Pandemic baking! It’s all the rage. So is pandemic eating… at least around here. Sigh.
Yesterday we picked up an order from the Ottawa Bagelshop. (Curbside pick up!) Cue the angels:
I have officially entered the world of the no-knead breads. Frankly, it’s miraculous how such a lovely loaf can come together with so little effort. All you need is time!
A longtime blogging friend shared her recipe on Facebook. The resulting loaf was enormous. It’s hard to tell by this photo but it was bigger than my head.
It was delicious. Next time I make this I’ll probably shape two loaves and store one in the freezer.
This was her “no-knead” recipe:
You need a 6qt cast iron Dutch oven. (Or in my case, I used a vintage oval with a lid that is just under 6 qts.)
6 cups flour
1-1/2 tbsp yeast
1 tbsp + 1/2 tsp salt
3-1/2 cup warm water
- Blend together dry ingredients. Add water a bit at a time until dough holds together.
- Cover with plastic wrap. Leave for 15-18 hours.
- Preheat oven to 450F. Place covered Dutch oven inside and preheat for 1 hour.
- While oven is heating, turn the dough out onto a floured surface and shape into a ball. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 30 min. (I let mine rest for close to an hour, and I scored it before baking.)
- Place dough into Dutch oven and bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake for another 15 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the bread is around 210F.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool on rack.
Let me know if you try it! (I might also try this no-knead loaf, as it’s smaller.)
Let’s see… what other breads have I eaten. (THERE ARE MANY.)
– The youngest made banana bread from the Joy of Cooking (it’s the best recipe in my opinion). Recipes for apple fritter bread have been going around but we’ll have to wait until we have apples again before we try it.
– I made naan bread for the first time and it was very good! Here’s the recipe I used. It’s a keeper for sure.
– This recipe for hamburger buns is excellent.
– If soft sandwich bread is more your thing, this recipe was good.
– We had pretzels for dinner the other night. This is a good recipe, and you can’t beat the novelty factor of soft pretzels (especially if there are kids on the scene). You can eat pretzels as part of a ploughman’s-type meal, with cut up veggies and cold meats.
– I bought a very nice loaf at Piggy Market in Westboro. (And I heard Mamie Clafoutis is opening again!)
– Of course, making our own pizza dough has always been a regular thing around here! I like to make a double batch so I always have extras on hand.
If you have a bread recipe you like, I’d love to hear about it!
