Perfect White Bread

Gently warm the milk in a saucepan over medium-high heat until it just begins to bubble around the edges. Remove from heat and stir in the sugar, salt, and shortening until dissolved. Allow the mixture to cool until it is lukewarm. (Approximately 10 minutes)

While the milk mixture cools, dissolve the active dry yeast in the warm water. Let it stand until a creamy foam develops on the surface, indicating the yeast is active. (Approximately 5 minutes)

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cooled milk mixture with the activated yeast mixture. Stir in 2 cups of the bread flour until well combined. Gradually add the remaining flour, about 1/2 cup at a time, mixing until a moderately stiff dough forms.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough vigorously until it becomes smooth and elastic. (Approximately 8-10 minutes). Place the kneaded dough in a lightly greased bowl, turning to coat all sides. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let the dough rise in a warm place until it has doubled in volume. (Approximately 1 hour 20 minutes).

Lightly grease two 9x5-inch loaf pans with cooking spray, ensuring even coverage.

Gently punch down the risen dough to release the air. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and divide it into two equal portions. Shape each portion into a ball, cover, and let them rest for 10 minutes to relax the gluten. Then, shape each ball into a loaf and place them into the prepared loaf pans. Let the loaves rise until they have doubled in size, reaching the tops of the pans. (Approximately 1 hour).

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C).

Bake the loaves in the preheated oven until the tops are a beautiful golden brown and the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom. (Approximately 35 minutes).

Once baked, remove the loaves from the oven and let them cool in the pans for a few minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely. This prevents the bottom crust from becoming soggy.