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This weekend I made no-knead bread, using this recipe: http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/08/dining/081mrex.html
Here are the instructions as is from the NYT site:
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.
1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it 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 coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 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 a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) 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 is O.K. 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 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.
I mixed the dough up yesterday and put it in a warm closet to let it rise (because my kitchen is kinda cold). I left it there for about 20 hours. I followed the directions exactly, except that after a half hour of baking in a covered dutch oven, I took the lid off and it looked done. I didn't really want it to get any browner than it already was. It was beautiful. See?
But the proof is in the tasting. So after making Eli come downstairs to look at it, we started slicing. The crust was crisp & crusty, but the interior was too wet for my taste. It wasn't raw, just... damp. Eli liked it though.
I probably should have at least let it bake for 10 minutes or so uncovered to let out some of the moisture. Oh well, next time... if there is a next time. I found the process to be more time-consuming and more clean-up than just using a bread machine to knead the dough. I don't have a good recipe for a crusty bread using the bread machine, though. Any suggestions?
Here are the instructions as is from the NYT site:
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast
1¼ teaspoons salt
Cornmeal or wheat bran as needed.
1. In a large bowl combine flour, yeast and salt. Add 1 5/8 cups water, and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy and sticky. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest at least 12 hours, preferably about 18, at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees.
2. Dough is ready when its surface is dotted with bubbles. Lightly flour a work surface and place dough on it; sprinkle it 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 coat a cotton towel (not terry cloth) with flour, wheat bran or cornmeal; put dough seam side down on towel and dust with more flour, bran or cornmeal. Cover with another cotton towel and let rise for about 2 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 a half-hour before dough is ready, heat oven to 450 degrees. Put a 6- to 8-quart heavy covered pot (cast iron, enamel, Pyrex or ceramic) 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 is O.K. 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 15 to 30 minutes, until loaf is beautifully browned. Cool on a rack.
Yield: One 1½-pound loaf.
I mixed the dough up yesterday and put it in a warm closet to let it rise (because my kitchen is kinda cold). I left it there for about 20 hours. I followed the directions exactly, except that after a half hour of baking in a covered dutch oven, I took the lid off and it looked done. I didn't really want it to get any browner than it already was. It was beautiful. See?
But the proof is in the tasting. So after making Eli come downstairs to look at it, we started slicing. The crust was crisp & crusty, but the interior was too wet for my taste. It wasn't raw, just... damp. Eli liked it though.
I probably should have at least let it bake for 10 minutes or so uncovered to let out some of the moisture. Oh well, next time... if there is a next time. I found the process to be more time-consuming and more clean-up than just using a bread machine to knead the dough. I don't have a good recipe for a crusty bread using the bread machine, though. Any suggestions?
