Vegan Bread Recipe — The Loaf That Belongs Next to a Bowl of Soup

Hauled to Denver this week, which is a long run for me, eight hours each way through western Nebraska and into Colorado. I do not get Denver runs often, but when I do, I take them because the drive through the Sandhills is the most beautiful stretch of highway in America and I will fight anyone who disagrees. I-80 west of North Platte turns into something else: the land rolls, the grass is gold, the sky is so big you could fall into it, and there are almost no towns, no billboards, no noise. Just you and the truck and the empty beautiful world.

I loaded the slow cooker with my road chili before I left at three a.m. Monday. By the time I stopped for lunch outside Ogallala, it was perfect. I ate it at a rest stop overlooking Lake McConaughy, where we went for Memorial Day, and the lake was different now, smaller somehow, bluer, with the fall light making everything sharp and clear. The chili tasted better there than it does anywhere else, which is either the altitude or the view or the fact that food always tastes better when you are alone and the world is beautiful and nobody needs anything from you for ten minutes.

The Denver drop was smooth. I picked up a backhaul headed east and was home by Wednesday night. Dave had held down the fort with his usual competence and limited menu: tacos on Monday, which is his third-best dish, and grilled cheese on Tuesday, which does not count as a dish but does count as food, and that is the standard we are working with.

Thursday I made a big pot of white bean and ham soup because it was forty degrees and raining and the kind of day that demands soup. Dried great northern beans, a ham bone I had been saving in the freezer, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, chicken broth, thyme. Simmer for three hours until the beans are creamy and the ham is falling off the bone and the soup is thick enough to stand a spoon in. Serve with cornbread, which I made from a box mix because I had just driven to Denver and back and I have earned the right to use a box mix. Sometimes the box is your friend. Do not let anyone tell you otherwise.

I talked a big game about the box cornbread — and I stand by it — but if you’ve got a little more time on your hands than I did Wednesday night, this simple vegan bread is the loaf I reach for when I want something real to set beside a bowl of soup. It needs no eggs, no butter, no fuss, just flour and water and a little patience while it rises — which is about all any of us can manage after a long week on the road. It’s the kind of bread that makes a cold, forty-degree, rainy Thursday feel earned rather than endured.

Vegan Bread

Prep Time: 15 minutes + 1 hour rise | Cook Time: 30 minutes | Total Time: 1 hour 45 minutes | Servings: 10 slices

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 packet) active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (about 110°F)
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the bowl

Instructions

1. Activate the yeast. Combine the warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Stir gently and let sit for 5—10 minutes until foamy. If it doesn’t foam, your yeast may be old — start again with a fresh packet.
2. Mix the dough. Add the olive oil and salt to the yeast mixture. Add the flour one cup at a time, stirring until a shaggy dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
3. Knead. Knead the dough for 8—10 minutes until it is smooth, elastic, and springs back when poked. Add flour a tablespoon at a time only if the dough is sticking badly — a slightly tacky dough is fine.
4. First rise. Lightly oil a clean bowl and place the dough inside, turning once to coat. Cover with a damp kitchen towel or plastic wrap and set in a warm spot. Let rise for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
5. Shape. Punch the dough down gently, then shape it into a log and place it in a lightly oiled 9x5-inch loaf pan. Cover loosely and let rest for 20 minutes while the oven preheats.
6. Bake. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Bake the loaf for 28—32 minutes until the top is golden brown and the bread sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom. An internal temperature of 190—200°F confirms it’s done.
7. Cool. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool for at least 15 minutes before slicing. Cutting too soon will make the interior gummy.

Nutrition (per serving)

Calories: 175 | Protein: 5g | Fat: 3g | Carbs: 32g | Fiber: 1g | Sodium: 235mg