Easy Homemade Garlic Bread

For almost a year now I’ve been making successful bread loaf after successful bread loaf… and it’s all thanks to Chadd and his rolls.

I documented many, many bread fails over the two years I was trying to nail it, and to be honest I was a bit of a stubborn twit about it. My breadmaker instructions recommended I use bread improver and that sounded like too much faffing about, plus I’d just read this article in the New York Times about good old-fashioned loaves that didn’t need a boost from extra gluten and I wanted to go as old-school as possible.

Then all the days rolled by when I didn’t have my own bread, I mean LOTS OF DAYS without homemade bread because I was too stubborn to do as I was told and didn’t stop to think that maybe after the author of that article came home and threw out all his wheat gluten he suddenly never had a great homemade loaf ever again.

Yes there is sourdough and yes I’m trying. I’m getting there. 

But one day I was reading a favourite blog and oh my sweet baby cheeses, her bread rolls looked fluffy af and I was so jealous. it turns out she had been using Chadd’s recipe, and the only difference between that and any other one that I’d tried is that Reannon and Chadd were actually using the bread improver. 

I didn’t waste a single other second and I bought the bread improver and I have been having DELICIOUS GODDAMN BREAD every day since then. I suggest you do too.

I use a recipe based on Jamie Oliver’s and the River Cottage bread recipe for random rolls, scrolls, artisan loaves, etc, and for regular everyday sandwich bread I use this recipe, which I adapted for the breadmaker. With bread improver. Because I know when I’m beat.)

Easy Homemade Garlic Bread

So what you’re gonna do for buttery, garlicky bread that’s crispy on the outside and mega-soft on the inside is go make some dough.

Bread dough recipe

• 300ml warm water
• 7g dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 500g plain flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 large teaspoon bread improver

Easy Homemade Garlic Bread Directions

1. Mix everything together and knead for about 10 minutes. You can also knead it in your mixer fitted with a dough hook, or in your breadmaker.
2. Leave to rise for about an hour, or until doubled in size.
3. Then divide that dough into three even rolls and let them rise again for about 45 minutes (that second rise is everything).
4. Then you’re going to get 200g of softened butter, two cloves of garlic, minced, lots of salt (depending on whether you use salted or unsalted but I don’t understand unsalted butter and therefore never buy it) and some mixed herbs. You can use dried or fresh, whatever you’ve got on hand. I like dried but I’m a simple lass and also can’t get more than two herbs growing at a time.
5. You’re going to mix it alllllll up and set it aside for your delicious bread to come out of the oven.
6. After your dough loaves have had a second rise, bake at 200C for about 20 minutes or until they’re golden brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
7. When they’ve cooled a little bit, cut into slices but not all the way through to the bottom. Smear that garlic butter in and around those slices and all over the top (be GENEROUS) and then pop back in the oven until everything is heated through and the butter is all melty and amazing.

If you’ve any self control, serve it with your dinner.

If not eat it FOR dinner. You know I would.