No-Knead Bread: attempt #2

Success!  This bread is amazing, it’s perfect, it is the champion of easy bread!  Hell, it’s the champion of some fancy breads too.  This time I baked it for 30 minutes, lid on, but then only 5-6 minutes lid off.  It may just be my oven,  but yesterday I had pumpernickel-looking loaf after 15 minutes.  I should have learned by now to trust my gut, not the directions.  Especially if you’ve been baking for a while, you know how most things should look.  Anyway, I love this bread.  Everyone should make it. 

No-Knead Bread: attempt #1

I first saw this recipe published in the New York Times about a year ago, adapted from Jim Lahey at the Sullivan Street Bakery.  It recently resurfaced in the Oregonian with rave reviews, so I figured I’d give it a try.  It’s simple and practically effortless…who can argue with that?  I’ve made quite a bit of bread in the past, but traditional recipes can be terribly time consuming with an inconsistent outcome.  Half the time you fail, a fourth of the time you succeed, and a fourth of the time you have mediocre bread.  It takes a lot of trial and error, which doesn’t always work for home bakers who prefer variety over one perfect loaf.  This is just good bread.  

 Gather together:

• 3 C. bread flour or all-purpose flour, plus more for shaping dough
• 1/4 t. instant yeast (such as Fleischmann’s RapidRise brand)
• 2 1/2 t. salt, or more to taste
• 1 1/2 C. + 2 tablespoons tepid water
• Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed

1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt.  Add the water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and very sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap.  Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18 hours, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.  Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles.
2. Turn dough out on a lightly floured work surface; sprinkle dough with a little more flour, and fold it over on itself once or twice.  Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest about 15 minutes.
3. Using just enough flour to keep dough from sticking to work surface or to your fingers, gently and quickly shape dough into a ball.  Generously dust a cotton (not terry cloth) kitchen towel with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal.  Cover with another kitchen towel and let rise for 2 to 3 hours.  When it is ready, dough will be more than double in size and will not readily spring back when poked with a finger.
4. At least 30 minutes before dough is ready, preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Put a heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic; anywhere from 31/2 quarts to 6 or 8 quarts) in oven as it heats.  When dough is ready, carefully remove pot from oven.  Slide your hand under towel and turn dough over into pot, seam side up; it may look like a mess, but that’s okay.  Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.  Cover with lid and bake 30 minutes, then remove lid and bake another 5 to 30 minutes (depending on your oven), until loaf is nicely browned.  Cool on a rack.  Makes one 1 1/2 pound loaf.

Next time I’m going to try using parchment on the bottom of the second rise, rather than a cotton towel.  I completely ruined the towel I used because the dough was too sticky.  Be warned!  The technique of baking the bread in a heated dutch oven or covered pot is a huge key to the success of this recipe.  The only problem I had was over-baking, thus this is attempt #1.  I would recommend keeping an eye on the bread once the lid is removed in the baking process.  My first loaf was too dark on the outside, even after 15 minutes.  It tasted amazing, the inside chewy and perfect.  You can try different flours, though for best results, substitute whole-grain flour for no more than half of the white (and use even less rye flour, which tastes great but is heavy).  Fold fresh herbs or olives into the dough as desired, or enjoy it as it is.  Voila!  Perfect bread and you’ve hardly lifted a finger.  What could be better?  Attempt #2 tomorrow…