If you’d told me a month ago I’d be casually making my own bread, I would’ve laughed, made a sarcastic comment, and gone back to my craft chaos. Yet here I am — elbow-deep in flour, somehow raising a sourdough starter like it’s a third child, and baking actual loaves like I’ve secretly been preparing for a cottagecore lifestyle my whole life.

And honestly? I’m kind of loving it.

After a week of battling gloopy dough, flour clouds, strange smells, and a whisk that absolutely lied to me about being “life-changing”… I finally produced a proper, soft, golden sandwich loaf. From scratch. In my own oven. With no disasters. No tears. No smoke alarms. A Christmas miracle.

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⭐ A Wee Bread Experiment (Because of Course I Tested It Twice)

Because I’m me, I couldn’t just make the loaf once and call it a day.
No no — I had to test it properly:

Loaf One: kneaded by hand

Loaf Two: made using the dough hook on my stand mixer

And I’ll be honest…
the mixer absolutely won. 😂

The hand-kneaded loaf was lovely, but the mixer version?

• better rise
• softer crumb
• smoother dough
• much less swearing

If you have a mixer with a dough hook, USE IT. Save your wrists for knitting.

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⭐ Then I Tweaked the Recipe (Because Why Not)

The original recipe was great, but after making it twice, I made a few adjustments that made it even better:

✨ Turned the heat down slightly
(My oven runs hot, so instead of 180°C fan, I nudged it a bit lower.)

✨ Baked it a little longer
Just until the top turned a rich golden colour.

✨ Brushed the top with milk
Gives it a soft, shiny crust.

✨ Sprinkled sesame seeds
I don’t know why, but this made me feel like a Real Baker™
Also… it looks fancy.

So here you go –

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🍞 My Soft Sandwich Loaf Recipe (Beginner Friendly!)

(Based on my original printout, with my chaos-tested tweaks)

The PDF, if you want it, is at the very bottom.

Ingredients

• 400g strong white bread flour
• 8g salt
• 20g sugar
• 20g softened butter or 2 tbls oil. (I used avocado oil)
• 1 packet yeast (7g fast action)
• 280ml warm water
• Optional: milk for brushing + sesame seeds for topping

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1. Activate the yeast

In a jug, mix warm water + sugar + yeast.
Leave it 5–10 minutes until it turns frothy and looks alive (the fun part).

2. Make the dough

Pour the foamy mixture into a bowl. Add flour, salt, oil.

You can:
• Mix and knead by hand (8–10 mins)
or
• Use a mixer with dough hook (5–6 mins — my better result!)

You want a soft, slightly tacky dough.

3. First rise

Place in an oiled bowl, cover, and let rise 1 hour until doubled.

4. Shape the loaf

Punch down the dough, roll it into a tight log, and pop it into your loaf tin.

5. Second rise

Let it rise again until the dough reaches the top of the tin. I left this 45 minutes.

6. Milk wash + seeds

Brush lightly with milk.
Sprinkle sesame seeds if you’re feeling fancy (I was).

7. Bake

The recipe calls for 180°C for 25–30 minutes.
BUT — in my oven, I turned the heat down slightly and baked it a bit longer, until the top turned perfectly golden. I think it was 45 minutes for that.

Every oven has its personality… mine likes to be dramatic.

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⭐ My Tweaks for a Better Loaf

• Lower the oven temperature slightly from 180°C fan
• Bake a little longer (around 40–45 mins) until the top is golden
• Brush with milk before baking
• Sprinkle sesame seeds

You’ll get a soft, shiny, bakery-style finish.

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⭐ Final Thoughts

This bread is soft, forgiving, smells like a warm hug, and makes you feel like you’ve unlocked a new domestic skill achievement. Truly, if I can make this without summoning the baking demons, anyone can.

If you try it, tag me — I love seeing your attempts, successful or chaotic.

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💛 A Wee Reminder

If you enjoy these cosy recipes, craft ramblings, and behind-the-scenes glimpses, I share even more over on Patreon — including:

• free monthly knitting patterns
• studio updates
• behind-the-scenes chaos
• early previews of new designs
• and the general unfiltered LT energy

👉 https://www.patreon.com/LTMarshall

You’re always welcome there. 💛✨