The Best Bread Machine 2 Pound White Bread Loaf

Use your bread machine to make an easy and delicious basic white bread with just 5 very simple ingredeints!

The thing is the best homemade bread is always simple ingredients and doesn’t need to be overcomplicated and that is aboslutely true here. 

This white bread recipe will become your go-to recipe for its ease and flavor for everything from sandwiches to side dishes. 

Bread Flour Vs. All-Purpose Flour

Most bread machine recipes and manuals suggest using bread flour in all of the recipes. 

When I make bread by hand without a machine, I often use either flour interchangeably with great results. 

I wanted to see if that was true for the bread machine and went about testing this recipe with both flours.

The loaf made with unbleached, all-purpose flour simply collaspes and it’s a much airy loaf.

Interestingly, I read in a number of sources online that the all-purpose flour should produce a denser loaf. That was not my experience. Perhaps it would do so, if it was only a 1 lb loaf, instead of the larger 2 pound loaf here. 

I tried a couple of times with the all-purpose flour figuring perhaps I had made a measurement mistake but every time the center of the loaves collasped and the air bubbles inside the loaf were much larger, created big holes which made it messier to slice. 

You can see the differences in the photos. 

The loaf made with bread flour rose a bit higher and maintained its shape. Bread flour is higher in protein making it better able to hold its structure. 

Now, the all-purpose flour loaf was tasty and we definitely ate it, in the end though the bread flour provided a superior loaf in the machine and that’s would I would suggest: use bread flour in this easy bread recipe.

Could the end result differences be my machine and how it kneads? Perhaps, I can’t say definitively because I only have the one machine (more about it below).

Remaining Ingredients

The rest of the ingredients are very basic: water, sugar, salt, instant yeast.

There’s just 2 Tablespoons of sugar to help the yeast get active. The yeast will consume that sugar meaning, it’s not a sweet bread (or well any sweeter than a normal all white flour bread loaf).

In the end, that is the most basic bread recipe – flour, water, salt, yeast. Any other ingredients like milk powder or butter or vegetable oil are optional but not at all necessary in this basic white bread loaf.

Yeast Choices

I use instant yeast for ease in every bread machine recipe I test. If you want to use active dry yeast or bread machine yeast, simply follow your bread machine manufacturer’s instructions but I can’t say for certainty in what amount.

To Prevent Sticking

I had multiple loaves become hopelessly stuck to my bread pan and had to learn a trick or two to prevent it. Here’s what I do, if you’d like to try it:

After the final kneading cycle (for my machine there’s a 2 second third cycle of punching down), I remove the dough quickly from the machine, remove the kneading paddle and then spray the pan with some non-stick spray. Then I put the dough back in, close the lid and let the machine finish its rising and baking.

I use needle nose plier to remove the paddle.

This very simple step has stopped bread from sticking to the paddle hopelessly and coming out of the pan a broken mess.

About My Bread Machine

This recipe was tested on a Welbilt Bread Machine. I bought it at a thrift store for $6.50. It makes great bread but every machine is different. Please follow any specific instructions provided with your machine if they differ from how this recipe is written.

How to Serve

I don’t think there’s any wrong way to serve homemade white bread.

Use it as a basic sandwich bread – great for things like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, egg salad, tuna salad, and more.

Slice the entire loaf of bread and put into a napkin lined basket to serve alongside soup or salad meals as a simple side dish.

Of course, toast it for breakfast or even make it into french toast. 

How to Store

Store any leftover bread or slices in an airtight container where it should stay fresh for about 5 days.

For longer term storage, wrap bread in plastic wrap or place into freezer bags and freeze.

Let frozen bread thaw at room temperature prior to storing. Use up frozen bread within 6 months for best flavor and to prevent freezer burn.

Looking for more basic white bread recipes? Be sure to check out these from our archives: