Whoa, Whey Bread!

After making yogurt (or cheese) you're going to have a bunch of a golden liquid called whey.  I'm a big fan of homemade bread so when I heard that you could use whey to enhance bread I decided I needed to try it the next time I made yogurt.

The benefits of using whey for making bread are a better rising time, better crusts and flavor, and a firmer texture.

I made my first batch earlier in the week and we ate it so quickly that I didn't get a chance to take pictures.  I'll try to make some more later on and post pictures this time.

I found that the crust and texture of this bread was excellent and it rose very nicely in a fairly short period of time.

Here's the recipe I'm trying this time:

• 3/4 cup whey
• 1 packets dry active yeast (3 teaspoons)
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• 3 tablespoons butter, melted
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 egg
• 2-3 cups all-purpose flour (approximately)

The above makes one loaf.  Simply scale things up by the number of loaves you'd like to make.  (2 loaves would be 1 and 1/2 cups whey, 2 packets yeast, etc).

1. Proof the yeast:  Heat the your whey to 110 F and add your yeast.  Cover with a cloth and let sit while you prep the other ingredients.
2. In a mixing bowl add half of your flour, the butter, sugar, and salt.
3. Add the eggs
4. Add the warm proofed yeast
5. Mix until it forms a dough ball.  If the mixture is too wet to form a ball add a little flour until things start to stay together.
6. Flour a cutting board or some other surface and turn the dough ball out onto it.
7. Knead the dough for 5-10 minutes
8. Grease a large bowl with butter or oil and place the dough in the bowl.  Turn it a few times to cover in oil.
9. Cover the bowl with a cloth and set the bowl in a warm place to rise for 1 to 2 hours.
10. Punch the dough down and divide into loaves. 
11. Cover loaves and allow them to rise for another hour.
12. Heat oven to 425 F and cook for 20-25 minutes.
13. Remove from the oven and turn out onto backing rack to cool
14. Enjoy!