All credit goes to The Italian Dish blog for this recipe. You'll definitely want to head over there for additional instructions and pictures! I've copied this word for word from the blog.
*before you start, I must note, this is SO salty that I'm sure the 1 1/2 Tbsp of salt MUST be a mistake, I'm guessing it should read teaspoons*
*before you start, I must note, this is SO salty that I'm sure the 1 1/2 Tbsp of salt MUST be a mistake, I'm guessing it should read teaspoons*
No Knead Artisan Bread
adapted from Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day
for a printable recipe, click here
makes four 1 pound loaves.
makes four 1 pound loaves.
Ingredients:
- 3 cups lukewarm water
- 1-1/2 tablespoons granulated fast acting (instant) yeast (2 packets)
- 1-1/2 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt
- 6-1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached all purpose white flour
(My favorite way to make this bread
now is to use half bread flour, half all-purpose flour and throw in 3/4
cup wheat bran into the dough.)
After baking, if your bread is gummy
on the inside, try either increasing the amount of flour by 1/4 cup
and/or increasing the baking time by 5-10 minutes.
Also, If the dough is just too sticky for you to work with comfortably, increase the flour in your next batch.
Instructions:
Mixing and Storing the Dough
1. Warm the water slightly.
It should feel just a little warmer than body temperature, about 100
degrees F. Warm water will rise the dough to the right point for storage
in about 2 hours.
2. Add yeast and salt to the water in a 5 quart bowl or a plastic container with a lid.
3. Mix in the flour - kneading is unnecessary. (Note:
I dump all this in my KitchenAid mixer, let it mix it for just about 10
seconds and then put it in the plastic container. I just find it
easier to let the mixer do this part). Add all of the flour at
once, measuring the flour by scooping it and leveling it off with a
knife. Mix with a wooden spoon - do not knead. You're finished when
everything is uniformly moist, without dry patches. This step is done
in a matter of minutes. The dough should be wet and loose.
4. Allow to rise.
Cover with a lid (not airtight). Lidded plastic buckets designed for
dough storage can be purchased many places. (I used a plastic square
food storage container at my local grocery store. I just make sure that
the lid is not snapped on completely). You want the gases to be able
to escape a little. Allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until
it begins to collapse (or at least flattens on top), about two hours.
Longer rising times will not hurt your dough. You can use a portion of
the dough any time after this period. Fully refrigerated wet dough is
less sticky and is easier to work with than dough at room temperature.
So, the first time you try this method, it's best to refrigerate the
dough overnight (or at least 3 hours) before shaping a loaf.
Baking
5. Shape your loaf. Place a piece of baking parchment paper on a pizza peel (don't have a pizza peel - use an unrimmed baking sheet or turn a rimmed baking sheet upside down). Sprinkle the surface of your dough in the container with flour. Pull
up and cut off about a 1-pound piece of dough (about the size of a
grapefruit), using scissors or a serrated knife. Gently stretch the
surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating
the ball as you go. Dust your hands with flour if you need to. This is
just to prevent sticking - you don't want to incorporate the flour into
the dough. The top of the dough should be smooth - the object here is
to create a "gluten cloak" or "surface tension". It doesn't matter what
the bottom looks like, but you need to have a smooth, tight top. This
whole step should take about 30 seconds! Place the dough onto your
parchment paper.
6. Let the loaf rise
for about 30 - 40 minutes (it does not need to be covered). If it
doesn't look like it has risen much, don't worry - it will in the oven.
This is called "oven spring".
7. Preheat a baking stone
on the middle rack in the oven for at least 20 minutes at 450 degrees
F. Place an empty rimmed baking pan or broiler pan on a rack below the
baking stone. This pan is for holding water for steam in the baking
step. (If you don't have a baking stone,
you can use a baking sheet, but you will not get the crisp crust on the
bottom. You will still have a great loaf of bread. Baking stones are
cheap and easy to find - Target carries them - and are a must for making
pizzas, so go out and get one as soon as you can.)
8. Dust the loaf with a little flour and slash the top with a knife.
This slashing is necessary to release some of the trapped gas, which
can deform your bread. It also makes the top of your bread look pretty -
you can slash the bread in a tic tac toe pattern, a cross, or just
parallel slashes. You need a very sharp knife or a razor blade - you
don't want the blade to drag across the dough and pull it. As the bread
bakes, this area opens and is known as "the bloom". Remember to score
the loaves right before baking.
9. Bake. Set a cup of
water next to your oven. Slide the bread (including the parchment
paper) right onto the hot baking stone. Quickly pour the water right
into the pan underneath the baking stone and close the oven door. This
creates the necessary steam to make a nice crisp crust on the bread.
Bake at 450 F for about 30 - 35 minutes, depending on the size of your
loaf. Make sure the crust is a deep golden brown. When you remove the
loaf from the oven, you will hear it crackle for a while. In baking
terms, this is called "sing" and it is exactly what you want.
10. Cool. Allow the
bread to cool for the best flavor and texture. It's tempting to eat it
when it's warm, and that's fine, but the texture is better after the
bread has cooled.
11. Store the remaining dough
in the refrigerator in your lidded (with a hole punched in the top)
container and use for up to 14 days. Every day your bread will improve
in flavor. Cut off and shape more loaves as you need them. When your
dough is gone, don't clean the container. Go ahead and mix another
batch - the remaining bits of dough will contribute flavor to the next
batch, much like a sourdough starter does!
Bread is best eaten the day it is baked.
Leftover baked bread is best stored at room temperature, unwrapped.
Simply place the cut side of the bread on plate or counter. If your
bread is gummy on the inside, try either increasing the amount of flour
by 1/4 cup and/or increasing the baking time by 5-10 minutes.
used 4 1/2 cups of white flour, 2 cups whole wheat, and 1 Tbsp sugar
VERY salty!
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