Man Bread: Homemade White Bread

This white bread recipe, AKA man bread, is so easy to make! Create an awesome, man-sized loaf of homemade bread in just a quick 90 minutes (or a dozen rolls!). This is the perfect bread recipe for beginning bakers.

Written by Mr. Crumbs

Usually, Mrs. Crumbs is the one experimenting in the kitchen, but occasionally I take a turn too. And this is one kitchen experiment that turned out pretty awesome: Man Bread.

It’s crusty on the outside and soft on the inside. When we pulled the first loaf out of the oven, Mrs. Crumbs and I were like, “Holy moly! That is one huge loaf…wonder if it’s any good?”

Well, I’m going out on a limb by saying this may be the BEST and easiest homemade white bread we’ve ever made. At first bite, we rejoiced. After the second bite, we knew we had to share it with you.

So, after some deep decision-making (AKA choosing between butter or peanut butter while taste testing) and recipe refinement (AKA eating a few more loaves of bread), we proudly present this easy bread recipe:

Man bread.

MAN BREAD AKA EASY WHITE BREAD RECIPE

This white bread recipe is so easy that even a man can make it. It was, after all, developed by one!

It’s just as easy (if not easier?) as the No-Knead Overnight Artisan Bread, which many say is the easiest bread in the world.

And if you doubt me and say, “Baking bread is too hard” or “I’m scared of yeast,” I’m here to tell you that making homemade bread isn’t too bad! This loaf is your new best friend (and here’s a beginner’s guide to using yeast if you need a bit more detail).

WHY IS THIS RECIPE FOR BASIC BREAD SO GREAT?

So what makes this white bread homemade recipe so great?

• There’s no refined sugar. It’s sweetened with just a bit of honey and has a tasty hint of coconut oil. A healthy bread recipe developed by a man who once survived on Doritos and soda? Proof that picky eaters really can switch to real food!
• You can make it fast. You can treat yourself to this ginormous, football-sized loaf of delicious goodness in just 90 MINUTES. That’s a quick rise, little effort, and yum-o in your belly in no time, perfect for every bread lover.
• It’s pretty foolproof. This recipe for basic bread was a complete accident. Which means it’s highly unlikely you can get it wrong. Perfect for the novice cook or fellow husbands who don’t cook often.

Despite its size, it holds up to the hacking of a knife and the smearing of butter and peanut butter very well. Granted, we love our Potato Bread, Maple Oatmeal Bread, Rosemary Olive Oil Bread (and more) – but this is just SO much easier!

Even funnier: we’ve made 3 loaves of this stuff in 2 days.

The first was obliterated by the family with a couple of sticks of butter. The second loaf was used for grilled sandwiches.

The third was a final test loaf to ensure we could replicate this homemade bread recipe and that it wasn’t too good to be true. I’m eating that one as I type this hoping for some leftovers for breakfast toast.

If you’re interested in milling your own grains or making your own flour, I highly recommend Mockmill. For my full review, check out this post.

WHITE BREAD RECIPE INGREDIENTS

The ingredients list for man bread is pretty simple.

• Warm water (105-115 degrees).
• Honey. Just a tablespoon helps to activate the yeast.
• Active dry yeast. A staple for homemade bread recipes – this is what helps the bread to rise.
• Coconut oil. You can use melted butter or olive oil instead, although the flavor will be slightly different. Rest assured, this bread does NOT taste like coconut oil.
• All-purpose flour or bread flour. You can also use up to 50% whole wheat flour.
• Salt. A little bit of salt when making homemade bread gives you great flavor. I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because their salt is FREE of microplastics, and it tastes delicious! PLUS, you can get your own 8 oz bag of salt FREE on this page! (Just pay shipping)
• Vital wheat gluten (optional). This makes for a softer, more pliable loaf. If you are using bread flour, you don’t need to include this. Otherwise, add 1 Tablespoon for every cup of all-purpose flour to make homemade bread flour.

Note: Believe it or not, coconut oil is mildly sweet and tricks the taste buds into thinking they’re eating something sweeter than it actually is (cinnamon also does the same thing). That’s one reason why this loaf is loved by so many people who only eat white bread. Store-bought bread has added sugar, but this homemade loaf TASTES sweet – despite the fact it only has 1 Tablespoon of honey.

HOW TO MAKE EASY BREAD RECIPE

Step 1: If your kitchen is not warm, turn your oven to low. This is simply to warm your kitchen up a little bit (since it’s cool where we live), which will help the bread rise better.

Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl, add warm water, honey, and yeast. Stir a few times until the honey dissolves. Once the yeast starts foaming (5 minutes or so), add flour, melted coconut oil, and salt.

Once your bread dough comes together using the dough hook, knead for 10 minutes on low/medium-low. Leave your dough ball in the bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 30 minutes.

Step 3: After the first rise, scoop your dough ball onto a lightly floured surface. (Knead your lump of dough by hand a few times, until it forms a firm ball. Cover this ball of dough with a towel.

Step 4: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, make sure this is in the oven to warm up. Alternatively, you can use a cast iron skillet while the oven is preheating, or two loaf pans (see notes below).

Step 5: Let the bread rise for 30 minutes.

Step 6: After the second rise, place the dough ball directly onto the pizza stone, cut two slits on the top of the dough ball, and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees.

If you are using loaf pans or a cast-iron skillet, the cook time may need to be increased by an additional 10-15 minutes. (The bread is done when the internal temperature is 220 degrees on an instant-read thermometer). See below for more on cooking times.

Step 7: Let cool on a wire rack and enjoy.

Note: We move this white bread dough from the counter to the pizza stone, but if you don’t feel confident in that transition, flour a piece of parchment paper, and shape the dough on that for the second rise. Then move the entire paper with the dough to the pizza stone for baking.

