty-Minute White Bread

Slightly adapted from Bernard Clayton's New Complete Book of Breads

Ingredients

• 1 c. milk
• 2 Tbsp. unsalted butter
• 1 Tbsp. salt
• 1 c. warm water
• 250g sourdough starter or discard¹ @ 100% hydration
• 4 tsp. instant yeast
• 2 Tbsp. sugar
• ~600g all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Combine milk, butter, salt, and water and gently warm until it reaches a temperature of ~45°C (~110°F).
2. Add starter, yeast, sugar, and ~120g (~1 c.) of the flour and beat on medium speed for 3 minutes (or beat vigorously by hand).
3. Add another ~240g (~2 c.) of flour and beat for another 3 minutes.
4. Switch to dough hook and continue adding flour ~30g (~1/4 c.) at a time until the dough comes together cleans the sides of the bowl.
5. Turn out onto work surface and check hydration.
6. Knead by hand, working in either more water or more flour until a soft, but workable dough is achieved.
7. Keep kneading until dough becomes supple and elastic and no longer tears easily (8-10 minutes).
8. Divide dough into two equal portions and round each one.
9. Cover and allow to rest for 5-10 minutes.
10. Meanwhile, grease two 20x10cm (8x4") loaf pans.
11. Shape each round into a loaf and place seam-side-down into the prepared pans.
12. Cover and place in oven.
13. Set oven to 200°C (400°F) and allow to preheat for 1 minute. Then TURN THE OVEN OFF.
14. Allow loaves to rise in warm oven for 30-60 minutes².
15. Once loaves are fully risen, uncover and slash as desired.
16. Return to oven and set to 180°C (350°F).
17. Bake for 40-50 minutes (including preheating time).
18. Remove from oven and allow to stand for 5-10 minutes.
19. Turn out of pans and transfer to wire rack to cool.

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¹ I've been trying to work a bit of sourdough starter into all of my breads just as a way to keep it well-fed and refreshed. If you don't have starter that needs used, then you can just add an extra 125mL of water and 125g of flour to make up the difference. ^Back
2 I know, I know, it's supposed to be "thirty-minute bread"! But mine took longer than 30 minutes to rise fully. So, check at 30 minutes, but use your judgement and don't be afraid to give it a little more time if it needs it. ^Back