Herb Bread

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 and 1/8 teaspoons of yeast
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup table sugar, or light brown sugar, or syrup
• 2 table spoons of melted butter
• 1 tablespoon of fresh Rosemary
• 1 tea spoon of fresh dill
• 1 teaspoon of nutmeg
• 1 cup of warm water
• 2 cups of wheat flour
• 2 cups of all-purpose flour

Instructions
Place 1/4 cup of warm water* in a mixing bowl.  Stir in 1 and 1/8th teaspoons of yeast.  Let sit to rehydrate for at least 5 minutes or until dissolved.

*My technique to get warm water is to hold my finger under the faucet until it feels warm to the touch. If it feels hot it might kill the yeast, but warm should mean the water is around your own body temperature.
After the yeast has been re-hydrated, mix in one large egg, 1/4 cup of table sugar, or light brown sugar, or syrup (I prefer to use maple syrup), and two table spoons of melted butter. Make sure the butter is not too hot so you don’t kill the yeast.  Now add in your herbs and spices. I used about a tablespoon of fresh Rosemary, a tea spoon of fresh dill, and a teaspoon of nutmeg.

Add 1 cup of warm water. Then mix in 2 cups of wheat flour and 2 cups of all-purpose flour.  Kneed with a stand mixer on low or by hand for 15 minutes. Add flour as needed, until dough is elastic and does not stick to the sides of the bowl. The dough should be tacky but not sticky.

Place in a cover and oiled bowl to rise for an hour.  After an hour move to a oiled loaf pan, cover and let rise for another hour.

After the bread has risen for a second time, place in a pre-heated oven at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes. To test pull the bread out and give it a thump, it should sound hollow if its done.