19 Yeast Bread Recipes for Loaves, Rolls, Focaccia, and More

19 of Our Favorite Yeast Bread Recipes, From No-Knead Loaves to Martha-Level Boules

Sweet or savory, these baked goods are fluffy, airy, and just plain delicious.

By

Published on April 11, 2024

Artisan bread on cutting board — Photo:
Mike Krautter

A packet of yeast, whether active dry or instant, is one of the most unassuming-looking items you'll find in our kitchen pantry. But, as these yeast bread recipes prove, this simple-seeming ingredient can transform flour, water, and salt into magic.

Whether you want to make a simple loaf of white bread or a not-so-simple multigrain affair, yeast is the ticket to keeping that bread fluffy and light. It's also a key ingredient in pizza dough, focaccia, and all kinds of pull-apart breads. Yeast also pops up in sweet recipes (even in donuts!).

You’ll find recipes for a wonderful array of yeasty goodness here, from simple and straightforward to more involved options that will let you fully immerse yourself in the cozy, oh-so-satisfying world of yeast breads. Dive in—the water is perfectly lukewarm (IYKYK!).

01 of 19

Multigrain Bread

Multigrain bread — Rachel Marek

This chock-full-of-goodness bread includes whole-wheat, rye, and all-purpose flour, along with bulgur, rolled oats, flaxseeds, and sunflower seeds. Despite its heartiness, it's still light and airy.

02 of 19

Mozzarella-Stuffed Garlic and Herb Bread

mozzarella-stuffed garlic-and-herb bread — Nico Schinco

This stuffed masterpiece starts with one layer of dough on the bottom, then a layer of mozzarella, followed by another layer of dough, topped with Parmesan and a smattering of Italian seasonings. As it bakes, the cheese melts, and the dough puffs lightly. Serve it with marinara for dipping, and you've essentially reinvented the pizza in one very delicious way.

03 of 19

No-Knead Tomato Focaccia

No-knead tomato focaccia — Marcus Nilsson

With a tender middle and lightly crisp edges, this focaccia is just plain delicious. Try using a mixture of red and yellow tomatoes for an intriguing look.

04 of 19

Kaiser Rolls

Kaiser rolls on cutting board with butter in the background — Rachel Marek

Kaiser rolls are crusty, round, topped with poppy or sesame seeds, and delicious buttered or filled with sandwich fixings. This recipe takes you through each step of making them, complete with a tutorial on creating their signature knot on top.

05 of 19

Pull-Apart Garlic Bread

pull apart herb bread — Linda Pugliese

It's soft, pillowy, garlicky, and you don't need a knife for this irresistible bread. It's a side that threatens to upstage the main course—it's that good.

06 of 19

Quick Basic Pizza Dough

Quick Basic Pizza Dough Step 5 — Grant Webster

A recipe you'll use again and again, this useful dough goes far beyond pizza. Think: stromboli, garlic knots, calzone, pull-apart bread, focaccia, sticky buns, and more.

07 of 19

Cinnamon Rolls

cinnamon rolls in glass pan with bowl of frosting — Lennart Weibull

The surprise ingredient in these tasty breakfast rolls? Potato. It delivers a loftiness that's hard to achieve otherwise (and we promise you won't taste any potato!).

08 of 19

Classic White Bread

This humble loaf is just the thing to serve with a bowl of soup or toasted and spread with jam for breakfast. It's a great reminder of the beauty of the simple things in life.

09 of 19

No-Knead Olive and Cheese Loaf

Olive and cheese loaf

With a crusty exterior from baking in a Dutch oven and an enticing combination of aged Gruyère and green Spanish olives, this delightful bread needs no accompaniment (except perhaps a glass of wine).

10 of 19

Artisan Boule

artisan boule bread martha bakes cutting board slice butter — Mike Krautter

A round loaf of crusty bread is a work of art. And with this recipe, it's art anyone can make. Follow our step-by-step instructions, and you'll soon become a master.

11 of 19

Whole-Grain Bread

Elizabeth Watt

Whole-wheat flour, wheat bran, coarse whole-grain cornmeal, old-fashioned oats, and ground flaxseed are the powerhouses in this nutritious loaf. A small amount of dark brown sugar offers a subtle sweetness.

12 of 19

Soft Pretzels

A homemade hot pretzel with an array of mustards for dipping puts any store-bought version to shame. Be sure to use coarse ground pretzel salt for that authentic look, flavor, and texture.

13 of 19

Soft, Buttery Dinner Rolls

Dinner Rolls — Dana Gallagher

For a wonderfully comforting side dish to nearly any meal (particularly Thanksgiving!), classic dinner rolls are a must. You can freeze the rolls before baking, too, which is a great time-saver around the holidays.

14 of 19

Pumpernickel Bread

With its familiar dark brown color and dense texture, pumpernickel is a beloved bread that's especially wonderful spread with butter or topped with cream cheese and smoked salmon. This recipe calls for unsweetened chocolate, molasses, and ground caraway seeds for deep, rich flavor.

15 of 19

Homemade Bagels

Homemade Bagels — Jonathan Lovekin

There are a few tricks to making delicious bagels at home: for a chewy inside and crisp outside, boil the bagels quickly before baking them in a hot oven. And for beautiful browning, incorporate barley malt extract into the dough.

16 of 19

Multigrain English Muffins

These hearty English muffins might ruin you for the store-bought version forever. They're made with an intriguing mix of grains, including all-purpose flour, whole-wheat flour, rolled oats, wheat germ, whole flaxseed, and caraway seeds. Buttermilk lends the slightest tang.

17 of 19

Cheese Danish

Cheese Danish — Rachel Marek

With a cardamom-scented dough and a lemony, raisin-spiked cheese filling, these pastries are the stuff breakfast dreams are made of.

18 of 19

Deep-Dish Pizza Dough

deep dish pizza how-to dough — Paola + Murray

The non-negotiable in this iconic dough is butter: it gives the baked dough a flaky, irresistible texture. Beyond deep-dish pizza, this dough is also great as a base for a skillet pizza.

19 of 19

Glazed Yeast Donuts

yeasted donut — Will Anderson

Unlike cake donuts, yeast donuts are light and fluffy, with an airiness that's impossible to achieve without yeast. Dip them in a lemon, strawberry, or chocolate glaze for a sweet and slightly crunchy finish.

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