Let's set the record straight. I am not a baker. I'm way too good at ad-libbing when it comes to recipes to do any real justice to baked goods. Baking is a science. In baking, when the recipe says "add a cup of flour" you add a cup of flour and ONLY A CUP of flour. You measure it out, scrape the excess off with a butter knife, use tweezers to pick out any lingering excess bits of flour, and do anything else necessary to be as exact as possible. But, y'all. I promise. If I can get a good loaf of bread out of this recipe, you can too.
I love bread. I love all types of bread. I especially love a good loaf of artisan bread: crusty on the outside and chewy on the inside. Add a cast-iron dutch oven into the mix, and I'm in heaven. The best thing about this recipe is that you can really make it what you want. I've used whole wheat flour and added sunflower seeds. I've used 3 or 4 different Well Seasoned Table Sea Salts. You simply can't take a wrong turn. My only words of caution are be wary of the constancy of the dough. Too watery and it won't rise. The dough should be goopey (yes, that is the technical term) but still hold together in a ball.
This bread won't last long, so if you are making it for a crowd think about making a double batch. You can always freeze the leftovers then pull it out, piece by piece, when you want some toast. I first tested this recipe on my Gram (she's 92 and LOVES toast with her breakfast). She had at least 3 pieces before the oven had even finished cooling down. Happy Baking!
Ingredients:
- 3 cups all purpose flour
- 1 3/4 tsp WST sea salt (ANY KIND YOU WANT--my favorite ones to use are any of the mushroom line)
- 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 11/2 cups room temperature water
- 3/4 cup chopped fresh rosemary
- In a large bowl mix flour, WST sea salt, rosemary and yeast together. Mix in the water and use a spatula to blend until well combined. Again, Make sure the dough is sticky but not watery. I like to add my water a little at a time to make sure it is just right.
- Cover the bowl and allow to sit on the counter overnight, at least 12 hours.
- Preheat oven to 450 F degrees. While oven is heating, place your Dutch Oven in the oven to allow it to preheat as well.
- Remove pot from oven and remove the lid from it.
- Dust your hands with flour and sprinkle some over the top of the dough in the bowl. With your floured fingers (say that 5 times fast) separate the dough from the sides of the bowl and form into a ball. This is a no knead recipe, but you may have to fold it a couple times to get it to form the shape you want. Place the dough into the bottom of your Dutch Oven.
- Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on, then remove the lid and bake another 15-20 minutes until the bread is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool. You can cut it up now to enjoy immediately or you can pop the whole thing into the freezer to keep for later.