How to bake better bread at home

Dig in: We asked Reedy for her tips to make better bread at home.

Her favorite recipe in the book: Call Your Mother Deli bagels. She said she believed bagels were "one of those things I could never make." But "they are actually totally doable. They turned out on the first try. And I'm not a great professional baker by any means."

The most challenging recipe: Baguette. The recipe is from Denver's Bakery Four. "Baguettes are known as one of the hardest breads to make."

Tips for baking at altitude: "The good news for people here at altitude is that breads are a lot more forgiving than cakes and pastries," she says. Two things to keep in mind:

• "If the dough is just not forming a ball … that's when you would need to add a little more water. But a little goes a long way, so do it a teaspoon at a time."
• "Use new flour — not flour that's been in your pantry for two years," she adds. "Like everything else, it can dry out and that would affect the moisture in the dough."

One gadget to buy: A kitchen scale. "It was just intimidating to buy it," she admits. But it's so easy to use, it makes your measures more precise, and you're going to get better results."

If you go: Meet Reedy and buy her new book at Rebel Bread's Denver Bake Fest on Oct. 5. She'll be judging the contest.

Recipe:

3-Ingredient Bread, from Kimberlee Ho at Kickass Baker

Makes 1 loaf. Active time: 10 minutes. Total time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

5 tablespoons melted unsalted

butter, divided (optional)

3 cups self-rising flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1 (12-ounce) mild lager (1½

cups), such as Budweiser

Special equipment:

Nonstick loaf pan

1. Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat to 400ºF. Brush melted butter liberally on the bottom and sides of an 8½ x 4½ -inch nonstick loaf pan. Set loaf pan and remaining melted butter aside.

2. Stir flour and sugar together in a large bowl. Stir in beer and mix until a shaggy, sticky dough forms. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit for 15 minutes.

3. Transfer dough to the prepared loaf pan. Brush 3 tablespoons melted butter over the top, smoothing the bread dough a bit as you brush on the melted butter. Reserve about 1 tablespoon of the melted butter for brushing on the finished loaf.

4. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out with no crumbs attached and the top is light golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. After removing from the oven, immediately brush the top of the loaf with remaining melted butter.

5. Transfer pan to wire rack and let cool for 5 minutes. Turn loaf out onto a wire rack, turn right side up, and let cool completely on rack, at least 1 hour. Slice and serve.