Bread - #greatjonesandcobakeoff

So today was the second event of the #greatjonesandcobakeoff.  It was bread week.

My SIL had asked me to make Hawaiian bread so I decided to take a stab at it.  This is what it was supposed to look like.

This is what mine looked like.

It tasted okay -- not quite the way it was supposed to, but not horrible.  I think I'll try a different recipe next time.  I'm not great on these soft breads.

Here's the recipe I used.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup canned pineapple juice (room temperature)
• 1/2 cup warm milk (100 – 110°F)
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled
• 2 whole eggs, lightly beaten
• 6 tablespoons granulated sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine salt
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) instant yeast
• 4 1/2 cups (20 ounces) bread flour

I made a few mistakes.  One, that I seem to make a lot, is that I didn't read all the instructions or comments -- it would have saved me trouble and would have turned out better.  I didn't realize there was a difference between instant yeast and active yeast.  So instead of following the instructions to combine the yeast with the warm milk and juice prior to mixing, I mixed everything together.  It  took nearly 3 hours for my bread to rise.  Another mistake (again because I didn't read the directions thoroughly) was that I didn't brush the rolls with the egg/water mixture before the final rise.  I don't think it made a huge difference but again, another thing I didn't do.

Next time I'll probably use a different recipe since it seems many of the other recipes include ginger.

One thing I want to work on this year it baking better bread.  I need to step up my game, that's for sure.