It is easy, delicious and while I was first insistent that it could be made in whole wheat form, I have since relented and allowed this bread to be as it is.
Day 1:
3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp yeast
1 1/2 cups tap water (luke warm)
I use the kitchen aid mixer with the bread hook attachment. Place the flour, salt and yeast into the stainless steel bowl. Mix on low and then add water slowly. Use a spatula to make sure all the dry flour is incorporated. Cover the bowl with foil or plastic wrap if you can't stand surprises. Leave this on the counter for a day. Do not refrigerate.
In the photo-ed bread we added rosemary because we had some. It went nicely into the mix!
Day 2:
Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Place a covered pot with a lid in the oven (be sure that your pot can handle this- the first thing I tried, changed colors and smoked- we now only use enameled cast iron) and preheat for 30 minutes. Take out your dough and roll out on flour, and roll into a ball. At 30 minutes place the dough into the pot and cover. Bake for 30 minutes. Then remove the lid and bake uncovered for 15 minutes. Pull it out and move to a cooling rack. Allow to cool slightly before serving. We pop ours into a bag and keep it in the fridge. There are no preservatives in this so eat it fast or keep it in the fridge.
Thanks Dad!
Looks yummy! (And, having had some, I know it tastes yummy too.) So, what did you try as far as whole wheat goes? Half and half? Whole wheat pastry flour, or regular? Curious, because I like my fiber. :)
ReplyDeleteIn the words of Nick Stellino, " I am so glad you asked!"
ReplyDeleteWhat I have tried is my dad's usual trick for wheat flour (I too prefer a bit of fiber-y goodness). He stands by adding 25% more liquid to any recipe where you use wheat flour instead of white. However, it hasn't worked with this particular bread, the texture doesn't cut it. So some other things to try would be the half wheat and half all purpose mix. I think what I might try next is the wheat flour from Trader's (this is not a cheap ploy for a freebie) because I have had success with this flour when other things haven't worked.
Let me know if you attempt one and we can compare notes.