Homemade Fluffy Potato Bread Recipe

It's pretty hard to say no to a slice of delicious, fluffy potato bread. It's a staple of the bread world, with recipes that span the globe. It's amazing all the hearty, distinct flavor you get by replacing some wheat flour with potato flour. It's filling, pairs well with almost anything, and thanks to recipe creator Catherine Brookes, you can make it from scratch in your own kitchen.

"The mashed potato is the star ingredient here as that added starch helps to give the bread a super soft and fluffy texture," explains Brookes. It truly makes a magical loaf, though. ‌"The bread has that wholesome homemade taste with some richness from the butter and a good balance of sweet and saltiness," she says. And really, is there anything that rounds out a meal better than an amazing, fluffy, delicious loaf of homemade bread. And among all the types of bread out there, this homemade potato loaf could easily beat out any of them.

The ingredients list for this potato bread is pretty straightforward. You'll need a packet of instant yeast, milk, bread flour, a beaten egg, salt, sugar, mashed potatoes (Brookes recommends using fresh or from-scratch mashed potatoes), olive oil, and melted butter.

Be sure that you've got mashed potatoes on standby, then jump right in to making the bread. Start by heating the milk to somewhere between 110 and 115 F. The best way is by putting the milk in the bowl of an electric stand mixer and microwaving it. "I would recommend first microwaving the milk for one minute, then testing with an instant read thermometer," explains Brookes. "It should take somewhere between 1 min-1 min 30 seconds."

Once the milk is heated, mix in the yeast using a wooden spoon until it's spread throughout. "I use the bowl the fits onto my stand mixer to heat the milk and add the yeast so that it's then all ready to go," Brookes notes.

Pour in all the other ingredients, including the potatoes, and put the bowl into the stand mixer. Mix it on medium speed with the paddle attachment until it makes something resembling dough. Then replace the paddle with the dough hook and do your best breadmaker impression, allowing the dough to beat at low speed for 8 minutes.

Lightly grease a large bowl and, using wet hands, gently shape the dough into a ball then place it in the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel, then let it rest and rise in a warm spot for about an hour. During this time, the dough should double in size.

Now that your dough has risen, gently knead it on a lightly-floured surface to help excess air escape. Divide the dough in two and shape each half into a loaf, placing them into two lightly greased 5x9-inch loaf pans. Cover both pans with plastic wrap or towels and once again let the dough rest for another 30 to 40 minutes, so it again doubles in size. Towards the end of the rest period, go ahead and get the oven preheating to 350 F.

Uncover the loaf pans and bake the bread for 30 to 40 minutes. When they're golden brown on top and firm but springy to the touch, the bread is ready to go. If it starts to brown too much, cover it loosely with foil and keep baking. "When placing the foil over I tend to just pinch the edges a little to keep it in place over the pans," suggests Brookes.

Now just bask in the scent of fresh-baked bread. "The scent whilst cooking is warming and yeasty," Brookes describes. "The smell of homemade bread baking is always so enticing!"

Once it's ready, take the bread out of the oven and let it cool for about 15 minutes before transferring the loaves to a wire rack to cool completely. Then serve it as a side to your favorite meal, envelop a sandwich with it, or just eat it on its own. "I love to eat this with some butter spread on top," suggests Brookes. "You can also add your favorite toppings such as jam or peanut butter."