Mostly because I told a friend I would get this recipe to her but also because I want to share this easy-peasy bread recipe with everyone. All you need is a dutch oven (a metal pot with a lid that goes in the oven) and a taste for fresh baked bread.
Crusty Bread
Requires a dutch oven
Basic recipe
3 ½ cups Bread Flour
1 ½ tsp Salt
½ tsp yeast
1 ¾ cups water (cold or room temperature)
¼ cup whole wheat flour (to
be used after rising)
Directions
1.
In a large bowl combine bread flour, salt and
yeast. Add water. With a spatula stir until flour is completely moistened but
not necessarily smooth. No kneading required. Cover bowl loosely with a piece
of plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature for 8-12 hours or overnight.
The dough should double at minimum.
2.
Place dutch oven (with lid) in the oven and
preheat the oven to 425F. Set the oven timer for 30 minutes.
3.
When 30 minutes is up, scatter the whole wheat
flour over the dough, scraping down the sides in order to allow the whole wheat
flour to cover the entire dough. Remove pot lid. Drop dough into the hot pot.
Cover and bake for 30 minutes.
4.
Remove lid and bake for another 30 minutes.
5.
Let cool in pot. When cool, remove any excess
flour.
Variations
Whole wheat
bread: substitute 1 ½ cups of bread flour with 1 ½ cups of whole wheat flour
Walnut bread:
add ½ cup chopped walnuts
Rye bread:
substitute 1 cup bread flour for 1 cup rye flour. Add 1 tbsp ground flax seed
Raisin bread:
Add ½ cup raisins and 1 tsp cinnamon
Additions
A handful of
sunflower seeds
A handful of
pumpkin seeds
¼ cup ground
oatmeal
1 tbsp ground
flax seed
