Fun with Bread

I love reading Once a Month Mom. You get some great ideas on cooking and the idea of doing all your cooking for the month in just one day sounds like a great time saver. I've ever managed that BUT I do cook in bulk quite frequently and one of my favorite parts of this recipe is that you can make the dough and keep it in the fridge for up to two weeks! Fresh bread every night! And while it's not THAT difficult of a recipe it does save a little time which is always a Mom's BFF.

Thank you Once a Month Mom! :)

Artisan Bread
Author/Source:
Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day
Ingredients:
3 cups warm water
1.5 tablespoons yeast
1.5 tablespoons kosher salt
6.5 cups all purpose, unbleached, unenriched flour

Directions:
In the large bowl, combine water, yeast, and salt. Stir together. No need to wait until yeast is bubbly. Add in flour all at once and stir together. All portions of the dough should be moistened so that no flour is left uncombined. Cover mixture with lid or plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for two hours, or until doubled in size. Place bowl of dough, still covered, in fridge overnight and up to 14 days.

How to make a loaf: Sprinkle pizza peel – or parchment paper, if you don’t own a peel – very generously with corn meal. You want to make sure your loaf doesn’t stick when you slide it off onto the pizza stone or cookie sheet. Remove bowl from refrigerator. Sprinkle a “cloak” of flour over the dough – you’re not trying to mix it in or make your dough less sticky. Cut off a grapefruit -sized piece of dough, and pull all four sides, one at a time, to the bottom to form a ball. Flour hands if dough is sticking to them. Don’t worry about making the bottom of the loaf look smooth.

Let loaf rest for 40 minutes (or more, if kitchen is drafty or cool). Most of the actual rising will take place in the oven. 20 minutes before baking, place pizza stone in oven on the second to bottom rack, and place broiler pan on the rack below that; preheat to 450. After 40 minutes have passed, sprinkle top of loaf with flour (to keep knife from sticking). Using a serrated knife, make two 1/4 inch cuts crosswise on the top of the loaf. Now, with a quick motion, flick the loaf onto the pizza stone, then pour a cup of hot water into the broiler pan. Shut oven as quickly as possible to retain steam. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until crust is browned and hardened. Remove from oven and place on cooling rack; don’t slice in until cooled because it will release essential moisture moisture.

Freezing Directions:
You can freeze dough after first rise in portions, wrap in parchment and store in freezer bag. You can also freeze the loaf after baking in a freezer bag.