Easy Bread Dough for Nerdy Creations

The Garlic Awakens

Below is a super easy and basic bread recipe that can be used for a variety of different Nerdy creations. The recipe below is enough to make two loaves of bread.

May the loaf be with you.

Ingredients

• 1 package (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
• 2-1/4 cups warm water (110° to 115°)
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 1 tablespoon salt
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 6-1/4 to 6-3/4 cups all-purpose flour

Instructions

1. Make sure you have all ingredients and tools needed to make the bread. Recommend you read ALL of the instructions first.
2. In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the sugar, salt, oil and 3 cups flour. Beat until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, to form a soft dough.
3. Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 8-10 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1-1/2 hours.
4. Punch dough down. Turn onto a lightly floured surface; divide dough in half. Shape each into a loaf. Place in two greased 9x5-in. loaf pans. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30-45 minutes.
5. Bake at 375° for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when tapped. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool. Yield: 2 loaves (16 slices each). 

Basic loaf pans are easy.

The tricky part is when you want to make something more creative and trying to figure out how much time it needs to bake for with unusual shapes.

And getting the desired shape correct.

Like the Klingon symbol on the right, which while edible doesn't look quite perfect.

When in doubt, start with a shorter period of time and then test your creation every 3 to 5 minutes with a toothpick. (Depending on the shape of your creation you may need to bake parts of it separately, or test the parts separately to make sure they are all done.)

You can also add things to the recipe and experiment a bit.

If you accidentally burn bread, oh well. Take a walk to the park and feed the local ducks.

Cute Ducks

Hungry Bread

Bread Heads

Durpy Turtles

Chocolate Centipede

Princess Leia Buns

Millennium Falcon Buns

Stormtrooper Buns

BB8 Buns