Since the weather is nice and cold and staying in sounds more enticing than heading out, I had the urge to bake some bread this week. I decided to make a Dutch Oven Bread Loaf. The recipe was very easy, but as anyone that has baked bread before knows it does take time to proof, rise, proof, rise... and on and on!
4 cups flour
1 1/2 cups water (110 degrees or warm baby bottle temp)
1 teaspoon active dry yeast
Kosher salt or coarse sea salt
Olive Oil
1. Mix the water and yeast together and let sit for 5-10 minutes, in the bowl of the stand mixer.
2. Combine the flour, water and yeast in the stand mixer bowl with the dough hook attached. Mix on medium until the dough comes together. Remove the dough from the bowl and knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. This will take about 5-10 minutes. The dough should spring back at you when you press on it.
3. Once your dough is smooth, put it back in the mixer bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let the dough rise until it doubles in size. This should take between 2-4 hours depending on how warm your kitchen is.
4. After the dough has doubled in size turn the dough on your work surface and knead the dough to release the gas and redistribute the yeast. Form the dough into a tight ball and let it rest on the counter covered with a towel for 10 min.
5. Coat your dutch oven with olive oil and preheat your oven to 450 F.
6. Put the dough in the center of the dutch oven and cover with the lid. Let the dough rise for 30-45 min.
7. Once the dough has risen, lightly coat the dough with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Make sure to score your dough to let the dough expand.
8. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes with the lid on. After 30 minutes, remove the lid and bake until the crust is golden brown and the internal temp is 200 F degrees. This should take about 20 more minutes.
9. Once the bread is done, let it rest on a cooling rack for 30 minutes.
If you want to learn how to make breads at home, try The Chopping Block's How to Bake Bread, one of our many hands-on baking classes, on Sunday, November 26 at our Lincoln Square location. You'll learn how to make: