If you know my family at all, you probably know that we are great eaters of bread. True connoisseurs, we take delight in sampling many varieties of bread, and happily, I enjoy baking bread as well as eating it. While I’m always on the lookout for new recipes to try, I also have a list of favorites that I come back to again and again.
A few of these are my original recipes, but many are from other bloggers who are doing good work in the world of bread. For each recipe, I’ll give you a link, and tell you why I love it, what I serve it with, and any small tweaks I make when I bake it.
Pretzel Bread
From Tara’s Multicultural Table
Why I love it: The crust has that salty, chewy pretzel factor but the inside is so soft and flavorful. It’s really delicious, and it’s great for mixing things up in your bread rotation. I also think they make very pretty loaves (is that weird to say? Who cares, it’s true!)
What I serve it with: Usually pasta, but I have to tell you, this bread makes for an amazing sandwich. You haven’t had a BLT until you’ve had it on pretzel bread (with avocado, mayo, and dijon mustard, a.k.a. the best way.)
Classic Italian Bread
From Girl vs. Dough
Why I love it: I’ve been making this bread for years—probably at least five or six years at this point. It’s an excellent recipe for beginning bread-bakers because the directions and ingredients are simple, and in my experience it’s pretty foolproof. I’ve never had a loaf turn out badly even when I rushed it or messed up a measurement. It’s always soft and delicious!
What I serve it with: Almost anything! Because it’s so simple, it’s extremely versatile. Mostly I make it to go with pasta, but I’ve served it with lots of other dishes as well.
Sourdough Bread
From Read. Eat. Repeat.
Why I love it: I love the chewy crust, tangy flavor, and robust texture of this sourdough loaf. Like many people, I started dabbling in sourdough during the pandemic, and this is one of the first recipes I was able to make regularly with consistent results. It’s a good one for beginners who aren’t sophisticated enough to worry about ratios and weighing flour—spoiler alert: that still describes me!
What I serve it with: This bread holds up really well for dipping in soups and stews, and is also the perfect base for a really good grilled cheese sandwich.
My Favorite Corn Bread
From Sally’s Baking Addiction
Why I love it: I wasn’t sure I’d like how sweet it is, but I actually love the rich flavor the honey and brown sugar brings. This corn bread is moist and soft and so delicious!
What I serve it with: This corn bread pairs really well with chili and soups, particularly potato soup and a creamy chicken corn chowder that I love.
Copycat Olive Garden Bread Sticks
From Yummi Haus
Why I love it: Olive. Garden. Breadsticks. These are seriously yummy and taste very much like the ones you get at the restaurant. I personally like making thicker breadsticks by dividing the dough into 12 pieces instead of 24 like the recipe says, but you do you! That’s the beauty of cooking at home—the food is infinately customizable. I also use only a teaspoon of sugar and have found that the yeast is fine with it.
What I serve it with: Italian food, obviously.
Homemade Sandwich Bread
From Read. Eat. Repeat.
Why I love it: It’s super easy, almost impossible to mess up, and the bread is so soft and fluffy! This one is great for your classic PB&J or roast beef and swiss sandwich, or for toast in the morning.
What I serve it with: Typically I use this like a loaf of sandwich bread you’d get from the store, so mostly for sandwiches and toast. I have spread garlic butter on it before, and it was fine, but I prefer most of the other breads on this list to pair with a main dish.
Ridiculously Easy Artisan Rolls
From The Cafe Sucre Farine
Why I love it: My daughter affectionately calls these “cruise ship rolls” because she says they remind her of the bread served at dinner on our last few cruises. They have a chewy exterior and a soft, mildly flavored center that tastes great with a simple pat of salted butter. These are super easy—just keep in mind is that they require some lead time!
What I serve it with: These rolls go with just about everything. They are great with soups and stews, with a classic meat and veggies meal, or with a pan of lasagna.
Croissant Bread
From Sally’s Baking Addiction
Why I love it: Because it has all the flaky, buttery goodness of a croissant but it’s ready in a fraction of the time! It does still take about 6-7 hours to go through the lamination process so plan to make this on a day off, not on a night where you need something fast. But I promise it’s worth the effort!
What I serve it with: Everything. It’s also really good for making French toast with the leftovers (if there are any leftovers).
Copycat Outback Bread
From Read. Eat. Repeat.
Why I love it: It’s got a unique flavor because of the molasses, and I also like that my kids like it! Anything that my kids will eat that isn’t peanut butter and jelly sandwiches has my admiration.
What I serve it with: I most commonly serve this with soups, like this Creamy Wild Rice Soup. But we also eat it with steak and potatoes/onion rings sometimes for an “Outback dinner” that mimics what you might get at the restaurant.