Breadmaker Rosemary Bread

I love rosemary bread. It tastes so good with soups and stews. However, the artisan breads that the supermarket sells can cost $4.00 for a small loaf.

I don't like using my breadmaker (a wedding gift that's now 8 years old, and up until recently has been used less than 8 times). Whenever I do, the bread comes out heavy and tough (which is probably more due to my lack of skill using a breadmaker than the breadmaker's fault, but it still frustrates me!).

So, when Brian found this incredibly easy breadmaker recipe for rosemary bread, I thought it was too good to be true - until I made it. I have all the ingredients on hand (another annoyance with typical breadmaker recipes that I have looked at in the past, calling for dry milk and other things that I just don't use all the regularly), and it's so simple. The best part, though? The bread comes out light and savory. It's inexpensive and delicious. A perfect combination.

1 C water
3 T olive oil
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 T dried rosemary
2 1/2 C white flour (the recipe originally called for bread flour, but regular white works great!)
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast

Place ingredients in the pan of the bread machine in the order recommended by the manufacturer. Select white bread cycle; press Start. I choose medium crust on my bread machine, and it's perfect. You may need to adjust according to what works best with your bread machine.