Disclaimer

Most of these recipes are in no way our own original recipes. We are simply sharing recipes we have found through years of cooking and baking that we enjoy. We in no way claim any of these recipes as our own, unless otherwise stated (unless they are super duper yummy). Please enjoy!

Tuesday, January 17, 2012

Crusty Italian Bread

1 pkg (2 1/2 t. Yeast)
1-1/4 C. warm water
3 C. bread flour
2 t. sugar
1 t. salt
1 T. olive oil
Cornmeal for dusting


Dissolve the yeast in 1/4 C. warm water. Set aside.  After it bubbles up, add it to the bowl with the remaining 1 C. warm water.  Stir. Add the flour, sugar, and stir.  I used my kitchenaid and dough hook and mixed slightly. THEN add the oil. If you add the oil too early, it binds with the flour and won't let the gluten form right.  Turn dough out onto floured counter.  Knead and stretch it for quite awhile til it gets smooth and elastic.


Place dough in an oiled bowl. Toss the dough around to get it oiled well.  Cover with plastic wrap, pressed all the way onto the dough.


Let rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours til double in bulk.


Tun dough out onto counter and smash down to get air out. Shape into two loaves or one large loaf if you have a big pan to put it on.  I used my round stone. Cover pan with cornmeal first so it won't stick.  Cover loaves with plastic wrap sprayed with oil and let rise another 40 minutes.


Cut each loaf down the middle with a sharp knife. This will prevent the dough from splitting when it rises and bakes in the oven.


Bake in preheated 425 oven for 10 minutes. Then turn down oven to 400 and bake 20 more minutes.  Place a pan of water in the bottom rack of the oven to make a steam oven.  It will help make the crust crisp and allow the bread to rise more.

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