Raisin Bread

Ingredients

 * ½ cup sugar
 * 3 cups warm water
 * 1 tbsp salt
 * 2 tbsp yeast
 * 3 tbsp shortening
 * 5-6 cups flour
 * 1 egg
 * ½ cup raisins

Directions

 * 1) Dissolve yeast into ½ cup warm water.
 * 2) Let stand in a warm place for about 10 minutes.
 * 3) Beat in the sugar, salt, shortening, egg, raisins, and the rest of the water.
 * 4) Sift the flour and begin mixing it into the rest of the ingredients.
 * 5) Knead, shape and allow bread mixture to rise in oiled bowl until it has doubled in size.
 * 6) Punch down and allow mixture to rise again in the baking pan.
 * 7) To bake, place loaf in a cold oven.
 * 8) Turn the heat to 400°F.
 * 9) After 15 minutes, reduce heat to 375 degrees and bake 25 minutes more.
 * 10) Remove the loaf at once from the pan and cool on a rack before storing.