EVERYBODY EATS: Baking basic bread

I was in New York last month, walking in a Brooklyn neighborhood, when I smelled it.

Yeast. Flour. Bread. The air was thick with it.

The bakery was on a corner, across the street from my intended destination, but the smell was too great to ignore. Our group made a quick stop, buying pretzels and dinner rolls.

When people asked me what I liked most about my trip, I tell this story. Bakeries are everywhere in New York City and its boroughs. Gleaming cases of cookies, cupcakes and bagels offer tantalizing snacks every few blocks. I sent a photo of a dark chocolate peanut butter chip cookie from Levain Bakery to my husband with a note that I planned to marry it someday. It was that good.

Still, it is the smell in the cool December air I remember the most. The aroma was both intoxicating and comforting.

Cooking has always been a comfort for me. I grew up experimenting in the kitchen. For every success, there has been a disaster, but part of the process is mastering basic techniques, then using those skills to take a recipe to the next level.

That's what this column is about. Each month, I will introduce a technique. The following two columns will apply that technique. The goal is to offer something that speaks to all cooks, from beginning to advanced. As the column name suggests, not everyone cooks, but everybody eats.

To kick it off, we go back to the bread. My kitchen isn't a professional bakery, but for one afternoon it smelled like one.

HOME-STYLE YEAST BREAD

2 packages active dry yeast

2 cups warm water (110 to 115 degrees)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

1 1/2 tsp. salt

2 eggs, lightly beaten

7 to 8 cups flour

In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the sugar, butter, salt, eggs and four cups of flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to form a firm dough.

Turn on to a floured surface and knead until smooth, about 6 to 8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place, until dough is doubled in size (about one hour).

Punch down the dough. Turn on to a floured surface. Divide in half and place into two greased loaf pans. Cover and let rise until double, about 45 minutes.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 35 minutes, or until golden brown. Tap bread -- it is finished if the top sounds hollow.

Remove from pans and place on wire racks to cool. Wait about 20 minutes before slicing.

Source: The Taste of Home Baking (Reader's Digest; Lslf edition, 2007, $29.95)