Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread

INGREDIENTS
- 3 cups gluten-free multi-purpose flour
- 3 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons instant yeast
- 1 ¼ teaspoons salt
- 1 ¼ teaspoons xanthan gum
- 1 cup warm milk
- 4 tablespoons soft butter
- 3 large eggs

PREPARATION
1. Place the flour or flour blend, sugar, yeast, salt, and xanthan gum in a bowl, or the bowl of your stand mixer. Mix till combined.
2. Using an electric mixer (hand mixer, or stand), drizzle in the milk, beating all the time; the mixture will be crumbly at first, but once all the milk is added, it'll come together.
3. Add the butter and beat until thoroughly blended.
4. Beat in the eggs one at a time, beating each in thoroughly before adding the next. Scrape the bottom and sides of the bowl, then beat at high speed for 3 minutes, to make a very smooth, thick batter.
5. Cover the bowl, and let the thick batter rise for 1 hour.
6. Scrape down the bottom and sides of the bowl, gently deflating the batter in the process.
7. Grease an 8 1/2" by 4 1/2" loaf pan, or a 9" x 4" x 4" pain de mie pan.
8. Scoop the dough into the pan. Press it level, using a spatula or your wet fingers.
9. Cover with greased plastic wrap, and set in a warm place to rise until the loaf barely crowns above the rim of the 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" pan; or till it comes to within about an inch of the rim of the 9" pain de mie pan. This should take about 45 to 60 minutes. Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.
10. Bake the bread for 38 to 42 minutes, until golden brown. If you're using a pain de mie pan, leave the lid on the entire time. Remove the bread from the oven, turn it out of the pan, and cool on a rack.

NOTES
Like a baguette, this bread has a short shelf life. For best texture, reheat or toast after the first day.

Make delicious cheese bread by reducing the sugar in the recipe to 1 tablespoon; and stirring 1 cup (4 ounces) shredded sharp Cheddar cheese into the dough just before scooping it into the loaf pan.

If you have a 9" x 4" x 4" pain de mie pan, this is a great place to use it. It'll bake a taller loaf than a standard loaf pan. Bake with the lid on, or off; baking with the lid off will give you a slightly more crowned loaf; leaving the lid on will give you a slightly closer-grained loaf. If you use the lid, bake the bread for 50 minutes, with the lid on the whole time. Remove it from the oven, remove the lid, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool.

If you prefer to make this mix without eggs, using flax in place of the eggs works well. To replace the 3 eggs called for, use ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) flax meal (the more finely ground the better), blended with ½ cup plus 1 tablespoon water. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes to thicken before beating into the butter in the bowl. 1 egg recipe: 2 tablespoons (1/2 ounce) flax meal (the more finely ground the better) blended with 3 tablespoons water. Let it sit for 10 minutes to thicken before using.

Note: For a dairy-free version of this bread, substitute margarine for the butter; and soy milk, almond milk, or rice milk for the milk called for in the recipe. Results may vary from the original.