JP's Bread recipe



Bread, options, Fougasse, and Cinnamon rolls. There are a few links to the bread recipe I've been using. And a few comments..

This is the basic recipe.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/08/dining/081mrex.html?ref=dining


3 cups bread flour

1 packet ( 1/4 ounce) instant yeast. I use one level teaspoon or less.

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

Oil as needed (to grease the Dutch oven)

Then there was a second link which was an update:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/08/dining/08mini.html

In THIS update, it is mentioned, but not written that you can add a 1/4 teaspoon of red wine vinegar. Typically, I don't measure, so I add up to a teaspoon of vinegar.

Then the rest of the recipe: (my comments are in parentheses)

1. Combine flour, yeast and salt in a large bowl. Add 1 1/2 cups water and stir until blended; dough will be shaggy. You will learn what shaggy means. Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let dough rest about 4 hours at warm room temperature, about 70 degrees. (If you use less yeast (as I do) it will take longer to rise, sometimes up to 10 hours)

2. Lightly oil a work surface and place dough on it; fold it over on itself once or twice. (NO!! Don't do it! Keep it in the bowl! Mush it around with a spatula. Don't get your hands in it. Don't get your hands messed. This dough is 50% liquid and is very sticky.) Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes more. (An hour or two is good)

3. 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. Grease the pot. Slide your hand under dough and put it into pot, seam side up. (or not! I scrape the dough into the pot with a spatula. It does a half-gainer while it's falling from the bowl and lands perfectly every time) Shake pan once or twice if dough is unevenly distributed; it will straighten out as it bakes.

4. 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: 1 big loaf.


Here is my Dutch Oven.

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Upate, May 2009. BEER!! This bread recipe calls for 50 percent liquid. A half a can of Yuengling Chesterfield Ale is a wonderful addition. Add 6 ounces of beer, leave out 6 ounces of water! You can leave out the vinegar if you use beer.

Also: Olives! After the first rise, fold in about 20 oil-cured black olives, pitted and halved. Rosemary is a good herb to add.

Update, August 2010. Pita Bread! Using my trusty recipe, for plain bread, just after step 2, cut off a hunk of dough just smaller than a baseball. Dust it with flour and roll it into a ball. If you have time, let it rest for 10 to 20 minutes. Then roll it flat. It should be about a quarter inch thick. Your oven should be hot, about 450 degrees Fahrenheit and your baking stone should be hot too. Throw the dough onto the baking stone and set the timer for three minutes. Done!

Here's a regular loaf of bread and a pita bread.

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2011... when I baked Fougasse using laminated dough and incorporated pepperoni and Asiago cheese.


When I corresponded with Elizabeth at the BBB blog, she encouraged me to post this photo of my fougasse and she rewarded me with the bread baking buddy award for baking fougasse this month.

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Apple Cinnamon buns
I bought a gallon of apple cider and had about two cups left when it got fizzy. I thought, "there's yeast in there". I made these rolls using only the natural yeast in the apple cider.


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...and it has been three years since I bought a loaf of bread.
JP
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