HOW TO MAKE HOMEMADE WHITE BREAD RECIPE

Step 1: If your kitchen is not warm, turn your oven to low. This is simply to warm your kitchen up a little bit (since it’s cool where we live).

Step 2: In the bowl of a stand mixer or large bowl, add warm water, honey, and yeast. Stir a few times until the honey dissolves. Once the yeast starts foaming (5 minutes or so), add flour, melted coconut oil, and salt. Once your bread dough comes together using the dough hook, knead for 10 minutes on low/medium-low. Leave your dough ball in the bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 30 minutes.

Step 3: After the first rise, scoop your dough ball on a lightly floured surface. ( Knead your lump of dough by hand a few times, until it forms a firm ball. Cover this ball of dough with a towel.

Step 4: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. If you have a pizza stone, make sure this is in the oven to warm up. Alternatively, you can use a cast iron skillet while the oven is preheating, or two loaf pans (see notes above).

Step 5: Let the bread rise for 30 minutes.

Step 6: After the second rise, place the dough ball directly onto the pizza stone, cut two slits on the top of the dough ball, and bake for 25 minutes at 400 degrees. If you are using loaf pans or a cast-iron skillet, the cook time may need to be increased by an additional 10-15 minutes. (The bread is done when the internal temperature is 220 degrees on an instant-read thermometer).

Step 7: Let cool on a wire rack and enjoy.

Note: We move this dough from the counter to the pizza stone, but if you don’t feel confident in that transition, flour a piece of parchment paper, and shape the dough on that for the second rise. Then move the entire paper with the dough to the oven for baking.

HOW LONG TO BAKE BREAD

How long to bake bread will depend on which type of pan you use.

Most breads call for loaf pans, but we used our pizza stone. This is the one we have. It’s over 5 years old, has been through hundreds of pizza nights, and is still going strong. No cracks, despite moving across the country!

Plus, it makes your pizza and bread taste artisan (aka makes you look like you know what you’re doing).

You can also bake this easy bread recipe in loaf pans. After the first rise, split the dough into two loaves and place them into two greased bread loaf pans. Rise again and bake as directed.

This recipe can also be used to make dinner rolls. Split into rolls after the first rise. Rise again and bake for 12-15 minutes. Your baking time might vary depending on the size of your rolls, so you’ll know they’re done when they’re golden brown and reach an internal temperature of 220 degrees, just like the single loaf of man bread.

CUTTING THE MAN BREAD

Making this homemade bread recipe will likely yield a Joe Montana-football-sized loaf of bread. Which means cutting it can be awkward. Here’s how we do it:

• Cut the whole loaf in half lengthwise.
• Take one of your halves and cut it into slices. Trust me, the slices are plenty big for your sandwich. These are man-sized slices.
• Smear with lots of butter.

Homemade bread recipes don’t keep for very long because they don’t have the preservatives of store-bought bread. Store in a breathable container or bag (not airtight) at room temperature for 3-4 days. If you have any left, that is. Or go ahead and make double or triple if you want to save some for later. Trust me.

FREEZING BREAD RECIPES WHITE BREAD INSTRUCTIONS

You can freeze this simple white bread recipe in whole loaves, slices, or unbaked dough. Here’s the full tutorial on freezing bread if you like to read more details, but here’s the quick version:

• Whole loaves: Wrap in plastic wrap to help protect against freezer burn, then place in freezer-safe bags.
• Slices: After cooling, slice bread. You have two options: lay the bread out on a sheet pan to allow each slice to freeze, and then pack it in a freezer bag for storage. Or place a small sheet of parchment paper between slices to keep them from sticking together.
• Dough: After the first rise, shape the dough into desired loaf. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in a freezer bag. Thaw overnight on the counter and let rise. Bake as directed.

Be sure to label your freezer bags!

ADDING PROTEIN TO HOMEMADE BREAD RECIPES

While bread will always be mostly carbs, there are a few ways to add extra protein to homemade bread recipes.

Here’s what I would do to add protein to bread:

• Add vital wheat gluten. You can add up to 2 Tablespoons of vital wheat gluten without it affecting the recipe. If you add more, it may have a greater rise, although I have not tried that myself. Vital Wheat Gluten has 7g of protein per Tablespoon.
• Use whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour naturally has more protein than white flour. Swap out half of the all-purpose flour for wheat flour to bump the protein up by several grams.
• Incorporate oat flour. Oatmeal has more protein than wheat. You can easily add up to ½ cup of oat flour in any bread recipe without affecting the end result. This Maple Oatmeal Bread is a good one if you like exact measurements!
• Add egg whites. An egg white has 5g of protein. You can add up to two egg whites per loaf of bread.
• Add cottage cheese. My homemade Hawaiian Roll recipe uses cottage cheese to help make the rolls extra fluffy. A ¼ cup of cottage cheese in a bread recipe will help increase the protein.
• Add a scoop of protein powder or collagen. I have not tried this myself since I prefer to drink my collagen in a smoothie, but considering protein powder is a dry ingredient, it should blend in super well with a bread recipe. (This is my favorite collagen.)
• Follow this 2-ingredient Bagel recipe. This simple recipe uses Greek yogurt and flour. It can be adapted into buns, single-serve pizza, or sandwich flats!

WHITE BREADS FAQS

MORE FAVORITE BREAD RECIPES

• The Best White Sandwich Bread
• Maple Oatmeal Bread
• Rosemary Olive Oil Bread
• Cinnamon Raisin Bread
• Homemade Hamburger Buns
• Light and Fluffy Hawaiian Rolls

WATCH HOW TO MAKE OUR MAN BREAD