• Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add only enough water to make a soft, yet stringy dough. The dough will be VERY sticky and look like a thick batter.
• Cover the bowl and let it sit from 12-18 hours. This will develop the flavor.
• Place a sheet of parchment (should be at least 14-inch/36 cm square) on the counter and dust heavily with flour.
• While the dough is still in the bowl, turn it over on itself several times. Wet your hands; it makes it easier. Now turn the dough out on the floured parchment, seam (if any) side down. Dust the top with flour and cover with the bowl inverted. Let rest for about 1-1 1/2 hours.
• While the dough is resting, place a 4-quart covered dutch oven with the cover on in the oven and pre-heat to 425F/220C.
• Grabbing the parchment, carefully place the rested dough in the hot dutch oven letting the paper overhang. Replace the cover and place it back in the oven for 30 minutes.
• Remove the cover after it has baked the 30 minutes and continue baking for 20 additional minutes or until the top is nicely browned.
• Remove from oven and let the bread sit in the dutch oven for 15 minutes; remove to a rack to cool.

• Mix warm water, brown sugar in bowl of a heavy-duty stand mixer (I use a 6 qt pro Kitchen Aid). Sprinkle yeast on top to soften and proof (proofing tests to see if the yeast is alive. In about 5 minutes or so, you will start to get bubbles–this means the yeast is good. If after 10 minutes, you see no bubbles or foam, the yeast will NOT rise the bread. Discard the water/sugar mixture and buy new yeast). If yeast “proofs,” then proceed—
• Add the oil, salt, dry milk, raisins, cinnamon and 2 cups of the flour to the bowl. Fit mixer with dough hook and using speed recommended by manufacturer (with KA that’s #2), mix the ingredients in the bowl.
• Add the remaining flour, 1 cup at a time, until a soft, but NOT sticky dough develops. If dough is a bit too sticky, add flour a tablespoon at a time. Flour is almost always a range–you only use as much as needed to get a soft, yet workable dough that doesn’t stick to your hands.
• Knead (by machine) about 5 minutes or turn out on floured surface and knead by hand about 8 minutes.
• Place about 1 tsp of oil in the bottom of a large bowl and place the kneaded dough in the bowl, coating the bottom of the dough with the oil. Turn dough oil side up and cover with greased plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, draft-free place until double in bulk–about 1 hour.
• Punch down dough after the rise (yep, just give it a good clop in the middle of the dough to deflate it). Turn out on a floured surface and shape into a loaf–all this means is rolling or patting the dough out into a rectangle about 6×10 inches and rolling up, jelly-roll style from the narrower end. Seal the seams and place in a greased 9x5x3 loaf pan. Cover with greased plastic wrap and place in a warm draft-free place to rise until double in bulk; about 45 minutes.
• Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake bread for 30-40 minutes, or until it sounds hollow when you tap the bottom -OR- bread’s internal temp is 190 degrees F (if you have an insta-read thermometer).
• Remove from pans and cool completely on a rack.
• Makes 1 loaf (recipe is easily doubled)

Bread Machine Instructions

• Place ingredients in bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer–this is usually all the wet ingredients first, ending up with the flour on top and the yeast on top of the flour. Set for SWEET cycle and just let the machine do it’s thing. When I make this in my bread machine, I don’t bother waiting for the “beep” to add the raisins–I just throw them in at the beginning.

• Mix all dough ingredients. Start with the minimum amount of flour. Dough should be silky but not sticky and have a firmish texture.
• Knead either by machine or hand. With machine, attach dough hook and knead for 5-8 minutes. Knead by hand 8-10 minutes.
• You may use a bread machine for the mixing and first rise. Follow manufacturer's directions for adding ingredients and use the "DOUGH" cycle.
• Place a little oil in a large bowl. Place dough in bowl, coating bottom of dough with the oil. Turn dough oil side up and cover and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until double in bulk, about 1 hour.
• (I use the oven-rise method. Before you put the bowl of dough in, turn on the oven. Let it run for about 30 seconds once you hear the heat come up, then turn the oven off. Put the bowl of dough in and it rises in the perfect environment)
• When dough is double in bulk, punch down, cover and let rise again until double in bulk; about 30 minutes. If you are using a bread machine, if there is a cycle for a 2nd rise, use that. If not, remove and follow directions from placing in the oiled bowl.
• When the 2nd rise is up, punch down dough and roll out in a 10 x 15 -inch rectangle. Roll up tightly from long side; seal seam. Roll the log of dough by placing hands at the 2 ends thus ending up with skinnier ends and a fatter middle.
• Place parchment paper on a large baking sheet. Dust with the cornmeal or semolina flour. *If not using parchment, grease baking sheet lightly and sprinkle with the cornmeal/semolina flour.
• Place shaped dough on prepared baking sheet. With sharp knife or razor blade, cut a 1/4-inch deep slit down center or make 3 short diagonal slashes across top of dough. Brush top with cold water.
• Let rise UNCOVERED in a warm draft-free place (I use the unlit oven) for 1 1/2 hrs.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Brush top of loaf again with cold water.
• Mix the water with the egg white and set aside.
• Bake bread for 20 minutes. Brush with egg white glaze and sprinkle with a topping if using. Return to oven and bake an additional 25 minutes.
• Makes 1 large loaf.

Bread Machine:

• If using a bread machine, add the ingredients in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Set on BASIC/WHITE cycle...and that's it if you want to do it entirely in a machine. If you want to shape yourself, then set to DOUGH cycle and remove dough, roll and shape and place in a greased 9 x 5 x 4-inch loaf pan. Cover and let rise until double--about 30 minutes. Bake as for conventional method.

Conventional Method:

• Add all ingredients to the bowl of a large stand mixer. Using dough hook at speed recommended by manufacturer, mix dough and knead for 5-8 minutes.
• Put a little oil in a large bowl and add the dough, coating one side with oil. Turn oil side up, cover with greased plastic wrap and set in a warm, dry, draft-free place to rise until double in bulk--about 1 hour.
• Punch down dough and shape as for a loaf.
• Place in well greased 9 x 5 x 4-inch loaf pan. Cover with greased plastic wrap and set in a warm, dry, draft-free place to rise until double in bulk--about 30 minutes. Note: Shirley cautions that this is a high-rising bread, so once it's shaped, when it has risen to 1-inch over the top of the pan, that is the time to bake.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake loaf for 35-45 minutes or until golden brown and tapping the bottom of the loaf makes a hollow sound (190 degrees F on an insta-read thermometer).
• Remove from pan and cool on a rack.